Glamour Potion: A Butterfly Pea Cocktail and Mocktail for Venus
Every sip of this stunning butterfly pea cocktail and mocktail is made to enchant. From color changing butterfly pea flower and cocktail glitter, to the floral, vanilla, and sparkling flavors, this glamour cocktail will captivate both you and your guests. In fact, each ingredient was selected for its associations with Venus—the planet of charm and attraction.
Besides the breakdown for this tantalizing recipe, I’ll cover several ways to make the drink recipe nonalcoholic. Plus, learn a bit about glamour magic and how you can incorporate this Venus cocktail into some glamour magic rituals of your own.
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Table of contents
Creating a Butterfly Pea Cocktail for Glamour
Glamour is all about curating our visual appeal to enchant—just like a little transformation spell. To get that glamorous cocktail essence, I used butterfly pea flower for a color-changing effect. If you’re unfamiliar with this ingredient, it’s essentially a flower (often used dried, like a tea) that changes color upon contact with acid.
It starts out as an indigo blue, and once an acid is added, changes to varying shades of purple-pink (depending on how acid much you add).This means that whenever you add something with acidity—such as citrus, or even sparkling white wine in this case—it will change color.
To create a butterfly pea cocktail, I integrated the flower through simple syrup—and I really want to stress simple. It’s only equal parts hot water and sugar. And in this case, you infuse a small amount of butterfly pea into the hot water before adding the sugar (just like a tea!). This way, it’s also easy to create a nonalcoholic butterfly pea mocktail, too.
I walk you through it in the recipe cards below, but you can also check out my blog on butterfly pea flower simple here.
Where to Buy Butterfly Pea Flower
So, you will need some butterfly pea flower for this drink recipe. But a little goes a long way and it’s a great investment for all kinds of teas, drinks, syrups, and even infusing your own alcohol! I personally recommend Mountain Rose Herbs—originally founded by famed herbalist Rosemary Gladstar in 1987, they’re organic and commit to ethical harvesting and zero-waste.
*Herbal Note – Butterfly pea flower may not be advisable during pregnancy. When using herbal ingredients, always check with a doctor or licensed medical professional, especially if pregnant or on medication.
Serving Tip – Saving the Color Change for Last
A butterfly pea cocktail is always a show-stopper at events and gatherings. If you want to save the color-changing effect for your guests, leave the addition of lime and sparkling white wine for serving. You can do this by measuring out the lemon and sparkling into little glasses or even potion bottles with edible cocktail glitter. Have guests add it on their own for a moment of enchanting magic.
Ingredients for a Glamour Cocktail
Just like butterfly pea flower enchants through changing colors, glamour is about curating our energy and appeal through our own unique sense of aesthetic. Like butterflies being drawn to an intoxicating flower, glamour creates individual magnetism.
Similarly, this drink changes color—like a visual illusion. To really emphasize the glamour, I wanted this to also be a Venus cocktail. Venus is the planet of charm and attraction in astrology, and so I especially selected ingredients that were associated with it: attracting and floral, like butterfly pea flower, rose, violet, and even vanilla.
And of course, what’s a glamour cocktail without a bit of bubbly? So I topped the drink with some sparkling white wine.
Main Ingredients & Their Meaning in Magic
When I make my recipes, they’re not just about flavor, but energy. Let me walk you through the magic and inspiration of each ingredient of this butterfly pea cocktail recipe, as well as substitutions to make it your own!
Please keep in mind though—while I talk about the magical associations of each ingredient, the is for insight and entertainment purposes only.
- Butterfly pea flower (Venus, spiritual transformation, love, happiness) gives this cocktail recipe it’s color-changing magic! You will be integrating it through a quick and easy simple syrup.
- Vanilla (Venus, Love, Peace, Money) gives this recipe a soothing, alluring quality. For easy cross-use in both cocktail and mocktail form, I opted for vanilla extract (assuming most home kitchens have this). You can also add vanilla bean into the simple syrup, if you prefer to avoid vanilla extract.
- Rose (Venus, love)is the quintessential love flower in the West, and to me, absolute essential for a Venus cocktail recipe. In the cocktail version, it is integrated through rose liqueur and rose water for the mocktail version. Of course, you can also add it to the simple syrup in dried form.
- Fresh Lime(Sun, breakthrough, love) is the citrus that balances this glamour cocktail. Added last (alongside the sparkling white), it helps prompt the color change from the butterfly pea flower recipe. Be sure to freshly squeeze your own limes! I personally use a hand squeezer. Bought lime juice has additives for shelf stability and changes the balance.
Cocktail-Specific (Alcohol) Ingredients
- Violet liqueur (also called creme de violet) combines beautifully with the rose liqueur to add o the floral magic of this butterfly pea flower cocktail recipe. I wanted to include violet in some way because not only is it another Venus-associated ingredient, but violet is among the first flowers to greet the coming of spring—associated with wishes, hope, love, luck, and peace in magic.
- Sparkling White Wine is the essential glamorous cocktail moment. You can use a dry sparkling white wine, such as Prosecco or brut champagne. Grapes (from which sparkling white wine is made) are associated with the moon, abundance, fertility, and mental powers in magic.
- White rum makes the base of this butterfly pea cocktail recipe. Of course, you can try other spirits such as vodka if you like. But I added rum specifically because it is made from sugarcane. In magical practices, sugarcane is a Venus-ruled plant that adds energy of love, positivity, and abundance.
Want more magical butterfly pea flower recipes? Check out my Blue Moon Visions recipe, or Elle’s Alchemy
Nonalcoholic Substitutions & Options
You can absolutely have a glamorous time without the alcohol! Not everyone wants to drink alcohol—in fact, my own husband is sober.
I tried this butterfly pea mocktail two ways: with and without nonalcoholic spirits. Either version is delicious in its own right! Here is how to make this this glamorous cocktail nonalcoholic.
- Vanilla Extract does contain alcohol. In this drink, it is diluted below the nonalcoholic limit. However, some nonalcoholic sippers may prefer to avoid to vanilla extract just in case. If this is you, you can instead steep a sliced-open vanilla bean alongside the butterfly pea flower in the simple syrup. Just taste test to be sure—you may want to infuse overnight in the fridge to get a strong enough vanilla flavor.
- Rose Water replaces rose liqueur in the mocktail version of this butterfly pea cocktail. Rosewater is nonalcoholic and adds an elegant floral essence to the drink. However, if you don’t have some, you can certainly forego it all together, or even add a bit of it dried to the butterfly pea flower simple as well.
- If you are using nonalcoholic spirits, I found Lyre’s Nonalcoholic Cane Spirit/Rum to be absolutely delicious. You can then top with de-alcoholized sparkling white wine for an elegant butterfly pea mocktail moment.
- If you’re not using nonalcoholic spirits, simply forego them and instead double the recipe to make up the lost volume. It literally tastes like a floral nonalcoholic daiquiri and is SO delicious.
As for the violet liqueur, there is no nonalcoholic substitute. Plus, it can be hard to source dried violets. But in the case you do have some, you can also add it to the simple syrup. But truly, it’s totally fine without!
Tools to Make A Glamour Cocktail
Check out my tools blog here if you want to learn more about the magical potential of each tool and my full recommendations.
Tools-wise, you’ll need:
- jars to infuse the butterfly pea flower syrup
- A shaker
- jigger
- citrus juicer (for fresh citrus juice)
- strainer
For quality, I recommend A Bar Above. They also have a copper (rose-gold colored) and gold shaker set, which is perfect for making this glam, Venus cocktail in style.
Check out the glamorous cocktail and mocktail recipes down below. Plus, find tips on how to make it magically further down!
Recipe: Glamour Potion Cocktail
Glamour Potion: A Butterfly Pea Cocktail
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add flower to container and pour in hot water. Let it steep for 5-10 minutes. You want a really deep, dark color for proper infusion.
- Stir in 1/2 cup sugar (measured beforehand). Strain before use.
- NOTE: If you want to save the color change for a special moment, add sparkling white wine and lime LAST. Otherwise, you can add the lime earlier before shaking for proper acid balance.
- In mixing tin, add infused white rum, vanilla, simple syrup, rose and violet liqueur and ice. Add lime, unless you want a slight color change at the very end.
- Shake and strain into coupe or champagne glass. Top with dry sparkling white wine. If you haven't already added in the fresh lime, do so along with the sparkling white wine for color change. Stir with intention and garnish with edible flower or citrus twist.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Recipe: Glamour Potion Mocktail
Nonalcoholic Glamour Potion: A Butterfly Pea Mocktail
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add flowers to container and pour in hot water. Let it steep for 5-10 minutes. You want a really deep, dark color for proper infusion.
- Stir in 1/2 cup sugar (measured beforehand). Strain before use.
- NOTE: if you want to leave the color-change for serving or the very last moment, add lime and de alcoholized sparkling white wine for the VERY end. Otherwise, if you don't particularly care, you can add lime into the shaker.
- In mixing tin, add butterfly pea syrup, vanilla, rosewater, nonalcoholic rum/white cane spirit replacement (if using), and ice. Add lime, unless you want a slight color change at the very end.
- Shake and strain into coupe or champagne glass. Top with de alcoholized sparkling white wine or brut champagne. If you haven't added the lime already, so do now.
- Garnish with edible flower or citrus twist.
Notes
- If you are using nonalcoholic spirits, I found Lyre’s Nonalcoholic Cane Spirit/Rum to be absolutely delicious. You can then top with de-alcoholized sparkling white wine for an elegant butterfly pea mocktail moment.
- If you’re not using nonalcoholic spirits, simply forego them and instead double the recipe to make up the lost volume. It literally tastes like a floral nonalcoholic daiquiri and is SO delicious.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Making it Magical
Of course, you can enjoy the magic of this glamour cocktail and its aligned ingredients all on its own. But for those who want to dig deeper and infuse each sip with intention, that’s my specialty!
Attuned to the planet Venus and imbued with attractant, loving energies, here are intentions and magic moments that align with this butterfly pea cocktail:
- Glamour Magic. One facet of glamor magic is shapeshifting your energy to match your intentions. As you add citrus or sparkling white wine to change the color of this butterfly pea flower rum cocktail, envision what aesthetic illusion you are casting.
- Breaking Bad energy with Lime. Lime is considered hex-breaking in magical practices. When adding to this Venus cocktail for the color change, think on what you are changing or releasing and the new leaf you’re turning.
- Flower Blessing & Attraction. Flowers in general are used for attraction and blessing in magic—just like drawing bees to a flower. With its floral ingredients, this glamourous cocktail is a perfect sip to accompany intentions of attraction. As you sip, think upon what you are drawing towards you, whether romantic, financial, or something else entirely. You can even source some organic fresh flower garnishes (these are usually at higher end, organic markets).
- Sweetening magic with Sugar. Sugar is used in magic to sweeten things your way! As you make the simple syrup, stir clockwise with intention as though drawing in your desires.
- Love & Friendship, Connection. With the love associations of this Venus cocktail, this is a great recipe for connection, and perfect for Spring magic or Venus transits! Share a glass to compliment the energy of connection, whether it be with a romantic partner or friend.
Check out more butterfly pea flower recipes:
You made it to the end 🙂 Here’s a little behind-the-scenes. On the right is the first photo I took of this drink over a year ago! On the left is present day. What a difference, huh?
