Coconut Rum Sunrise Cocktail is a gorgeous layered cocktail that contains cream of coconut, Malibu coconut rum, orange juice, and grenadine.
This sweet and refreshing tropical drink is perfect for hot summer days and is stunning to serve when entertaining.
If you love coconut rum cocktails like the Malibu Sunrise Cocktail and the Malibu Sunset Cocktail, you will certainly love this layered sunrise cocktail, which is loaded with tropical flavors but doesn't contain pineapple juice.
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You might think making layered drinks is hard, but I promise you it is not hard at all!
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About This Recipe
This cocktail is based on the Tequila Sunrise Cocktail, but my twist on this classic cocktail is to use lots of coconut. Coconut rum is substituted for tequila, and a layer of white coconut cream at the bottom of the glass gives this drink extra sweetness and beauty.
One of the best things about this great drink is how well the flavors complement each other. Orange and coconut are the heart of this drink, and the sweetness of the rum perfectly smoothes the flavor of orange juice.
This easy drink recipe can be made with as much ice as you like but you will need at least 3 inches of crushed ice to keep the drink cold.
I like moving my straw up and down through the layers of the cocktail. Sometimes, I just want to taste the orange and coconut layer and sometimes, I like just a tiny sip of the cream of coconut. Some people like to stir the layers and mix the cream of coconut into their drink.
Plus, you don't need a cocktail shaker to make this delicious drink, which will make you feel like you're relaxing on a tropical island. Doesn't this sound delicious? Great!
So, let's cook!
How to Make a Layered Cocktail
The trick to making a layered drink is to put heavy-weighted liquors or liquids on the bottom and lighter ones on top. This is why this cocktail starts with a layer of cream of coconut at the bottom of the glass. It is the heaviest of the ingredients.
The next layer is the orange juice mixed with coconut rum. It is lighter and stays on top of the cream of coconut.
Grenadine syrup is the last ingredient added to this cocktail. It is poured slowly, and because it is heavier than the orange juice and rum, it falls to the bottom of the cocktail on top of the cream of coconut. It's like magic!
Ingredient Notes
To make this layered tropical drink you will need these 4 ingredients plus lots of crushed ice:
- Cream of Coconut - This is a creamy coconut syrup that is made with coconut, sugar, and emulsifiers to create a thick and sweet "coconut cream" that is similar to sweetened condensed milk in thickness and sweetness.
- Orange Juice - Fresh orange juice is always best, but refrigerated and reconstituted from frozen is good too.
- Malibu Coconut Rum - Malibu Coconut Rum is a sweetened and flavored rum from the brand "Malibu" and contains Caribbean silver rum mixed with a sweet coconut liqueur. like using Malibu rum because it is not too sweet and gives a nice punch of coconut flavor to any mixed drink. Containing just 21% alcohol, it is perfectly suited for fun tropical drinks like this one.
- Grenadine Syrup - Grenadine is a sweet cocktail mixer with a brilliant red color that contains pomegranate juice, sugar, and lemon juice.
Optional Garnishes - Maraschino cherries and an orange slice are simple and beautiful garnishes for this drink. You can also use a cute umbrella if you prefer an all-out tiki look.
Please see the recipe card for the exact quantities.
How to Make a Coconut Rum Sunrise Cocktail
Prepare Glass. Squeeze the cream of coconut into the bottom of a highball glass, hurricane glass, or any 16-ounce glass, to make the white layer of the cocktail. Gently fill the glass with crushed ice or ice cubes. Do not mix or stir the cream of coconut with the ice.
Combine. Mix Malibu rum and orange juice together and pour over the crushed ice.
Pour. Pour the grenadine syrup in a slow steady stream. The grenadine syrup will fall to the bottom of the glass and rest on top of the cream of coconut to make the red layer of the cocktail. Do not stir!
Serve and Enjoy! Garnish the drink with a slice from an orange or a maraschino cherry and add a straw.
My Top Tips
♡ Refrigerate the Ingredients. Keep all of your ingredients in the refrigerator so your drink will stay nice and icy cold. You can also keep coconut rum in the freezer.
♡ Do Not Stir. To get that beautiful layered look, do not stir this cocktail while making it.
Substitutions and Variations
- Switch Up The Coconut Rum. There are many other mainstream brands of coconut rum like Bacardi, Captain Morgan, Cruzan, and Parrot Bay. Each is slightly different in flavor and contains an alcohol content ranging from 21% to 40%. You can substitute any of these rums for the Malibu to personalize your Coconut Sunrise. However, I don't recommend plain white rum or dark rum for this drink.
- Substitute Pineapple-Orange Juice. If you love a sweeter drink you can substitute pineapple-orange juice for the orange juice.
- Substitute Maraschino Cherry Juice. You can substitute maraschino cherry juice for the grenadine syrup. They are both delicious and are approximately the same weight to form that gorgeous red layer.
- Mocktail Version. Omit the rum and increase the orange juice to 6 ounces. For the coconut flavor, add ½ teaspoon of coconut extract to the orange juice.
- Aperol Version. If you would like a less sweet drink, substitute Aperol for the grenadine syrup.
Make it in Advance for a Party
This recipe is for a single serving but you can easily make a big batch by multiplying the amount of each ingredient by the number of guests. You also can do the following steps in advance:
- Cut the orange garnish or plan to use maraschino cherries.
- Mix the orange juice and coconut rum.
- Squeeze the cream of coconut into glasses.
Just before serving, add the crushed ice to the prepped cream of coconut glasses. Next, pour the combined orange juice and rum into each glass. Lastly, pour the grenadine syrup and garnish each drink.
For extra fun, I like striped paper straws for this cocktail, but any straw will do. You can also add a bright paper cocktail umbrella.
More Delicious Cocktail Recipes You Might Like
♡ Did you love this Coconut Rum Sunrise Cocktail? Please leave a star rating and a comment below!
📖 Recipe
Coconut Rum Sunrise Cocktail
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Ingredients
Cocktail
- 2 Ounces Cream of Coconut
- Crushed Ice
- 2 Ounces Malibu Coconut Rum
- 4 Ounces Orange Juice
- 1 ½ Ounces Grenadine Syrup
Garnishes
- Fresh Sliced Orange and/or Maraschino Cherries
Instructions
- Prepare Glass. Squeeze the cream of coconut into the bottom of a highball glass, hurricane glass, or any 16-ounce glass, to make the white layer of the cocktail. Gently fill the glass with crushed ice or ice cubes. Do not mix or stir the cream of coconut with the ice.2 Ounces Cream of Coconut, Crushed Ice
- Combine. Mix Malibu coconut rum and orange juice together and pour over the crushed ice.2 Ounces Malibu Coconut Rum, 4 Ounces Orange Juice
- Pour. Pour the grenadine syrup in a slow steady stream. The grenadine syrup will fall to the bottom of the glass and rest on top of the cream of coconut to make the red layer of the cocktail. Do not stir!1 ½ Ounces Grenadine Syrup
- Serve and Enjoy! Garnish the drink with a slice of an orange or with a marashino cherry and add a straw.Fresh Sliced Orange and/or Maraschino Cherries
Video
Notes
2) Mix the orange juice and coconut rum.
3) Squeeze the cream of coconut into glasses. Just before serving, add crushed ice to the prepped cream of coconut glasses. Next, pour the combined orange juice and coconut rum into each glass. Lastly, pour the grenadine syrup and garnish each drink.
Nutrition
Per 1 serving. All nutritional information on this site is an estimate. Your results may vary.
Encharted Cook™ or Jan Nunes shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on this website or actions you take as a result.
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Kathy says
Tried it! As delicious as it is beautiful! And so easy both to make and going down! Jan, you've done it again....
Jan Nunes says
Hi Kathy! I'm so glad you enjoyed my Coconut Rum Sunrise!
Have a wonderful day! ~Jan
Gloria Hamilton says
It is absolutely delicious! I messed the first one up, but it still tasted great 😊
Jan Nunes says
Hi Gloria! I'm so glad you enjoyed my Coconut Sunrise!
When it comes to a good drink you can't really mess it up, if it still tastes great! 😉
Kindest Regards, Jan
Anna says
I am going to make it. what kind of coconut cream do I use
Jan Nunes says
Hi Anna, Thanks for your question! I have used two different brands that I like, Coco Reàl and Coco Lopez. Both taste similar, but I do like that Coco Reàl comes in a squeeze bottle that stores easily in the fridge.
I hope you enjoy your Coconut Sunrise!... Kindest Regards, Jan
Shivani s says
Love it. Thanks for sharing
Jan Nunes says
I'm glad you liked my cocktail Shivani!