Are You Aware of the Sugar Content in Your Cocktail? 10 Surprising Insights

Many popular cocktails are full of flavor and can be linked in your mind to memories of specific places, experiences or times. But do you know how much sugar is in your favorite cocktail? While the occasional sugary cocktail may be fine, repeated orders of sugary drinks can contribute to health problems.

Many popular cocktails contain significant amounts of added sugar, with some reaching 30 to 40 grams per serving—60 to 80% of the recommended daily sugar limit. The US Dietary Guidelines recommends keeping added sugar to less than 10% of your daily intake. On a 2,000-calorie diet, this amounts to 200 calories or 50 grams of sugar. While sugar enhances the taste of cocktails and masks the alcohol, it also contributes empty calories, which can lead to weight gain and a greater risk of other chronic health conditions such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

We’ve rounded up some of the sweetest cocktails and offer alternatives so you can continue to enjoy these alcoholic drinks without all the sugar. Read on, and for more, don’t miss 10 Best Low Sugar Wines That Won’t Derail Your Diet.

Pina Colada

Piña coladas are popular tropical cocktails made with rum, coconut cream and pineapple juice. Piña coladas are one of the sweetest cocktails: An 8-ounce piña colada can contain 40 grams of sugar, mostly from coconut cream and pineapple juice.

Drink this instead: For a lower sugar option, use coconut water or light coconut milk instead of coconut cream and reduce the amount of pineapple juice.

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Margarita

A classic margarita is made with tequila, lime juice and orange liqueur (usually triple sec). The sugar content of a margarita varies, but on average, the classic cocktail contains 36 grams of sugar. Instead of using fresh lime juice and triple sec, some margaritas are made with a ready mix, often high in sugar. Ready-made margarita mixes can have almost 7 grams of sugar per ounce.

Drink this instead: For a low-sugar alternative to a margarita, make a Ranchwater cocktail, usually tequila with soda water and a splash of lime juice.

Mai Tai

A type of rum punch, the mai tai combines rum, lime juice, orange curaçao and almond syrup (orgeat). Some mai tais contain extra fruit juices and syrups, which increase the sugar content. Even without extra fruit juices and syrups, the mai tai is a sweet cocktail with 32 grams of sugar per drink. Most of the sugar in mai tais comes from orgeat, a syrup of almonds, sugar, water, brandy and orange blossom water. Orange curaçao, an orange-based liqueur similar to triple sec, adds more sugar to this already sweet tropical cocktail.

Drink this instead: Use unsweetened almond milk instead of orgeat and skip the orange curaçao, replacing it with a splash of orange juice.

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Daiquiri

Strawberry daiquiris is a fun variation on the classic daiquiri, mixing rum, fresh lime juice and strawberries. Although the exact sugar content of a strawberry daiquiri varies depending on the ingredients, most contain at least 30 grams of sugar. Daiquiris can be high in sugar from the sweetened strawberry purees or syrups used for flavoring. Strawberry daiquiri mixes can be a significant source of sugar, with some containing 34 grams per 4-ounce serving.

Drink this instead: Opt for a rum and soda water with muddled fresh strawberries and a splash of lime juice.

White Russian

A White Russian is a creamy, rich drink made with vodka, coffee liqueur and heavy cream or milk. With 21.5 grams of sugar per 8-ounce drink, a White Russian is more like a dessert than a cocktail. Most of the sugar in a White Russian comes from the coffee liqueur, which may have 11 to 16 grams per ouncedepending on its alcohol resistance.

Drink this instead: Mix coffee with vodka and low-fat cow’s or almond milk for a low-sugar alternative.

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Long Island Iced Tea

Long Island iced tea is a juicy cocktail made with vodka, rum, tequila, gin, triple sec, lemon juice and a splash of Coke. Despite its high alcohol content, Long Island iced tea is a sugary drink with 19 grams of sugar per 8-ounce drink, most of which comes from triple sec and Coke. Some Long Island iced teas can even be sweeter: It’s not uncommon for this potent cocktail to include simple syrup.

Drink this instead: If you’re looking for a sugar-free drink, skip the triple sec and simple syrup and use Diet Coke.

Cosmopolitan

Popularized by the television series “Sex and the City”, a Cosmopolitan is a tart, slightly sweet cocktail made with vodka, triple sec (orange liqueur), cranberry juice and fresh lime juice. An 8.25 ounce Cosmopolitan has 19 grams of sugarmostly from triple sec. One ounce triple seconds boast 19 grams of sugar.

Drink this instead: Order a vodka soda with lime and a splash of cranberry juice with it 4 grams of sugar for a low sugar option.

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Appletini

Apple martinis, or appletini, are cocktails made with vodka, apple schnapps and a splash of lemon juice. An 8-ounce appletini has approx 18 grams of sugar. The apple schnapps adds an apple flavor and makes the appletini sweeter than a typical martini. Most of the sugar in an appletini comes from the apple schnapps, a sweet liqueur made from fermented and distilled apples.

Drink this instead: Replace the appletinin with a regular dry martini, which is almost sugar-free.

Sangria

An 8-ounce glass red wine sangria contains 16 grams or more sugar. Sangria ingredients vary depending on where you get the sangria. Some sangrias contain fruit juice and an alcoholic flavor, while others add another alcoholic spirit and sweetener. Ask about sangria ingredients before ordering if you’re watching your sugar intake.

Drink this instead: Plain red wine or a red wine spritzer.

Mojito

Mojitos are refreshing cocktails made with rum, fresh lime juice, mint leaves, sugar and soda water. Despite its simple ingredients, a traditional mojito contains about 2 teaspoons of sugar per serving, giving 8 grams of sugarmaking it a relatively sweet drink. Some recipes use simple syrup made from water and sugar to sweeten the mojito.

Drink this instead: Try rum and soda water with mint and a squeeze of lime—all the components of a mojito but without the sugar.

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