It’s that time of the year when you might enjoy the Irish trash can drink! It’s a cocktail full of different colors and surprises. This drink is central to every college party and is great to serve at all the festivities happening year-round.

If you want to try a glass yourself you won’t be needing a bartender to mix it for you, as I am going to share the secrets of making nice trash can drink. You can either use it as a single drink or make more drinks out of it. This blend is so amazing that you will literally never get enough of it.

I experience so much frustration when I hit a bar to get a trash can drink, and they never seem to get the recipe right. There is always something lacking, and I end up explaining to them all about the ingredients and everything else. To save you from the drill and from a lackluster trash can drink, I am going to give you a recipe you can make any time at home by following simple steps.

As long as you have a bottle of rum, gin, vodka and some refreshing fruit schnapps you will be able to make it in no time. The proportion of the liquor is what makes it an effective boosting drink. A little off on any of ingredients will not make for a good trash drink.

What’s an Irish Trash Can?

The idea of trash drinks came from college parties when everyone would put all their leftover drinks together to make a new drink. The half-empty bottles were dumped into a jug, and the outcome was so amazing that people went crazy for it. This is the drink we now know as the trash drink.

So now you know where it got the ‘trash’ word from.

As for today, the casual trash can drink has become a popular recipe. There are just so many varieties of the trash can out there. It can be mixed with a variety of schnapps or fruit juices. It is usually an energy boosting drink which is full of peach schnapps, gin, rum, and an energy drink. You can technically use any energy drink that you find tasty. Irish trash can with red bull tastes especially delicious though. I use red bull usually, so does most of the people.

The invigorating Irish trash can is so full of calories that it makes a good energy drink for parties. Unlike the past, we can not randomly experiment by mixing whatever liquor we find together. That was a one-time thing that was a happy accident.

Now we follow a proper recipe with a definite proportion of ingredients to get the most flavor and freshness. Yet you can always be creative with this recipe and add some different juices and schnapps, that would be in the spirit of this product’s origin after all!

Is this a cocktail worth trying?

Those who haven’t really heard about this drink may be wondering…why have it at all? I know it’s just my experience but trust me when I tell you how this drink can make you feel fresh. I will make my point even more convincing by sharing some of the great benefits this super energizing concoction brings with it.

An energy booster: just look at the ingredients of this drink to see how much of an energy booster it can be. If the rum and gin are not enough, the addition of Red Bull, Jameson or fruit schnapps makes it even more exhilarating.

This drink is so full of calories that it is recommended to have only a single glass in one session. It has a small percentage of alcohol and a large percentage of fruit juice and other liquor. If you prepare it right, you will end up having a great surge of energy inside you in no time.

Anywhere anytime: it is a mix and shake recipe. So whether you are out at the beach partying or enjoying a home celebration, this drink can be prepared in no time. Just keep the bottles of vodka, rum, gin, and schnapps with you. Pour them together with blue curacao and there you go; a refreshing glass of Irish trash can is ready to serve.

It is best to serve the drink while the energy drink can is inserted in the glass upside down. It adds to the style, and you get to add as much drink as you want.

Unbelievably refreshing: A drink having such a rich and diverse blend of liquor it is easy to assume that it will make you tipsy, but the trash can drink is actually quite refreshing. Not only taste but the feel of it will lighten you up.

The fruity feel makes it a must for summer days and evenings.

When chilled liquors are served with ice and fruit brandies, it becomes more refreshing than you can imagine. Add some citrus juice to make it even more irresistible for all involved.

To die for a drink: when you can enjoy all the different liquors in a single drink, why would you have anything else but the Irish trash can drink.

Yes! That right, this drink has all the liquor to put you into just the right mood and give you all the energy you need for those late-night parties. It has equal parts rum, vodka, blue curacao, gin, and schnapps. No wonder it has been getting so popular lately. From young to old, this drink is enjoyed by all. For a nice punch, stir in a variety of fruit schnapps.

Balanced blend: No other drink I’ve ever had has such a balanced blend of liquor. Using one part each in the recipe makes this drink a balanced mix of all. The flavors are equally distributed and no single flavor masks the rest.

That is what I personally like about this drink. Every individual liquor turns out differently when mixed with the rest, and a new flavor altogether is produced. However, to maintain a single flavor in the drink, sometimes a certain schnapps is overrepresented in the drink or some extra garnish is added on top. This emphasizes one particular flavor in your trash can drink.

What’s so Irish in the Irish drink?

Have you ever seen a glass of freshly made Irish trash can drink? The fusion of blue with green makes you go crazy for the cocktail. And it not only looks heavenly but the taste is so exhilarating. The color of this drink makes it Irish as well as the Jameson, which is an Irish whiskey.

Not every trash can drink is made with Jameson, but a popular recipe of the drink makes good use of the whiskey. Irish trash can with Jameson has a strong whiskey taste, which is great to serve at parties.

Irish trash can shots are what I look for every time I’m at a party, and you will do the same when you have a taste of it. There are many ingredients in the recipe which makes it distinct from others.  In reading this article, you might be getting stuck on the word schnapps, since most us do not use them regularly at home.

Relax! You don’t have to prepare it at home.

Schnapps is a type of beverage that consists of distilled fruit brandies, herbal liquor or alcohol. These beverages are flavored using fruits syrups and artificial flavors. So, you can enjoy them in different flavors, from peach schnapps to apple, pineapple, strawberry schnapps, etc. Schnapps literally means spirit drinks in German and is taken from schnappen, which is used for all liquor or spirit drinks. Schnapps is also used for other drinks and taken in small glass shots.

Schnapps sometimes goes by different names depending on where you are, so let me give you more clarity on that. In Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and Alsace, schnapps is known by the names Obstbrand or Obstler. Fruit brandies with these names are quite popular in the entire region. All traditional drinks in the area use some type of fruit brandy. That is why the trash can drink has some schnapps, and the drink is always prepared with some amount of fruit brandy in it.

The difference between normal fruit juices and schnapps is that they are distilled and processed differently. Juices add a strong sting to the taste of the drink. Juices are alcohol-free, but schnapps is not, it has some alcoholic content.

Luckily schnapps is available in a variety of fruit flavors. The list includes cherries, apples, pears, plums, and apricots. There are other flavors for sure but these five are most commonly used in the trash can drink, and are readily available.

Apple schnapps is used in trash can apple juice; the recipe is shared later in this article. Peach schnapps is commonly used in every basic trash can recipe. Plum, pears, cherries, and apricots schnapps are used more in different German drinks.

A raspberry-flavored liquor called raspberry spirit is also known as schnapps, although it is not a German Obstler. Instead, it is an infusion extracted from fresh berries left steeping for several weeks in neutral spirits before the liquor is actually distilled.

The different kinds of Schnapps are similar to the popular Rakija found in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Slivovitz is another popular schnapps made from plums, and it is commonly found throughout these regions as well.

Energy Boosting Irish Trash Can Recipe

The Irish Trash Can is a wild drink that won’t make you tipsy, but is so invigorating that you will feel a spark of energy going through your veins. This concoction is pure magic, and every sip is spellbinding. That is my experience at least.

I always prefer to maintain certain flavors, so I add some lemonade or citrus juice every time I make a pitcher of this drink. But the basic recipe does not actually require that. Peach schnapps is enough to infuse an inviting taste. One important thing is to follow the same order while adding liquors to the drink, which will create a nice blue and green hue in the serving glass. It goes from blue to light green in the glass.

Irish trash can ingredients

  • 1 oz. Vodka
  • 1 oz. Gin
  • 1 oz. Rum
  • 1 oz. Triple Sec
  • 1 oz. Blue Curaçao
  • 1/2 oz. Peach Schnapps
  • 1 can Energy Drink

Instructions

Making the drink is pretty simple actually. All you need to do is some mixing, and it will be ready to serve. Take the blue curacao and pour it into a serving glass. Fill this glass with ice. Now pour in gin, rum, vodka, triple sec and peach schnapps.

Now take a can of energy drink and pour the drink into the glass. Serve and enjoy.

Irish Trash Can Mixed Drinks

Let’s look at some of the wild varieties of the trash drink. You shouldn’t always go with the basics, as adding some extra flavors can make the drink a little bit more interesting. So here are some exciting ways to enjoy the same old drink in different styles and a variety of flavors.

  1. Trash Can Fruit Punch

This trash can punch is made out of mixed fruit juice, unlike the basic drink. It uses coconut rum along with ordinary rum. For additional flavors here we are going to use oranges, grapes and apple schnapps. You can keep the same ratio of ingredients. For a trash can drink it is always a 1:1 ratio, meaning one part of each ingredient. The quantities are all equal.

The fresh fruit is first added to the serving glass, and then you pour all the liquids into the glass. Ice is a must, so do not forget to add ice along with the fruit. If you want to try some more refreshing fruits, either add them directly or just use their juice instead. So, for a nice blend give the mixture a light stir and then serve and enjoy.

Coconut rum is also known by the name of Caribbean rum. It is a coconut flavored liquor that is mostly available in Malibu packaging. It has a delicate, sweet and creamy taste of coconut. It has a slight mix of molasses which makes it even sweeter and smoother in flavor. A small amount of coconut rum is added to this trash can mixed drink.

Since it has a strong coconut flavor, you can use any energy drink to match the taste you want. Along with coconut rum, ordinary rum is also added to the drink to keep the balance of flavors.

  1. Trash Can Jungle Juice

The trash can jungle juice has a distinct blend of juices along with rum, gin, and vodka. The quantities for the rest of the ingredients will remain the same as the basic recipe. But this drink provides way more flavor with strawberry hill, peach schnapps, apple schnapps, and mixed fruits slices.

You can add them as per your taste preference, but it is usually one part each per bottle for a single session of drinks. This jungle juice has such a refreshing taste that you will literally enjoy every sip of it.

  1. Trash Can Lemonade

Lemonade lovers will certainly fall for this one. It tastes like heaven when you put the gin, rum, and vodka together with a liter of ginger ale, lemon juice, lemon slices, and some ice. You can use lemonade ice to make it even better.

Simply pour lemonade liquid in the ice cube tray and freeze it in the freezer. Then add these ice cubes to the drink. To make it more refreshing, add some lemon or oranges slices on top. Or garnish with a single slice.

  1. Trash Can Apple Juice

The apple juice trash can drink is yet another variable that will take your breath away with the super refreshing flavors of apple and pineapple juices. This drink is best to serve at summer beach parties. It takes all the heat away. Chill all the ingredients well before adding to the drink and then mix them well in a serving glass in equal proportions. Garnish with thinly sliced apple.

Conclusion

With one simple drink, so many other varieties are available today. Now you know why the Irish trash can drink can be a good choice for all occasions. Keep it ready for the party and mix it with different fruit schnapps to make something new every time. Or just put everything together to make a lovely fruit punch.

This drink guarantees a complete dose of energy with invigorating rum and gin flavors, and take on a new character when mixed with an energy drink. Irish trash drink with a red bull is a popular choice today. There are however a number of other energy drinks that you can add to the trash can mix. For a refreshing twist, store the fruit juice as ice cubes and add them to the serving glass. Garnish with fresh fruit or simply with crushed ice.

Author

Peter's path through the culinary world has taken a number of unexpected turns. After starting out as a waiter at the age of 16, he was inspired to go to culinary school and learn the tricks of the trade. As he delved deeper, however, his career took a sudden turn when a family friend needed someone to help manage his business. Peter now scratches his culinary itch on the internet by blogging, sharing recipes, and socializing with food enthusiasts worldwide.

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