Savory Cocktails: 14 Savory Drinks for People Who Skip Sweet

Most cocktail menus are built around sugar. Syrups, liqueurs, fruit juices, and a sweet finish. Savory cocktails go the other way: salt, brine, umami, herbs, vegetables, and heat. They drink more like food than dessert, which is exactly why they work at brunch, before dinner, with salty snacks, and with anything off the grill.

I make Bloody Mary seasoning for a living, so I am biased toward this side of the bar. Here are the savory cocktails worth knowing, from the classics every bartender can make to a few easy ones you can build at home tonight, plus how to make almost any drink more savory.

What Makes a Cocktail Savory

A savory cocktail leans on flavors you would normally find in the kitchen instead of the dessert case. Most pull from at least one of these:

• Salt and brine. Olive brine, pickle juice, a salted rim, or a few drops of saline. Bartenders call it salinity, and it makes every other flavor louder.
• Umami. The deep, meaty taste from tomato, Worcestershire, broth, soy sauce, or clam juice. It is what makes a Bloody Mary feel like a meal.
• Vegetables and herbs. Tomato, celery, cucumber, sage, dill, rosemary. Fresh and green instead of fruity.
• Heat and spice. Black pepper, chiles, hot sauce. A little burn keeps a savory drink from going flat.
• Acidity. Fresh lemon juice, lime, or a splash of vinegar keeps all that salt and umami bright instead of heavy.

The spirit matters less than you would think. Vodka and gin are the usual base because they stay out of the way, but tequila, mezcal, whiskey, and beer all make great savory drinks. Craft bars push it further with sesame oil, miso, mushroom-infused spirits, and fermented ingredients, but you do not need any of that to start.

Savory Vodka Cocktails

1. Bloody Mary

The most famous savory cocktail there is, and still the best one.

• 1.5 oz vodka
• 1 oz Stu's Classic Bloody Mary Seasoning
• 4 to 5 oz tomato juice
• Garnish: celery, pickle spear, olives

Build over ice in a tall glass and stir well. Stu's takes the hassle out of a Bloody Mary: the seasoning and our custom hot sauce are already perfectly proportioned in one bottle, so there is nothing to measure. Pour a little less for mild or a little more for bold, and everyone gets exactly the drink they want. Full method in our easy Bloody Mary recipe.

2. Bloody Caesar

Canada's national cocktail. Swap tomato juice for Clamato and rim the glass with celery salt.

• 1.5 oz vodka
• 1 oz Stu's Bloody Mary Seasoning
• 4 to 5 oz Clamato
• Celery salt rim, lime wedge

The clam adds a briny, ocean-side layer that makes it even more savory than a Bloody Mary. See the Bloody Caesar recipe for the full build. For a party, the same base goes into oyster shooters.

3. Bull Shot

A 1950s classic made with beef broth instead of tomato juice. Think of it as a Bloody Mary without the tomato.

• 1.5 oz vodka
• 4 oz cold beef broth or beef bouillon
• 2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 2 dashes hot sauce, a squeeze of lemon, a pinch of celery salt and black pepper

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. It sounds strange and drinks like a chilled beef consommé with a kick. More in our Bull Shot guide, and if you want tomato and beef together, try the Bloody Bull.

4. Pickle Martini

The dirty martini's louder cousin.

• 2 oz vodka
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1/2 to 1 oz dill pickle brine
• Pickle spear or cornichon

Stir with ice until very cold and strain into a chilled glass. Start with half an ounce of brine and work up. Use brine from a jar of good, garlicky dill pickles, not the sweet kind.

Savory Martinis and Gin Cocktails

5. Dirty Martini

The savory martini most people already know.

• 2.5 oz gin or vodka
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1/2 oz olive brine
• Two or three green olives

Stir with ice for about 30 seconds and strain into a chilled coupe. Want it dirtier? Go to 3/4 oz brine. The quality of the brine is the whole drink, so use it from a jar of olives you would actually eat. Our olive brine guide goes deeper.

6. Umami Martini

Our contrarian take on the dirty martini, and my favorite savory martini recipe.

• 2.5 oz gin or vodka
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1 bar spoon (about 1 tsp) Stu's Bloody Mary Seasoning
• Pickled pearl onion or pickled green bean

Stir with ice until very cold and strain. One bar spoon brings salt, pepper, and depth that olive brine alone cannot. Two bar spoons turns it into something else, so start with one. The full write-up is in the umami martini.

7. Gibson

A gin martini garnished with a pickled cocktail onion instead of an olive or a twist.

• 2.5 oz gin
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• Two or three cocktail onions

Stir and strain into a chilled glass. The onion gives a faint sweet-sour savoriness that makes it drier and sharper than a standard martini. Add a splash of the onion brine if you want it a touch dirty.

8. Red Snapper

A Bloody Mary made with gin. The botanicals give the tomato an herbal edge.

• 1.5 oz gin
• 1 oz Stu's Bloody Mary Seasoning
• 4 to 5 oz tomato juice
• Cucumber spear or celery

Build over ice and stir. If you like savory gin cocktails, this is the one to start with. Recipe and history in our Red Snapper post.

9. Celery Gimlet

• 2 oz gin
• 1 oz fresh celery juice
• 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz simple syrup
• Pinch of salt

Shake hard with ice and double strain into a chilled coupe. Green, cooling, and only just sweet enough to balance the lime. A couple of dashes of celery bitters make it even more savory.

Savory Tequila, Whiskey, and Beer Drinks

10. Michelada

Mexico's beer cocktail, and one of the best savory drinks for a hot afternoon.

• 12 oz Mexican lager, cold
• 1/2 oz Stu's Bloody Mary Seasoning
• 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
• Key Lime Rimmer for the glass

Rim a pint glass, add ice, Stu's, and lime, then top slowly with beer. Half an ounce is plenty for a beer. Our michelada recipe covers the variations, and red beer is the Midwest bar version.

11. Salted Jalapeño Margarita

A savory margarita with less sugar and more bite.

• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 1 oz fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz agave syrup
• 2 thin jalapeño slices
• Pinch of salt, plus a salted rim

Muddle the jalapeño gently in a shaker, add the rest with ice, shake, and strain over fresh ice into a rimmed glass. The salt inside the drink, not just on the rim, is what pushes it savory. For a tomato version, see the bloody margarita, and for a tequila drink with a chile-citrus chaser, the Vampiro.

12. Pickleback

A bar staple that is barely a recipe.

• 1.5 oz Irish whiskey
• 1.5 oz cold dill pickle juice

Shoot the whiskey, then the pickle juice. The brine wipes out the burn and leaves your mouth clean and salty. Use straight pickle juice like our Stu's 100% pickle juice or the brine from a good jar of dill pickles.

Savory Drinks Without Alcohol

Savory works without the alcohol too, and it is often better than a sweet mocktail because salt and umami give the drink the body alcohol normally would.

13. Zero-Proof Bloody Mary

• 1 oz Stu's Bloody Mary Seasoning
• 5 oz tomato juice
• 1 to 2 oz Jalapeño Zero-Proof Spirit

Build over ice and stir. The spirit goes in where the vodka would and brings a grassy jalapeño kick. Or skip it entirely for a classic Virgin Mary.

14. Sage and Tonic

• 2 oz Sage Zero-Proof Spirit
• 4 oz tonic water
• Rosemary sprig and a lemon wheel

Build over ice. The sage spirit is earthy and herbal with a gin-like finish, so this drinks like a savory gin and tonic without the gin.

How to Make Any Cocktail More Savory

You do not need a new recipe to push a drink savory, and sweet and savory can share a glass. Try one of these on something you already make:

• Add saline. Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in 4 teaspoons of warm water and keep it in a dropper bottle. Two or three drops in a margarita, daiquiri, or even an old fashioned sharpens everything.
• Add a bar spoon of Bloody Mary seasoning. It works in martinis, micheladas, and even a gin and tonic if you are feeling bold.
• Rim the glass with something savory. Celery salt, a savory rim salt, or Tajín instead of sugar.
• Use a pickled garnish. Pickled onion, green bean, okra, or a cornichon. The brine bleeds into the drink as you sip.
• Use an infused vodka. Cucumber, dill, or bacon-infused vodka puts savory flavor in before you mix anything. Here is how to make bacon vodka.
• Add an herb. Clap a sprig of rosemary, sage, or thyme before it goes in the glass so the aroma hits first.

For the full lineup of Bloody Mary variations and other tomato drinks, start with our Bloody Mary and savory drinks guide. Mixing broth into drinks? The spicy bone broth post is a good next stop.

Savory Cocktails FAQ

What is a savory cocktail?

A savory cocktail is a drink built around salty, briny, umami, herbal, or spicy flavors instead of sweetness. The Bloody Mary, dirty martini, Gibson, Bloody Caesar, and michelada are the best-known examples.

What are some savory alcoholic drinks to order at a bar?

A dirty martini, a Gibson, a Bloody Mary, a Red Snapper, or a michelada. Almost any bar can make these. You can also ask for a margarita with salt in the drink, not just on the rim.

What is the most popular savory cocktail?

The Bloody Mary. It has been the go-to savory drink for about a century, and most other savory cocktails, from the Bloody Caesar to the Red Snapper, are variations on it.

What liquor is best for savory cocktails?

Vodka and gin are the most common because they let the savory ingredients lead. Tequila and mezcal pair well with chile and lime, whiskey works with pickle brine, and Mexican lager is the base for a michelada.

Is a dirty martini a savory cocktail?

Yes. The olive brine adds salt and a little umami, which makes a dirty martini one of the most popular savory martinis. Adding a bar spoon of Bloody Mary seasoning takes it further.