Nuclear Rainbow Drink Recipe

This drink has seven layers and is great for practicing your precision pouring skills.

Real rainbows also have seven coloured bands. Starting from the outside, they run in semi-circles of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. Rainbows are caused by the reflection and disbursement of light through water droplets, which is why they most often occur immediately following a rain shower.

The Nuclear Rainbow Drink actually mirrors the secondary arc of a double rainbow. That’s when you get two rainbows, one on top of the other, and the outer one has the colours reversed. The Nuclear Rainbow Drink has red at the bottom, so the colours are similarly backwards to the sequence you see in an ordinary rainbow.

The traditional recipe for a Nuclear Rainbow Drink calls for Jagermeister, but we much prefer the effect of adding Galliano instead. The yellow of this herbal liqueur really captures the effect you’re trying to create.

For the final layer, try using Blue Curacao instead of the traditional Amaretto. It will give you the bluish hue that marks the smallest band a perfect rainbow – or in this case, the longest band of the double variety.

If you're not sure how to layer a drink, take a look at our drink layering guide.

Here’s what you need:

Ingredients

• 15 ml Grenadine
• 15ml Peppermint Schnapps
• 15ml Galliano
• 15ml Melon Liqueur
• 15ml Canadian Whiskey
• 15ml White Rum
• 15ml Amaretto or Blue Curacao

Preparation

1. Start by pouring the Grenadine into the bottom of a Martini glass.
2. Pour each of the subsequent layers over the back of a cocktail spoon, so that the liquid dribbles onto the sides of the glass and doesn’t mix with the layer beneath.
3. Add the Peppermint Schnapps.
4. Add the Galliano.
5. Add the Melon Liqueur.
6. Add the Canadian Whiskey.
7. Add the Rum.
8. Finish with the Amaretto or Blue Curacao.

Equipment

• Martini glass
• Cocktail spoon