Explore 8-Bit Cocktails by Pixel Artist Jude Buffum
When he’s not crafting pixel art, Jude enjoys conducting craft cocktail experiments in his elaborate home bar. An amateur mixologist with a taste for nostalgia, he frequently looks to his favorite classic video games for inspiration. The result is 8-Bit Cocktails, a collection of playful pixel art illustrations that reimagine these drinks through the lens of classic Nintendo and Sega adventures.
Super Amaro Bros.
It's-a me, a Manhattan! This spirit-forward sipper adds a brotherly duet of Amari to the standard sweet vermouth, adding complexity to the high-proof bourbon. Layers of bitter orange and cola-deep richness, combined with black walnut bitters and orange aromatics push it toward dessert without tipping sweet.
1 oz Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond bourbon (100 proof)
½ oz Amaro Averna
½ oz Amaro Nonino Quintessentia
½ oz Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
2 dashes black walnut bitters
Stir with ice until well chilled and strain into a double rocks glass over a large ice cube. Express an orange peel over the top and garnish.
Ocarina of Thyme
Hey! Listen! A gimlet riff was the natural choice to incorporate the titular herb in this Hyrulian concoction. Fresh thyme muddled straight into the simple syrup keeps the herb savory and green instead of medicinal. Double-straining matters here: you want the aroma of the thyme without any leaf fragments clouding the glass.
2 oz Plymouth Gin
¾ oz lime juice
¾ oz simple syrup
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves (plus a sprig for garnish)
Gently muddle the thyme leaves in the simple syrup, add the gin and lime, and shake hard with ice. Double-strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a thyme sprig.
Donkey Punch
It's on, like Donkey Kong! A banana Daiquiri at its core, this one leans all the way into the barrel it's served in. Infusing the Flor de Caña with real banana brings sweetness without the cloying candy note of banana liqueur, demerara lends molasses depth, and black walnut bitters add a toasted edge.
2 oz banana-infused Flor de Caña rum
½ oz lime juice
¼ oz orange juice
¾ oz demerara syrup
2 dashes black walnut bitters
Shake with crushed ice and dirty-dump into a barrel mug (or hurricane glass). Garnish with mint.
Gin & Sonic
Gotta go fast? Not here. Coaxing this color-changing Gin & Tonic to Sonic's signature blue takes a slow, careful hand. Force-carbonate the finished mix to bring back some of the bubbles that the baking soda tends to flatten.
2 oz butterfly pea flower-infused London dry gin
4 oz Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic
Baking soda, to adjust color
Pour the gin into a mixing glass, add the tonic, and watch it turn from blue to purple. Add baking soda very slowly, stirring, until the liquid returns to "Sonic" blue. Carbonate with an iSi whipper or SodaStream, pour over ice in a Collins glass, and stir briefly.
Peach Princess
Thank you Mario, but our Princess is in another Sidecar! A split base of cognac and bourbon sets the stage, letting peach take the spotlight through brandy and muddled fruit. Cinnamon and cardamom flavors crown the cocktail, so it tastes regal rather than sweet.
1 oz cognac
½ oz bourbon
½ oz lemon juice
¼ oz peach brandy
¼ oz Fireball
½ oz cinnamon-bark syrup
3 dashes cardamom bitters
⅛ fresh peach (muddled slice)
Muddle the peach slice, add the remaining ingredients, and shake with ice. Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
Double Dash!!
Every Mario Kart fan knows a single banana peel will send you spinning out of control; drink more than two of these and you might suffer the same fate. This boozy Old Fashioned riff swaps in rum and banana liqueur for a bit of sweetness, keeping the balance on track.
1½ oz Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva rum
½ oz Giffard Banane du Brésil
½ tsp demerara syrup (2:1)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Stir over ice and strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. Garnish with an unpeeled slice of banana.
Super Smash
Make sure to slap the mint hard before garnishing this Whiskey Smash variant, to release the aromatic oils. Blueberry tags in alongside lemon for a knockout punch you can sip for at least a few rounds.
2 oz bourbon
½ oz lemon juice
¾ oz simple syrup
12 blueberries
8 mint leaves (plus a sprig to garnish)
Muddle the blueberries with the simple syrup, add the mint and muddle gently, then add bourbon and lemon. Shake with a few ice cubes and double-strain into a double rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a mint sprig.
Final Round
It's all about timing, Mac. This spicy take on the Last Word swaps jalapeño tequila in for the usual gin, so it drinks smooth and herbal right up until the heat hits you like Piston Honda’s surprise uppercut.
¾ oz jalapeño-infused tequila
¾ oz green Chartreuse
¾ oz lime juice
½ oz Luxardo Maraschino
¼ oz simple syrup
Shake with ice and double-strain into a chilled coupe.
Q*Bertini
This deceptively strong libation will @!#?@! you up if you aren’t careful! Playing tribute to the -tinis of the early 2000s, which were martinis in glassware only, this is really just an orange-forward sour.
1½ oz vodka
½ oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
½ oz orange juice
¼ oz lime juice
¾ oz passion fruit syrup
1 dash orange bitters
1 dash Bittermens 'Elemakule Tiki bitters
Shake with ice and double-strain into a chilled martini glass.
