Signature Wedding Cocktails by State

A signature wedding cocktail doesn't always have to revolve around you and your fiancé. Can't settle on a sip that perfectly merges your distinct drink preferences? Turn your attention to something, or somewhere, that holds meaning for you both instead. That's where the following signature cocktails, inspired by each American state, come in. These sips help you pay homage to the place where you grew up, the location where you met, or the spot where you ultimately chose to hold your wedding. Whatever the reason, there's likely a good one to celebrate the territory that's played such an integral part in your life and love story.

To make the search for a creative, state-inspired drink that much easier, we tapped award-winning bartenders and mixologists from all over the country. Here, you'll find their state-by-state recommendations. The main sources of their inspiration? State florals, fruits, animals, and other noteworthy features. For example, you'll find a cocktail that's the color of the sun for one mixologist's take on Florida. Are you a Jersey girl? Celebrate your union with a classy concoction that pays homage to your home state's go-to bud: the violet. Southern belles (and beaus!), you'll fall in love with one bartender's boozy take on the Georgia peach—it's that good.

Ready to discover all of these creations for yourself? Ahead, 50 original recipes for 50 completely unique states. Since we've covered every single region (yep, even Alaska and Hawaii!), there's a drink here that you and your future spouse are sure to connect with. Whether you decide to serve these sips up at a pre-nuptial party, rehearsal dinner, or wedding reception, these state-inspired signature cocktails are sure to impress your guests, wherever they're from.

This drink, by Darwish Iregui, the bar director at Miami's cocktail lounge No. 3 Social, features Alabama's sweet-meets-tarte state fruit: blackberries.

4 Blackberries

1.5 oz. Bombay Sapphire Gin

1 oz. St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur

0.75 oz. Butterfly Pea Tea

0.5 oz. Lime juice

0.5 oz. Simple syrup

0.75 oz. Aquafaba or egg whites (for foam)

Instructions: Muddle blackberries and then add the rest of the ingredients. Dry shake and pour into a coupe. Garnish with a dehydrated butterfly pea flower.

Getting hitched in the middle of a winter wonderland, under the mystical aurora borealis? You'll need a state cocktail like this one by Brynn Smith, the bar director at Los Angeles restaurants Sotto and Rossoblu. It features an all-white color palette that matches Alaska's magical snowcaps and references the state's prosperous gold industry by way of edible gold dust.

1 oz. Heavy cream

0.75 oz. Honey syrup

1 oz. Four Roses Bourbon

1 oz. Club soda

2.5 oz. Prosecco

Instructions: Shake for 20-30 seconds in a tin. Open and add club Soda and Prosecco. Pour mixture into a chilled fizz glass with no ice and let the drink froth up over the rim. Finish with some edible gold dust.

Beating the dry Arizona heat just got a whole lot easier. Smith's cranberry G&T is as much of a crowd-pleaser as it is a refresher.

0.25 oz. Lime juice

0.25 oz. Simple syrup

0.25 oz. Shrub & Co. Cranberry Shrub

0.25 oz. Aperitivo Select or Campari

1 oz. Beefeater Gin

3 oz. Tonic water

Instructions: Combine first five ingredients before adding tonic water. Serve with a lime wheel or wedge.

A spin on the classic Old Fashioned, this Arkansas sip by Caer Ferguson, the head mixologist at two major Austin cocktails bars, The Roosevelt Room and The Eleanor, is all about the state's flower (apple blossom) and nut (pecan).

1 oz. Apple brandy

1 oz. Rye whiskey

0.25 oz. Honey Pecan Syrup (recipe below)

1 dash Black walnut bitters

2 dashes Angostura bitters

Honey Pecan Syrup: Boil together 1 cup toasted pecans, 2 cups water, and 2 cups local honey for 10 minutes. Let steep for an hour. Strain and bottle.

Instructions: Combine all ingredients with a large cube in an Old Fashioned glass and stir. Garnish with the oils of a lemon peel and a dehydrated apple slice.

Smith puts the state's Mexican influence on display with a spin on the Negroni, featuring smoky mezcal. "It's perfect for a California black-tie wedding," she says. "It's white, so no stains."

1.5 oz. Verde Momento Mezcal

0.75 oz. Cocchi Americano or Lillet Blanc

0.75 oz. Mancino Rinamato or Luxardo Bitter Bianco

Instructions: Stir for 30-45 seconds. Serve over rocks with a long grapefruit peel bundled up like a rosebud.

The team at Cooper Lounge, a stylish lounge in Denver, drew inspiration from idyllic Palisade, a lush oasis located in the middle of desert on the western slopes of Colorado, for this rich concoction.

1.5 oz. CapRock Organic Pear Eau de Vie 

0.5 oz. Simple syrup 

0.5 Lemon juice 

1 Egg white 

Black walnut bitters

Instructions: After combining all ingredients, add black walnut bitters to garnish the foam on top of the finished drink.

If you're from Connecticut, you know that the summer heat waves aren't a joke. Stay cool with this concoction by Salvatore Tafuri, the head bartender at New York City's The Loyal. It looks more like shaved ice than a boozy drink!

2 oz. Rum

0.75 oz. Ginger

0.75 oz. Lime juice

0.75 oz. Mango

0.25 oz. Aperol

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and serve with plenty of crushed ice.

Delaware is known for its picturesque cherry blossom trees, which bloom in the spring. Pay homage to the pink-and-white landscape with a just-as-pink drink (also by The Loyal!), featuring peach puree and the coolest spin on a salt rim (it involves a little bit of Merlot!)

3 oz. Prosecco

1 oz. Aperitivo Select

1 oz. Fresh white peach puree

0.25 oz. Lemon juice

Merlot salt rim

Instructions: Add Merlot to salt and dip white wine glass in mixture. Combine the rest of the ingredients in the glass and serve.

The Sunshine State deserves a just-as-cheery cocktail to commemorate it. From its unique flavor pairings to its brighter-than-sunshine (get it?) hue, the below recipe by Iregui is a must for a Floridian couple's nuptials.

2 oz. Orange-flavored vodka

0.75 oz. Light agave nectar

0.75 oz. Fresh lemon juice

1 oz. Kumquat juice

1 Egg white

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and serve in a double rocks glass. Garnish with a dehydrated orange slice, keylime wheel, and fresh kumquats.

It isn't a Georgia cocktail without peaches, believes Jeff Banks, the head bartender at the Atlanta steakhouse C. Ellet's. This drink isn't just a celebration of the state's moniker and go-to fruit, though. It's also another cocktail that pays homage to one of the state's distilleries, whose rye whiskey is featured here.

2 oz. American Spirit Works Resurgence Rye

2 dashes Fee Bros Peach Bitters

0.25 oz. Simple syrup

Instructions: Stir and serve with fresh peach slices.

Smith's Hawaii mélange gives off tiki vibes, balanced with yummy citrus and floral notes.

1 oz. Lime juice

0.5 oz. Orgeat

0.75 oz. Amaro Montenegro

1.5 Aged rum

Instructions: Shake for 10 seconds. Strain into double Old Fashioned glass with crushed ice. Garnish with mint.

Fun fact: Idaho is the potato capitol of the world—which makes Cooper Lounge's inclusion of potato vodka in this signature sip that much more fitting.

1.5 oz. Potato vodka 

0.5 oz. New Deal Ginger Liqueur 

0.5 oz. Contratto Apertif 

0.5 oz. Clement Cane Syrup 

0.75 oz. Lime juice 

0.25 oz. Beet juice 

Instructions: After shaking and straining, serve the cocktail on the rocks with a lime twist garnish. 

There's nothing like summer in Chicago, says Paul McGee, the bar director at several of the city's hotspots, including the Milk Room, Cherry Circle Room, Game Room, and Lonesome Rose. A particular highlight? The farmer's markets, which provide the best of the (albeit short) strawberry season—something McGee showcases here.

1.5 oz. Blanco Tequila

1 Strawberry

0.5 oz. Aperol

0.75 oz. Lime juice

0.5 oz. Cane syrup

1 dash Absinthe

Instructions: Shake all ingredients before double-straining mixture into a chilled coupe.

Indiana is corn country! What better way to illustrate this state's main export than with Bourbon, a corn-based spirit? McGee's summer refresher also utilizes the ripe blackberries in season with unexpected pops of nuttiness and mint.

1 oz. Bourbon

1 oz. Amontillado Sherry

2 Lemon wedges

1 tablespoon Granulated sugar

2 Blackberries

0.25 oz. Fernet Branca

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and serve in an Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with a mint bouquet and plenty of blackberries.

McGee's Iowa-inspired sip takes advantage of the summer watermelon from Muscatine (a city known for its top-notch melons!). The best part? It's low in alcohol content, which makes it a safe to serve ahead of your ceremony.

1 oz. Fino Sherry

0.5 oz. Palo Cortado Sherry

1 oz. Cocchi Rosa Americano

0.5 oz. Charanda (Mexican cane spirit)

3 dashes Absinthe

1.5 oz. Watermelon juice

0.5 oz. Lime juice

0.25 oz. Cane syrup

Instructions: Shake all ingredients together for 5 seconds and then strain into a tulip glass. Garnish with mint sprigs and a watermelon sliver.

This sip's name pays homage to the film that put Kansas on the map. Ferguson's unique composition—a variation on the Mai Tai—features notes all inspired by the Sunflower State.

0.75 oz. Lime juice

0.75 oz. Sunflower Seed Orgeat (recipe below)

0.5 oz. Grand Marnier (or other orange liqueur)

1.5 oz. Aged rum

Sunflower Seed Orgeat: Blend 2 cups sunflower seeds with 2 quarts of water to make sunflower seed milk. Blend and strain using a cheesecloth. Blend the sunflower seed milk with 2 quarts sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon rosewater.

Instructions: Shake all ingredients with crushed ice for 5 seconds. Pour into a large rocks glass or a tiki glass with a straw. Garnish with a mint sprig and sunflower.

Horse racing—specifically the Kentucky Derby, the first leg of the Triple Crown—is an integral part of this state's culture. Banks deviated from the quintessential Derby sip, the Mint Julep, to bring his iteration of a Kentucky Mule to life.

• 1.5 oz. Willett Bourbon

• 0.5 oz. Lemon juice

• 0.5 oz. Simple syrup

• 2 dashes Angostura bitters

• Ginger beer

Instructions: Build all ingredients in a highball glass and top with ginger beer. Garnish with a long lemon twist.

Louisiana's state fruit, the strawberry, serves as the star player of this colorful, simple drink by Iregui.

1.5 oz. Vodka

1.5 oz. Strawberry shrub

Rosemary leaves

Prosecco

Instructions: Muddle rosemary leaves before adding vodka and strawberry shrub. Top with Prosecco. Serve in a snifter glass over crushed ice and garnish with more rosemary leaves.

Rob Ficks, the head bartender at Boston's The Hawthorne bar, has been traveling to a farm in Maine (it's set on the street this sip is named for!) for over 35 years. The blueberry and juniper bushes surrounding that property are "otherworldly good," he says, and inspired a few ingredients in his creation.

1.5 oz. Citadelle Gin

0.75 oz. Cynar

0.5 oz. Fresh lemon juice

0.75 oz. Blueberry syrup

1 dash Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitters

Instructions: Shake, decant into a coupe, and then garnish with a lemon twist.

Every year, thousands of wildflowers bloom in Maryland, including the daisy. Tafuri works this fact into the title of this fruity drink. Pro tip: This sip is all about presentation. Serve it up in mini Champagne bottles (foil and all!) for maximum impact.

1.5 oz. Gin

0.75 oz. Italicus

0.50 oz. Lemon juice

0.25 oz. Simple syrup

1.5 oz. Grapefruit

1 oz. Club soda

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and serve in small Champagne bottle.

Jackson Cannon, the owner and bar director of Boston's The Hawthorne, likes to utilize Massachusetts cranberries. "Massachusetts is known for their great production of cranberries," he explains. "Here, we use cranberry bitters to give a supple nod to that heritage."

1.5 oz. Square 1 Cucumber Vodka

0.75 oz. Lime juice

0.75 oz. Simple syrup

0.5 oz. Yellow Chartreuse

1 dash of Cranberry bitters

Instructions: Mount all ingredients in a mixing glass and shake. Strain into an ice-filled Collins glass. Top off with soda.

"Tarte Michigan cherries are some of the best in the country," says McGee. "I love using them alongside a nice dry gin."

1 Lime wedge

2 Cherries (halved and pitted)

1.5 oz. London Dry Gin

0.5 oz. Lime juice

0.5 oz. Pineapple juice

0.5 oz. Cane syrup

0.25 oz. Green Chartreuse

Muddle lime wedge and cherries in a short shaker tin. Add gin, lime juice, pineapple juice, and cane syrup, then shake with an ice cube for 3 seconds.  Pour unstrained. Fill the mixture with crushed ice and then float with Green Chartreuse. Serve in a tulip glass with mint and extra cherries.

Perfect for a fall wedding, this apple-forward concoction (which McGee adapted from the famed Serendipity cocktail from the Ritz Hotel in Paris) puts Minnesota's sweetest apple variety at the forefront.

6 large Mint leaves

4 Honeycrisp apple slices

0.25 oz. Cane syrup

1 oz. Calvados Apple Brandy

4 oz. Henriot Champagne

Instructions: Fill a white wine glass with crushed ice before adding in all ingredients.

Fun fact: Mississippi was once home to the world's largest cactus farm, which clearly informs both the ingredients (aloe liquor and fresh aloe vera juice!) and unique shape of this No. 3 Social cocktail. Bonus points if you can locate cactus-style glasses, like the one pictured here.

1.5 oz. Mezcal

0.5 oz. Aloe liquor

0.5 oz. Agave syrup

0.75 oz. Fresh lime juice

1.5 oz. Aloe vera juice

Prosecco

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and then top with a splash of Prosecco. Garnish with Chile be Arbol and a marigold (optional).

Move over Georgia—Missouri's peaches are just as sweet, says McGee. The "fresh, juicy peaches from Missouri's farms" are perfectly matched by sparkling, aromatized wines in this low-alcohol cocktail.

3 Peach slices

1 oz. Cocchi Americano

1 oz. Fino Sherry

0.25 oz. Campari

0.5 oz. Lemon juice

3 oz. Prosecco

1 oz. Club soda

Instructions: Muddle peach slices before adding in the rest of the ingredients. Serve in a wine glass with a peach slice garnish.

Montana's significant contributions to taboo liquor production during Prohibition (one of the more famous stories involved a Montana woman who brewed moonshine out of the bathtub of her cabin on the edge of Glacier National Park!) serves as the muse for this aptly-named drink by Cooper Lounge.

0.75 oz. Rittonhouse Rye

0.75 oz. Barolo Chinato (or any sweet vermouth)

0.75 oz. Calvados

1 tablespoon Benedictine

2 dashes Peychauds bitters

1 dash Angostura bitters

Instructions: After stirring and chilling, strain cocktail into a rocks glass with a big ice cube. Add a cherry garnish.

Nebraska's nickname is the Cornhusker State, which is where this Cooper Lounge sip gets its title (and its main ingredient—straight corn whiskey!).

1.5 oz. Mellow Corn 

0.5 oz. Dem syrup 

0.5 oz. Milk 

2 dashes Vanilla extract  

Instructions: After combining all ingredients, garnish with grated nutmeg.

Smooth and impossibly glam, this gin-based concoction has Vegas (or a casino wedding!) written all over it, explains Smith.

1.5 oz. Beefeater Gin

1 oz. Bergamot-infused vodka (recipe below)

0.75 oz. Cocchi Americano or Lillet Blanc

Bergamot-infused vodka: Steep fresh bergamot peels into vodka for 2-3 days. Strain out and pour.

Instructions: Stir for 1 minute and pour into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a lemon wheel.

This sip's hue goes beyond aesthetics—it signifies a major state highlight. New Hampshire's signature flower is the lilac, and Cannon uses muddled blueberries to mimic the color. The best part? It's tried-and-true. "Our luscious garden highball is a crowd-pleaser with fresh blueberries, gin, and a touch of vanilla," he says.

2 oz. Ford's Gin

0.75 oz. Lemon juice

0.5 oz. Simple syrup

0.25 oz. Vanilla gomme

0.5 dash Peychaud's

10 Blueberries

Instructions: Muddle blueberries in syrup and then add the rest of the ingredients. Shake and then fine strain into an iced Collins glass. Top with ginger ale.

A tribute to the hue of New Jersey's state flower (the violet!), this cocktail, from the Conrad Hotel's Loopy Doopy Rooftop Bar, pays homage to the Garden State in more ways than one. It also features white cranberries, one of the state's most important crops.

1.5 oz. Empress Gin

2 oz. White cranberry juice

Prosecco

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and then float with prosecco. Add fruit sprigs for garnish.

Ferguson's New Mexico-inspired après-dinner treat is inspired by the state's signature cookie: the Bizcochito.

1 Whole egg

0.5 oz. Heavy cream

1.5 oz. Brown Butter Fat Washed Spanish Brandy (recipe below)

0.75 oz. Cinnamon and Star Anise Syrup (recipe below)

Brown Butter Fat Washed Spanish Brandy: Brown half a stick of butter. Add warm brown butter and Spanish brandy to a temperature-safe container, and place in the freezer overnight. Strain the solid butter using a cheese cloth and rebottle strained brandy.

Cinnamon and Star Anise Syrup: Boil 10 cinnamon sticks and 2 anise stars in water for 20 minutes. Let steep for an hour. Strain. Blend in equal parts sugar.

Instructions: Place all ingredients in a shaker tin, and dry shake for 10 seconds. Add ice and shake for another 10 seconds. Strain into coupe or other chilled glass. Top with ground cinnamon.

This sip from New York City's Atrio Wine Bar & Restaurant, located in the Conrad Hotel, is a northeastern twist on the Old Fashioned and recognizes the presence of one of the largest mammals that call this state home. It also incorporates a maple syrup ice cube tapped from an actual New York maple tree—this accent changes the flavor of this drink as it melts over time.

1.5 oz. Hudson Baby Bourbon

Brandied cherries

Maple ice cube

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and garnish with an orange twist.

"Lemonade and its counterpart, sweet tea, represent familial warmth and the comforts of home," says Chris Williams, a bartender at the Charleston hotspot, 492. This explains the Arnold Palmer-derived base for this homey drink. "After a long day of adventuring in the brave outdoors, there's nothing better than coming home to a cold glass of lemonade or ice tea like Mom used to make."

1.5 oz. Vodka

1 oz. Lemon juice

0.5 oz. Lime juice

0.75 oz. Tea syrup

1 dash of Cardamom bitters

Prosecco

Instructions: combine all ingredients and serve in a deep white wine glass.

When it comes to maple syrup, Vermont gets the majority of the attention. But anyone from North Dakota would tell you that their local varieties are rival to none (if you need proof, give the state's maple syrup festival each year a quick search). Cooper Lounge made the state's signature touch of sweetness the star player in this state-inspired mix.

2 oz. Whistle Pig Rye 

0.5-0.75 oz. (depending on desired sweetness) Whistle Pig Barrel Aged Maple Syrup 

1 oz. Lemon juice 

Instructions: After shaking and straining, serve cocktail on the rocks. Garnish with an orange rind.

A good chunk of the nation's cucumber crops hail from Ohio, which means they're about as fresh—and readily available—as it gets in the Buckeye State. McGee recommends this sparkling mixture for a spring wedding, thanks to its cool, refreshing notes.

6 Mint leaves

2 Lime wedges

3 Cucumber slices

0.5 tablespoon Granulated sugar

0.5 oz. Lime juice

3 dashes Absinthe

1 oz. Kina L’Avion

5 oz. Portell Cava

Instructions: Muddle mint leaves, lime wedges, and cucumber slices before adding the rest of the ingredients. Serve in a beer glass with a mint and cucumber garnish.

Ferguson's idea of the quintessential Oklahoma-inspired cocktail is one that uses brews and spirits crafted locally in the state—which makes this sip a little piece of the midwest.

1 oz. Prairie Wolf "Dark" Coffee Liqueur (or other dry coffee liqueuer)

0.5 oz. Prairie Wolf M Whiskey (or other American whiskey)

1 oz. "Bomb" Syrup (recipe below)

Hot Cocoa Dust (cinnamon, cayenne, hot cocoa mix)

1 tablespoon Butterfly pea flower powder

Heavy cream

"Bomb" Syrup: Combine 1 bottle Bomb Prairie Artisan Ale and 1 cup of demerara sugar and boil on medium heat for 30 minutes.

Instructions: Build all ingredients in a glass then fill with crushed ice. Top with heavy cream. Garnish with a sprinkling of Hot Cocoa Dust.

The Pacific Northwest is known for its verdant strawberry fields, says Smith, which is why she's all for a state cocktail that highlights the fruit.

1 medium-sized Strawberry

0.75 oz. Lemon juice

0.5 oz. Honey syrup

1 oz. Cynar Amaro

1 oz. Old Overholt Rye

Instructions: Muddle strawberry and shake all ingredients for 10 seconds. Pour over crushed ice in a double Old Fashioned glass and garnish with a lemon wheel.

Who knew that a tropical plant like passion fruit thrives so hardily in Pennsylvania? The maypop, the variety most commonly found in this region, serves as the inspiration for this foamy sip from Tafuri.

1.5 oz. Vodka

1.5 oz. Passion fruit foam

0.5 oz. Montenegro

0.75 oz. Lemon juice

0.75 oz. Pineapple shrub

Instructions: Combine all ingredients and serve in a coupe.