Overview: Five cocktail recipes from the Best New Bars of 2026, published November 10, 2026, highlight innovations ranging from nonalcoholic mocktails to tropical rum drinks. The collection features signature creations from Denver, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, and Nashville.
The Full Story
At Peach Crease Club in Denver, co-owners Alex Jump and Stuart Jensen present the Peanuts & Cola cocktail. This fully spirit-free recipe utilizes The Pathfinder, an N/A amaro, and ThreeSpirit Nightcap to pay homage to the Southern pairing of peanuts and Coca-Cola. To carbonatethe cocktail, Peach Crease Club uses a NitroPress, but at home, you can top themix with club soda. Co-owner Alex Jump advocates with the organization Focus on Health.
Culebra in Chicago features the Malta Highball, a Japanese highball-style cocktail created by bartender Elias Soto. The island’s homegrown drinks make an appearance: Medalla Light, a nonalcoholic malt beverage, brings grain notes to a whisky milk punch with soba tea, which is force-carbonated. Owner Diego Garcia-Gonzalez draws inspiration from Puerto Rican ingredients like tamarind and culantro.
Vandell in Los Angeles offers the Poet’s Dream cocktail revival from Café Royal Cocktail Book 1937. Co-owners Shawn Lickliter and Vay Su revived the gin-and-Bénédictine drink with a wildcard ingredient: pisco. The Smoked Tomato is undoubtedly the star at Vandell, but travelers can indulge in a little time travel with this relatively simple at-home recipe.
At Echo Lake in New York City, owners Chloe Frechette and Paul McGee categorize guests as skimmers, dippers, and divers based on their rum knowledge. Fans of McGee’s now-closed bar Lost Lake can get his signature drink of the same name—a funky, tropical mix of Jamaican rum, passionfruit, pineapple and Campari—at the new bar.
Bar Roza in Nashville has created its own kind of cocktail template: the Astors. Beverage director Owen Gibler calls them “all modifier.” The Hex calls on Bësk, which is like a more grapefruit- and wormwood-forward Malört, with a lasting finish. The bitter liqueur’s elderflower notes reminded Gibler of lychee, which is why he pairs it with a Combier Litchi here.
Production & Profile
Technical specifications vary across the featured recipes to achieve distinct profiles. The Peanuts & Cola utilizes a NitroPress for carbonation, while the Malta Highball features force-carbonated soba tea. The Poet’s Dream is prepared as a stirred drink, and the Hex follows an Astors template where ingredients blend as modifiers.
Brand & Industry History
The Poet’s Dream recipe originally appeared in the Café Royal Cocktail Book in 1937, marking a significant revival of a classic gin-and-Bénédictine drink. Additionally, the Echo Lake owners include Chloe Frechette, who was formerly executive editor of Punch, and reference McGee’s now-closed bar Lost Lake in Chicago, which closed during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022.
What This Means
This release highlights a diverse mix of spirits from the Best New Bars of 2026, ranging from a Japanese whisky highball to a tropical rum drink to a nonalcoholic mocktail. The collection showcases innovative, exciting openings of the past year, featuring everything from aperitifs and digestifs to nonalcoholic amaro.
Consumer Takeaway
This news offers the drinker access to specific recipes and ingredients based on stated specs. Home enthusiasts can replicate the Peanuts & Cola by topping the mix with club soda, while others can make the bar’s take on the Poet’s Dream using gin, pisco, Bénédictine and quince liqueur. Travelers visiting Vandell or Bar Roza can experience the signature smoked drink or the Hex cocktail directly at the location.
Source: Read the original article
