A classic Piña Colada that is made with pineapple juice, lime juice, coconut cream, and rum! This is a shaken cocktail served over ice. It’s filled with tropical flavors and the perfect summer cocktail! If you want a frozen drink, try our frozen pina colada recipe.

Furthermore, make these festive pina colada jello shots for a special party treat!

IN THIS POST

This is a classic cocktail with tropical flavors. It’s perfect for pool parties and beach days and every sip makes you feel like you’re on vacation! You can also try out watermelon version too!

If you wonder what is in a pina colada or what’s an easy recipe, you’re in luck. Here’s everything you need to know to create the perfect tropical cocktail!

History

The earliest story of how the classic pina colada recipe came to be is from the 19th century when a Puerto Rican pirate Roberto Cofresí concocted a cocktail that contained coconut, pineapple, and white rum to give to his crew. This would eventually become the Pina Colada by Puerto Rico, by bartender Ramón “Monchito” Marrero who recreated it at the Caribe Hilton in 1954 in San Juan.

What Is in Piña Colada?

The traditional recipe is just three ingredients: coconut cream, pineapple juice, and rum. Even with an easy pina colada recipe like this, everyone seems to add their spin to this popular drink.

coconut rum, pineapple juice, coconut cream and lime on a table

How to Make a Classic Piña Colada

This cocktail is really easy to make! Here’s what you’ll need:

Ingredients

Coconut Rum or White Rum – You can use a high-end rum to make this drink to make it more sophisticated.

Pineapple Juice – Pure pineapple juice with no sugar added is what you’ll want to use in this recipe.

Real Coco Cream Of Coconut – We keep this on hand to make cocktails with coconut.

Lime Juice – Always use fresh lime juice.

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, and add all of the ingredients into the shaker. Then, strain into a glass filled with ice.

Tips for Making this Cocktail

Use any rum you want. A higher-end rum will add a smoother finish and a coconut rum will provide a lot of flavors.

Add more or less coconut cream depending on sweet you like it.

Shake for at least 20 seconds with ice to dilute the ingredients.

Use pebble ice for serving if you can.

Make a pineapple flower to garnish the cocktail with.

Piña Colada Variations

Any tasty cocktail comes with variations. These are just some ideas for adding a twist to the classic pina colada recipe.

Add different Fruit – Try Passion Fruit, Mango, or Strawberries
Make it Virgin – Leave out the booze.
Get Creative – Make Popsicles, kabobs, or smoothies

Coconut Cream vs. Coconut Milk

While the traditional recipe calls for coconut cream, some people prefer to make their drink with coconut milk. Coconut cream has a higher fat content than coconut milk and it’s much thicker in texture.

Frozen Pineapple or Fresh Pineapple?

Some recipes call for fresh pineapple juice or fresh pineapple chunks, while others suggest frozen pineapples.

It depends on your style and what type of cocktail you’re making, classic or frozen. After all, you can try using both to create the ultimate pina colada.

Best Rum for Piña Coladas

The one thing about creating the perfect cocktail is the type of rum you use can make or break your drink.

With so many options of rum to choose from, finding the right one will take your recipe to the next level.

Don Q Gran Reserva Anejo XO and El Dorado 3-Year Rum as some of the best overall rums.

Other honorable mentions are Myers’ Rum, Bacardí Pineapple, or Bacardí Pineapple Fusion Rum or Malibu Coconut Rum if you want to pump up the flavor.

Rum Fire Overproof Jamaican Rum or some Cruzan Estate Diamond Dark Rum can also help you win the best award for Piña Colada of the year.

Virgin Pina Colada

We have that too! Try our version of the best virgin pina colada recipe! It’s the perfect tropical mocktail to serve to anyone who wants a festive drink without the booze!

Blended or Shaken

There are two ways to make this cocktail. Blended creates a frozen pina colada recipe and shaken creates a classic.

Virgin Pina Colada

A virgin cocktail doesn’t contain alcohol and is perfect for anyone wanting a zero-proof, festive drink! Simply leave out the coconut rum in the recipe and continue with all of the other ingredients and directions.