The 9 Best Disaronno Cocktails

Traditionally served on the rocks, the aromatic liqueur is also a splendid ingredient for long drinks and Disaronno cocktails.

Disaronno Originale is part of the peach and almond-flavored Amaretto category. You could even say it's the original version of Amaretto, as Disaronno is the oldest and most popular Amaretto liqueur. 

Disaronno Amaretto Cocktail Recipes

Now moving on to enjoying this flavorful liqueur: Usually served as a digestif or dessert drink, Amaretto also stars in various cocktail recipes and other beverages. 

The simplest one is adding it to your cup of coffee. And the more complex recipes follow below in our list of cocktails with Disaronno.

1. Disaronno Sour

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz Amaretto Disaronno
• 0.75 oz Cask-proof Bourbon
• 1 oz Fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp Simple syrup
• 1 pcs Egg white

Likely the most popular cocktail based on Amaretto. This Amaretto Sour recipe has a beautiful balance between sweet and sour and just enough booze. 

The beauty of this riff on a classic sour cocktail is the hint of bitter almond flavor in the drink.

Shake all ingredients in your cocktail shaker with plenty of ice. Then strain the drink into an Old Fashioned glass and garnish with a Maraschino cherry.

2. French Connection

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Cognac
• 1 oz Disaronno Amaretto

The French Connection is a simple Disaronno cocktail made of only two components. But despite the limited amount of ingredients, the flavor is rich and complex. 

The fruity flavor of Cognac blends beautifully with the sweet and bitter taste of the almond liqueur.

Pour Cognac and Disaronno in a mixing glass with plenty of ice and stir until the drink is well-chilled. Then strain over ice into a rocks glass and optionally garnish it with a cherry.

3. Alabama Slammer

Ingredients:

• 1 oz Vodka
• 0.75 oz Southern Comfort (70 to 80 proof, 35% to 40% ABV)
• 0.5 oz Amaretto
• 0.5 oz Sloe Gin
• 2.5 oz Fresh orange juice
• 0.5 oz Fresh lemon juice

Also known as a Southern Slammer, the Alabama Slammer is a popular drink from the 1970s. A rather sweet and fruity cocktail with just enough alcohol in it.

Although this drink contains a lot of fruity elements, it's best prepared in a mixing glass and not a shaker. Stir it with plenty of ice and then strain into an ice-filled Collins glass.

4. Amaretto Fizz

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz Disaronno
• 2 oz Orange juice
• 5 oz Prosecco spumante

This almond-flavored Fizz recipe is super simple to make. It's an excellent and easy-to-make cocktail to serve at dinner parties. And even people who aren't huge fans of Amaretto will certainly like this delicious serve.

The preparation is straightforward. Mix orange juice and Disaronno Amaretto in a Champagne flute and top up with chilled Prosecco. Optionally you can garnish the cocktail with an orange peel twist.

You can also prepare this drink in larger batches. Simply mix orange juice and Disaronno in a greater volume in a jug. Then pour it into Champagne flutes and fill up with chilled Prosecco spumante.

5. Almond Old Fashioned

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Bourbon
• 0.25 oz Amaretto Liqueur
• 1 bsp Demerara Syrup
• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters

If you're a fan of a good Bourbon Old Fashioned cocktail, you have to try this almond-inspired riff. 

When adding just a quarter of an ounce of Disaronno to your Bourbon base, you get a beautiful almond taste in the drink.

Sweetened with a rich Demerara syrup and flavored with Angostura bitters, this take on an Old Fashioned is one of the best ways to drink Amaretto.

Add Bourbon, Disaronno, Angostura bitters, and Demerara syrup into a mixing glass with ice and stir until the drink is well chilled. Strain over a large chunk of ice into a rocks glass and garnish with toasted almonds.

6. Italian Sunset

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces Amaretto
• 3 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice
• 3 ounces club soda
• Dash grenadine
• Cherry for garnish

For lovers of sweet drinks, the Italian Sunset is one of the best Disaronno cocktail recipes. Visually and name-wise related to the Tequila Sunrise, this version is even a tiny bit sweeter than the original. 

If you're not into sweet drinks, skip this one. Otherwise, grab your ingredients and try this mixed drink.

Take a Highball glass and fill it up with crushed ice. Then pour in the Amaretto. Carefully layer orange juice and then soda water on top. Finally, round it up with just a splash of Grenadine.

When done right, you should see different layers in this Disaronno cocktail. 

7. Amaretto Alexander

Ingredients:

• 1 oz Amaretto
• 1 oz crème de cacao
• 1 oz heavy cream

This Amaretto-inspired riff on the classic Brandy Alexander recipe uses Amaretto instead of Cognac. That makes the iconic after-dinner drink even sweeter and creamier and adds a nice touch of almond.

Add all ingredients into your cocktail shaker and add plenty of ice. Shake until well-chilled and then strain into a chilled coupe glass. 

Optionally, you can garnish the cocktail with some cocoa powder on top of the cocktail.

8. Almond Margarita Disaronno Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz Reposado Tequila
• 0.5 oz Amaretto Liqueur
• 0.25 oz Cointreau
• 1 oz Lime Juice

The Almond Margarita extends the traditional Margarita recipe with the almond-flavored liqueur. The combination may sound somewhat counter-intuitive, but it leads to a delicious cocktail. 

Disaronno Amaretto brings a beautiful apricot and almond taste to the cocktail and creates a whole new flavor profile.

Pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake until the drink is cold, then strain into an ice-filled glass. Garnish it with a lime wedge or wheel.

9. Amaretto & Coke

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Amaretto
• 4 oz Coke
• Maraschino cherry for garnish

Coke is a fantastic mixer for Amaretto. I know that mixing sweet with sweet is not for everyone, but the bitter-sweet taste of Amaretto goes really well with a fizzy and ice-cold coke. 

On top, this Highball is so easy to make that you don't need any equipment. Just build it in the glass over ice and enjoy.

Fill up a Highball glass with ice and add Disaronno and coke. Then gently stir the drink and garnish it with a Maraschino cherry.

Tip: Make sure the coke is ice cold. That way, it keeps its carbonation level high for a longer time.

The Story behind Disaronno

The story of Disaronno starts in the city of Saronno, back in the 16th century. 

In 1525, artist Bernadino Luini needed a muse for a fresco in the church of Saronno. So, when he asked a local Innkeeper to help and model for him, she felt very flattered. 

She was so flattered, indeed, that she gifted him a bottle of her homemade almond liqueur. For this recipe, she steeped apricot pits in Brandy. 

As the legend goes, this early recipe is the base for Amaretto in general and Disaronno Originale in particular.

When Giovanni Reina rediscovered this old formula about 75 years later, in 1600, the recipe experienced a comeback. Handed down from generation to generation, it eventually became the famous Disaronno Originale Amaretto. 

The recipe is a well-kept secret, but its base still is apricot kernels steeped in alcohol. They are flavored and aromatized with herbs, fruits, and other botanicals to achieve the signature taste of Amaretto.

More DiSaronno cocktail inspiration