Vodka, peach schnapps, OJ, and cranberry — the unapologetic 1980s crowd-pleaser, better than its reputation.
The Sex on the Beach was created in 1987 by Ted Pizio, a bartender at Confetti's bar in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He created it as a promotion for DeKuyper Peach Schnapps, which had just launched and he had been given a supply to use. The name — controversial at the time — generated enough publicity to make the drink nationally famous within months.
The drink's 1980s image has unfairly consigned it to novelty status. Made with fresh orange juice and decent vodka (rather than pre-made mix and the cheapest available spirit), it's a genuinely pleasant, refreshing tropical drink. The peach schnapps adds a distinct character that plain sweet-and-sour mix can't replicate. It's not a cocktail renaissance drink, but it doesn't need to be.
Muddle 2 slices of fresh peach with the schnapps before adding the other ingredients. Fresh peach elevates the drink considerably.
Replace cranberry with mango juice. The result is sweeter and more tropical — a mango sunrise variation.
Replace cranberry juice with blue curaçao and pineapple juice. The drink turns green-blue — a different kind of beach.