Add texture and flavor to your drinks with a sweet sugar rim. You traditionally see them with margaritas and other cocktails, but you can serve them with virtually any drink--coffee, hot chocolate, lemonade or even regular fruit juice.
The sugar adds an extra kick of sweetness, plus some zest or spice if you mix it with other ingredients.
Here are some fun and fancy, flavored sugars you can make easily at home including: cinnamon, lime and pink lemonade. Try experimenting with different colors and flavors to match your favorite drinks.
Once you're finished, you can check out how to rim a glass with sugar using one of these flavorful, homemade rims.
Try your favorite flavor with a gingerbread coffee, fog cutter drink or watermelon basil cocktail, to name a few.
Jump to:
🧉 Cinnamon Sugar Rim
Ingredients
- white sugar - You can also use brown sugar if you prefer.
- cinnamon powder - This adds warm flavor perfect for fall and winter.
*Check ingredient amounts in recipe card.
How to Make a Cinnamon Sugar Rim
- Mix the sugar with the cinnamon.
- Store in an airtight container in a pantry or cupboard.
Drink Pairing
- This flavor goes well with coffee using a glass mug, or for creamy cocktails such as this Brandy Alexander retro cocktail.
- Cinnamon sugar tastes great with hot drinks, especially during the autumn months. Try it with this London Fog tea.
- Start serving homemade coffee, hot chocolate or pumpkin beer with a spicy cinnamon rim.
- This rim also pairs well with other cocktails that have a lot of milk or cream. The creaminess offsets the kick of the cinnamon, creating a delicious drink that pairs well with holiday dinners.
🍋🟩 Lime Zest Rim
Ingredients
- white sugar - Regular white granulated sugar.
- lime zest - Freshly grated using a small hole grater or rasp.
Instructions
Step 1. Mix the sugar with the lime zest. Spread it out onto a wax paper lined baking sheet and let dry for about 1 hour.
Step 2. You can break up any clumps by hand or by giving it a quick pulse in the blender.
Chef's Note: You can fold the wax paper up to quickly and easily transfer the sugar to the blender.
Step 3. It's ready to use. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Drink Pairing
- Lime zest flavor is perfect for numerous cocktails, limeade and especially margaritas. Try it with a frozen strawberry margarita, one of my favorites for summer!
- This easy peach Bellini could also benefit from a lime flavored rim.
- Rim the glass with fruity sugar, then pour your favorite cold drink and enjoy margaritas on the beach.
Pro Tip #1
If lime zest doesn't pair well with the cocktail, try another citrus fruit like orange, lemon or even grapefruit. Lime sugar is also perfect for non-alcoholic drinks like fruit juice, flavored water or non-alcoholic Moscow mules.
🍋 Pink Lemonade Glass Rim
Ingredients
- white sugar - You can use regular white granulated sugar. Super fine sugar will give you more even coverage.
- lemon zest - Freshly grated.
- red food coloring - Or pink if you have. I like to use a touch of gel food coloring but you can also use liquid. You will get a bolder color with gel.
Instructions
Step 1. Add the sugar and food coloring to a blender jar. Pulse until the color is blended well. You can add more drops to reach desired color. Mix the lemon zest into the colored sugar.
Chef's Note: Alternatively, you can hand-mix the sugar with the color in a bowl.
Step 2. Spread the colored sugar out onto a wax paper lined baking sheet and let dry for about 1 hour. After it dries, you can break up the clumps by giving it a quick pulse in the blender again. It's ready to use!
Drink Pairing
- Pink lemonade flavor brings out the sweetness in your favorite fruity drinks.
- This rim flavor goes well with hard (alcoholic) or regular (non-alcoholic) lemonades (such as pink lemonade). You can serve it with any type of homemade lemonade recipe.
- Try it with my strawberry-flavored virgin daiquiri or other cocktails that need a kick of citrus.
Pro Tip #2
To complete the flavor profile, you could add a 🍋 lemon wedge that your guests can squirt directly into the cocktail.
❓ Recipe FAQs
It's simply a decorative (and tasty) ring of sugar applied to the rim of a glass. It's most popular for cocktails to add flavor and presentation to the drink.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Yes! The citrus sugar rims can also be frozen for up to 3 to 6 months for best quality. It's not necessary for the cinnamon rim.
🍹 Related Cocktail Recipes
If you tried this Sugar Rim Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. And please share the recipe!
📋Recipe
Sugar Rim (3 Flavors)
Ingredients
Cinnamon-Sugar Rim
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Lime Zest Sugar Rim
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime zest
Pink Lemonade Sugar Rim
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 5 drops red food coloring - or pink if you have
Instructions
Cinnamon-Sugar Rim
- Mix the sugar with the cinnamon.½ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Store in an airtight container in a pantry or cupboard. This sugar rim flavor goes well with coffee, hot chocolate or other hot drinks using a glass mug. It's also perfect for creamy cocktails.
Lime Zest Sugar Rim
- Mix the sugar with the lime zest. Spread it out onto a wax paper lined baking sheet and let dry for about 1 hour.½ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon lime zest
- You can break up any clumps by hand or by giving it a quick pulse in the blender.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months. This sugar rim flavor goes well with margaritas, limeade or other cocktails.
Pink Lemonade Sugar Rim
- Add the sugar and food coloring to a blender jar. Pulse until the color is blended well. You can add more drops to reach desired color. (Alternatively you can hand-mix the sugar with the color in a bowl.)½ cup sugar, 5 drops red food coloring
- Mix the lemon zest into the colored sugar.1 tablespoon lemon zest
- Spread the colored sugar out onto a wax paper lined baking sheet and let dry for about 1 hour.
- After it dries, you can break up the clumps by giving it a quick pulse in the blender again.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months. This sugar rim goes well with hard or regular lemonades (like pink lemonade) or other cocktails.
Notes
- Lime swap: The lime zest sugar rim recipe would also work with grapefruit, orange or lemon zest.
- Nutrition info: The nutrition information is only for the sugar, per tablespoon.
- Food coloring type: I like to use a touch of gel food coloring but you can also use liquid. You will get a bolder color with gel.
- Freezer storage: The citrus sugar rims can also be frozen for up to 3 to 6 months for best quality.
- Tip: When you're breaking up the clumps, you can fold the wax paper up to quickly and easily transfer the sugar to the blender.
- How to use sugar rims: Once you're finished, you can check out how to rim a glass with sugar using one of these flavorful, homemade sugar rims.
Nutrition
Nutrition information on In the Kitch is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It may not include toppings and/or sauces.
Joss says
This recipe is so great for adding visual aesthetics and a touch of flavor to cocktails. Yum!