Star Wars Inspired Cocktails for May the Fourth

It’s about that time again, folks. Time to celebrate one of the most — if not the most — venerated days in the sci-fi world. 

Star Wars Day, more affectionately known as May the Fourth, is celebrated every year on May 4 by fans of the franchise all over the world. Including yours truly.

Host a Star Wars Day party with DIY decorations and “Star Wars”- themed snacks, and add some “Star Wars”-themed cocktails if you want to make the event a little more interesting!

May the 4th cocktails and drinks

Darth Maul-ed Wine

Mulled wine? Never heard of it. 

Darth Maul, deadly apprentice to the mysterious Sith Lord? Yeah, for sure. 

Stay warm and cozy with this hot wine cocktail, knowing that you’re not anywhere near to this highly trained Sith assassin. For now, at least.

Darth Maul-ed Wine

• 1 bottle (750 ml) dry red wine
• ¼ cup brandy
• 1 orange
• 8 whole cloves
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 star anise
• 3 tbsp. honey
• Optional garnishes: orange/lemon slices, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cranberries

Slice orange into rounds. 

Add ingredients (minus garnishes) into a large saucepan and stir to combine. Cook over medium-high heat until just barely simmering (do not let mixture bubble). Reduce heat to low and let simmer, covered for anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours. 

Strain into heat proof mugs and top with garnishes before serving. 

Qui-Gon Jinn & Tonic

Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn seems like the kind of guy to enjoy this simple beverage from time to time. Or at least, until his encounter with Darth Maul. 

This simple drink is crisp, clear and takes on the flavor of your preferred garnishes, making it ideal for a warm afternoon or a post-lightsaber battle treat.

Qui-Gon Jinn and Tonic

• 2 oz gin
• 4 oz tonic water
• Optional garnish ideas: lemon slice, lime slice, orange peel, cucumber slice, juniper berries, rosemary sprig

Pour gin into a large chilled wine or cocktail glass. Add in garnishes and pour in tonic water. Stir once then serve. 

Hoth Toddy

Sequestered in your barracks in an underground Rebel base on a freezing-cold ice planet has its downsides, for sure. The Empire’s chasing you, some guy is lost in a Wampa cave outside, the droid won’t shut up and there’s quite literally nothing else you want to do except be warm again.

Surely some Rebel soldier came up with a warm, soul-soothing drink for those cold nights on Hoth, and a hot toddy seems to be the perfect remedy. Or, should we say, a Hoth toddy?

Hah. It’s feeling warmer already!

Hoth Toddy

• 1 ½ oz whiskey
• ½ oz honey
• ½ hot water (steaming)
• Lemon wedge
• Optional garnish: cinnamon stick, 3 whole cloves, 1 star anise

Stir honey and whiskey in a heat-proof glass mug, then pour in the hot water. Squeeze the lemon juice into the glass and garnish with the wedge and spices. 

Blue Milk Punch

It’s dinner time on Tatooine and Luke Skywalker has just come indoors after cleaning the recently acquired droids R2-D2 and C-3P0. We don’t know what he and his aunt and uncle are eating for dinner, but we know that there’s some Bantha milk served alongside the dish. This blue, cloudy-looking drink has only a few seconds’ screen time in “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope,” but it’s made its mark for sure. 

Now, don’t go milking a desert-dwelling cow thing for this drink. Rather, add a drop of blue food coloring to this Milk Punch recipe to make it a little more ~out of this world~ than usual.

Blue Milk Punch:

• 3 oz whole milk
• 1 ½ oz bourbon whiskey
• ½ oz brandy
• ½ oz simple syrup
• ½ tsp vanilla
• Optional: 1-2 drops blue food coloring
• Optional garnish: star anise, grated nutmeg

Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice until cold. Strain into lowball glass and garnish.

Dark Side n’ Stormy

Yoda once said that fear is the path to the dark side. Well, in this case, so is dark rum.

This simple-yet-refreshing cocktail is perfect for getting through those pesky Imperial meetings, galactic conferences and, of course, the continuous and tiresome search for the Rebel base. Make sure to garnish with enough lime to make even Grand Moff Tarkin pucker up.

Dark Side n’ Stormy

• 2 oz Gosling’s Black Seal Rum
• 4 oz ginger beer
• Lime wedge
• Ice, to serve

Fill a highball glass with ice and pour ginger beer over. Top with rum and a squeeze of lime, then stir and serve.  

Tequila & Ginger Lomin Ale

For the “Star Wars” fans dedicated enough to delve into the stories of the expanded universe (now called Legends), this drink is loosely based off the lomin ale, which was a favorite of Rogue Squadron pilots in the “X-Wing” book series by Michael A. Stackpole. Though no recipe is ever mentioned, the drink appears in cantinas and smugglers’ bars all over the galaxy and is made differently by each establishment. One account even talks of a bright purple-colored version!

Tequila and Ginger Lomin Ale

• 2 oz tequila reposado
• 4 oz ginger beer
• Optional: 1-2 drops purple food coloring

Fill a highball glass with ice and pour over tequila. Add ginger ale (and optional purple coloring). Stir and serve.

Death Star in the Afternoon

The bright green color of this Ernest Hemingway-created cocktail mirrors the lasers of the infamous Death Star, and with a name like "Death Star in the Afternoon,” it’s certainly a great take for a “Star Wars” party. 

For maximum enjoyment, this drink is best sipped while gazing silently at the remnants of a Rebellion-friendly world you’ve just destroyed.

Death (Star) in the Afternoon

• 1 oz absinthe
• 1 tsp simple syrup
• 4 oz sparkling wine (Prosecco or Champagne)

Combine simple syrup and absinthe in a cold cocktail glass, then gently stir to combine. Top with sparkling wine and serve. 

Lightside 

There are a lot of perks to avoiding the treacherous fall to the Dark Side, such as the cool, refreshing and minty beverages of the Light Side!

Fresh mint, cool lime and lemon juice, and smooth gin are the name of the game in this mojito-inspired drink (which, in reality, is called a Southside cocktail). After all, one needs a cool head and refreshed mind to be a Jedi (which sounds like something Obi-Wan might have said at some point). 

Lightside 

• 6 mint leaves
• 2 oz gin
• ½ oz lime juice
• ½ oz lemon juice
• ½ oz simple syrup
• Garnish: mint leaves, lemon twist

Muddle mint leaves in a cocktail shaker. Add gin, lemon and lime juices, and simple syrup and fill with ice. Shake until cold. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with lemon twist and mint leaves. 

Trust us, when it comes to May the Fourth celebrations, you’re getting tried-and-true snacks, drinks and celebration ideas that are sure to make the day memorable.

May the Force be with you!

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Featured photo courtesy Pixabay/profq1123