Samarian Sunset

Natasha David, Nitecap | New York City

samarian sunrise cocktail star trek reimagined recipe

Star Trek, the eponymous, multi-generational television and movie series, offers some of the most elegant and interesting contributions to sci-fi cocktail culture. The Samarian Sunset, which first appeared in Star Trek: The New Generation, is a mystery that seems more technology than cocktail: Served clear in a clear glass, the drink comes into its own when, after the glass is tapped, the transparent liquid begins to swirl with color. Reinterpreted for mere humans, Natasha David’s Tequila Sunrise variation gets its color from a splash of bottom-floating Campari.

Ingredients

Serving: 1

  • 2 ounces tequila
  • 2 ounces tequila
  • 3/4 ounce lime juice
  • 3/4 ounce lime juice
  • 1/2 ounce orange juice
  • 1/2 ounce orange juice
  • 1/2 ounce simple syrup
  • 1/2 ounce simple syrup
  • 1/2 ounce Campari
  • 1/2 ounce Campari

Garnish: orange wheel

Directions
  1. Add 1/2 ounce Campari to a chilled rocks glass.
  2. Sit a large rock of ice on top of the Campari.
  3. Shake remaining ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker.
  4. Gently strain over the rock of ice so the drink floats over the Campari.
  5. Garnish with an orange wheel.