The Most Expensive Cocktails on the Planet

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 Dazzle
at the Second Floor Bar in
Harvey Nichols, Manchester

Ingredients:
Rose champagne
Strawberry liqueur
Lychee liqueur
Lemon juice
Syrup
18-karat white-gold ring with pink
tourmaline and diamond stones

Price Tag: $51,200

This cocktail from the high-end English department store, Harvey Nichols,
comes with a side of security guards who escort it safely to the table.
The bar now features a special safe to guard the rings, which clients can
order according to their budget -- and their desire to impress.
 Sword Martinis
at Jambu's Bar in the
Raffles Resort Canouan
Island, Grenadines

Ingredients (Classic):
Belvedere Vodka
Dry vermouth
Lemon twist
Cactaur root

Price Tag: $300

Jambu's Bar at the Raffles Resort in the Grenadines boasts a lucky 88 martinis, four
of which top the price list at $300 per glass. The key ingredient in each is a customized
and handmade 14-karat gold sword: The Bushido features a miniature samurai sword;
the Old Glory comes with a Civil War-era replica; the Excalibur has a version of its
eponymous legendary saber; and the Classic sports a regular sword. Collect them all.
 Martini on the Rock
in the Blue Bar at the
Algonquin Hotel,
New York

Ingredients:
Vodka
Dry vermouth
Olive
Enormous diamond

Price Tag: $10,000

A 1.52-carat diamond will do wonders to enliven a regular martini.

This cocktail may be the only drink that must be ordered with 72 hours notice, and its
price will vary depending on the precise diamond selected. The good news is that the
first time the drink was served, the assessed value of the diamond was actually a few
thousand dollars higher than the bar tab, so you might actually profit from ordering one.
 Magie Noir (Black Magic)
at the Umbaba nightclub,
London

Ingredients:
Richard Hennessy cognac
Dom Perignon vintage champagne
Créme de mure blackberry liqueur
Lemon grass
Lychees
Extract of yohimbe bark

Price Tag: $630

Barman Giles Andreis devised this wonder at the request of a pair of Goldman Sachs
bankers who wanted to celebrate their bonuses with something special.
Although the drink now comes with a 24-karat white-gold cocktail pin, purists can
order theirs the way it was originally poured on that first big night.
 Sapphire Martini
in the Mezz at
Foxwoods Resort Casino,
Connecticut

Ingredients:
Bombay Sapphire gin (or the
patron's choice of premium vodka)
Blue curaçao
A dash of dry vermouth
Blue sugar (for the rim of the glass)
Platinum-mounted diamond and
sapphire earrings

Price Tag: $3,000

What turns this cocktail from something tasty and blue into a drink that could change your
life (or at least your marital status) is its sterling-silver pick
crowned with a 14-karat gold accent ring. Actually, it's not even so much the pick as what the
pick is holding: a pair of platinum-mounted diamond (0.8 carats)
and sapphire (2.5 carats) earrings.
 The Ritz Side Car
in the Bar
Hemingway Hotel Ritz, Paris

Ingredients:
1830 Ritz Reserve cognac
Cointreau
A drop of freshly squeezed lemon

Price Tag: $515

This drink is the holder of the Guinness World Record for the most expensive cocktail,
and features some of the oldest cognac in the world. Made from grapes that were on
vines well before the phylloxera infestation of the 1860s devastated many of France's
finest vineyards, the 1830 Ritz Reserve cognac provides a taste of history and can be
found in only a handful of bottles. Over the past three years, the Ritz has sold
approximately 60 of these drinks, so they may not last very long.
 The Red Ruby
at Reserve,
Chicago

Ingredients:
Grey Goose L'Orange vodka
Hypnotiq cognac
Orange juice
Pama, a pomegranate liqueur
A splash of Dom Perignon champagne

Price Tag: $950

Pete Gugni, the manager of this nightclub in Chicago's West Loop, has assembled an
impressive array of liquid delights for this cocktail. And, drawing upon his background
in the jewelry business, he has hidden in their midst a one-carat, A-grade ruby.
Diamond Cocktail
in the Piano Bar at the
Sheraton Park Tower Hotel,
London

Ingredients:
Charles Heidsieck Vintage 2001
Champagne
Remy Martin Louis XIII cognac
Angostura bitters
Sugar cube
Your choice of a diamond or ruby

Price Tag: $4,350

The price of this glittering champagne cocktail will depend on the quality of the gemstone
picked to be the garnish: selecting a 0.6 carat diamond will produce a $4,350 drink,
"but we could go up to $19,000 if a customer would like to choose such a gemstone"
says the bar's assistant manager, Theodore Garcia. In any event, the presence of
Charles Heidsieck Champagne and Remy Martin Louis XIII cognac (a blend of cognacs
-- some of which are more than 125 years old -- that retails for $1,750 per bottle)
guarantees that the flavor will be exceptional.
 Platinum Passion
at Duvet,
New York

Ingredients:
L'Esprit de Courvoisier
Squeeze of lemon
Syrup of passion fruit, forest berries,
wildflower honey, and brown sugar
Fill with Ruinart Champagne

Price Tag: $1,500

The Duvet restaurant in New York may be most famous for entertaining its patrons
on mattresses, but its signature cocktail may also leave you flat on your back.
Served in a chilled champagne flute and garnished with an orchid, the elixir is said
to be a favorite of Paris Hilton and Pamela Anderson.

CM