10+ Japanese Cocktail Recipes to Elevate Your Home Bar Experience

Japanese cocktails are alcoholic drinks with one or several spirits as the base and other ingredients like flavored syrup, fruit juice, or cream. These simple mixed beverages can help you relax and make great beverages for your evenings, whether you’re home or out.

Since cocktails first appeared in Japan, it has developed to catch Japanese signature flavors, like matcha. With that in mind, in this article, I’m introducing to you the best recipes you can make at home.

These tasty, simple recipes will be a good start if you want to experiment with your mixological capability.

Add These Amazing Japanese Cocktail Recipes To Your Home Bar

Within 10 minutes or less, you can enjoy a glass of tasty Japanese drinks with the following easy instructions for making cocktails. Unless you have many alcoholic ingredients available, I suggest checking out the recipes before shopping.

1. Tamagozake (Japanese Egg Sake)

Total time: About 10 minutes

In Japanese tradition, Tamagozake is a cold remedy consisting of raw eggs and hot Sake. You can consider it Japan’s cocktail made with eggnog, originally made with eggs, Sake, and honey or sugar.

However, I want to introduce a modern, more creative version of this Japanese drink. Apart from the main ingredients listed above, there are also fresh ginger, lemon juice, and cinnamon sticks.

You can use either only egg white or the whole egg, like in this Tamagozake recipe.

2. Mizuwari (Whisky And Water Cocktail)

Total time: 3 minutes

In Japanese, Mizu means water, and Wari means to divide. The complete name of this cocktail refers to a drink that comprises whisky cut with water and served with ice. The whisky to water ratio depends on your preference, ranging from 1:4 to 1:2.5.

Mizuwari is part of Japanese meals and takes the place of wine, contained in a tall, thin glass. If you are looking for a cocktail both easy and delicious, Mizuwari is the best of both worlds. In this specific recipe, you need to follow the 1:2.4 ratio.

There are many variants to Mizuwaki by mixing Japanese whisky with different ingredients, such as lemongrass, lemon zest, elderflower highball, soda, rose water, fresh mint, etc., to create a flavor you like.

3. Kamikaze (Japanese Vodka With Orange Liqueur)

Total time: 3 minutes

Kamikaze is undoubtedly one of the best Asian-style alcoholic mixed drinks you’ll ever taste. Kamikaze, or “divine wind” in Japanese, is among the most widely ordered vodka shots at bars.

This drink offers a bit of sweetness and tartness in its flavor. Kamikaze is the perfect choice for parties where friends get together to have fun.

To get a super smooth texture and a mind-blowing taste, you should shake the liquid well with ice for at least 10 seconds. Then, strain it twice to ensure no ice shards are left in the final drink.

To make a good Kamikaze, see how to shake it well like a bartender.

4. Matcha Highball

Total time: 5 minutes

Matcha Highball is a Japanese cocktail with green tea as the main ingredient. If you enjoy an earthy flavor, a signature matcha scent, and a mesmerizing green color, the Match Highball is your answer.

In case some don’t know, a highball is a cocktail with two main ingredients, a small proportion of base alcohol and a larger part of a non-alcoholic mixer. The alcohol base to non-alcoholic part ratio is usually 1:2.

Meanwhile, matcha is one of the most famous Japanese ingredients. This green tea powder contributes its special scent and taste to countless Japanese foods and drinks, like this Matcha Highball.

5. Sake Grapefruit Cocktail

Total time: 10 minutes

The best Sake to make this cocktail is Hakutsuru Sayuri Nigori Sake due to its soft and florally noted flavor. Also, it does not overpower other ingredients’ flavors. The grapefruit is a tad bitter, but the sweetness of honey balances it.

Lastly, add thyme to the mix for a grasp of an earthy, minty feel. A sip of Sake grapefruit cocktail is the perfect remedy to escape a hot summer day.

6. Tokyo Mule

Total time: 10 minutes

The mule part in this cocktail’s name takes after the Moscow Mule, a famous Russian cocktail made with vodka, lime juice, and ginger beer.

When Moscow Mule entered Japanese cuisine, its ingredient profile featured Sake, the signature alcoholic drink of Japan. Also, besides lime juice, this recipe includes cucumber juice.

Within 10 minutes or so, you will get a glass of Tokyo mule with a refreshing, cool flavor.

7. Japanese Slipper

Total time: 5 minutes

The Japanese slipper is a combination of sweet and sour tastes and a balance between fruity melon and citrus. One of its three ingredients, the melon liqueur, is a muskmelon-flavored alcoholic drink popular in Japan.

Another note about this mixed drink is its equal parts cocktail. It means the recipe uses the same amount of each ingredient, making it easy to scale up the quantity when you want to.  

Midori is one of the best melon liquor brands for this Japanese slipper.

8. Matcha Mint Julep

Total time: 10 minutes

If you are looking for a cocktail featuring a green color for a hot day, this Japanese matcha mint julep helps. It’s cool, a bit sweet, and has just enough booze to escape the heat.

Making this beverage is easy, which involves only two easy steps. First, work the matcha in a bowl with water, drop by drop. Stir steadily and constantly until you get a smooth paste. Add the rest of the water to the bowl, and stir to mix well.

In a pitcher, add sugar and mint leaves; then, use a muddler to mash them until the sugar dissolves completely and the leaves get bruised. Add the other ingredients and mix well. Lastly, strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve. Serve Matcha Mint Julep with ice.  

9. Yuzu Chuhai (Japanese Yuzu Cocktail)

Total time: 10 minutes

Chuhai is a popular Japanese cocktail made with sochu, soda, and fruit juice. It’s a common drink in Izakaya-style restaurants, where people come to have snacks and alcoholic beverages after work.

This Japanese Yuzu cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that offers its drinker a refreshing feeling. You can have it any day, but its cool taste is probably the most suitable for summer or hot days in general.

When making Yuzu Chuhai, you have to make simple syrup. This ingredient adds sweetness to the drink. Consider making a large amount if you want to save time mixing other cocktails using this sweetener.  

10. Kyoto Sour

Total time: 5 minutes

As a traditional beverage in Japan, Sake is a must-try for those traveling there. And it would be a culinary sin not to try to make a cocktail out of it. Hence, Kyoto Sour came to life based on this Japanese spirit.

The Sake recommended for this drink is Gekkeikan Haiku. It has a herbaceous flavor with hints of apple, pear, and good acidity. The alcohol is complete with a dry finish. Best of all, it goes perfectly with lemon juice.

If you want to bring the vibe of a Japanese pub to your home, you must try the Kyoto Sour.

11. Sake Bomb

Total time: 5 minutes

Sake Bomb is a special beer cocktail. It’s simple, drop a shot glass of Sake alcohol into a bigger glass of beer.

Specifically, you need to place two chopsticks parallel on the beer glass rim with the Sake shot on top, then slam the table with your fit to make the shot glass fall into the beer glass. As soon as the Sake drops into the beer, drink it immediately.

Considering how fun and simple it is to make this cocktail, the Sake Bomb can be your go-to choice in a friendly get-together.

You can see this video to know more:

12. Bamboo Cocktail

Total time: 3 minutes

While Japan is not the origin of cocktails, the country was first put on the mixological map thanks to the Bamboo back in the 17th century when American man Louis Eppinger invented this drink at a hotel bar.

A Bamboo cocktail is a mixed drink combining a fairly gentle boozy feel with a dry, sour flavor. It also has a touch of freshness from the lemon peel and orange bitters.

This mixed drink is very light, with only 15% alcohol content, so anyone can drink it without getting tipsy.

13. Sake Mojito

Total time: 5 minutes

The thing with Mojito is that you can hardly taste the alcoholic ingredient, making it a “dangerous” drink. Enjoying a glass of Mojito helps you relax, but you have to take it slow, or you will black out before you realize you have had too much.

That said, you should not miss out on this refreshing, fizzy, slightly sweet drink that’s extremely easy to drink.

This recipe uses brown sugar, but you can replace it with white sugar if it’s available. Yet, brown sugar offers a special taste, much like sugar cane, that white sugar cannot compete with.

Make Your Favorite Japanese Cocktail, Chill Out In Your Own Way

I hope you will have a great time at home sipping delicious drinks. The best thing about making your own cocktails is that you can drink them wherever and whenever you want without leaving your house.

Whether it’s a movie night, a get-together, or a regular evening after a hard-working day, it’s always nice to refresh your mind with a cocktail glass.

You may also want to share this list with others so that more people can enjoy such succulent light alcoholic drinks from Japan.