Sweet Tart Shot

This Sweet Tart Shot tastes exactly like the candy because it's actually made with the candy! No more purchasing various liquors, mixes, and juices to get a shot that tastes like a Sweet Tart. These are easy to make in any color you choose and so fun to drink!

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
• 🗒 Ingredients
• 👩‍🍳 How to make Sweet Tart syrup
• 😚 How to make a Sweet Tart shot
• 🍹 How to turn this into a cocktail
• 💙 How to make a blue Sweet Tart shot (and green, red, etc.)
• 🍭 Other candy recipes
• 📖 Recipe

If you do a recipe search for how to make a Sweet Tart shot, you'll get all kinds of different recipes. First you'll have to decide what color you want the shot to be and then you'll have to obtain various ingredients like liquors, sour mix, and juices.

Since it doesn't necessarily seem like there's a standard accepted Sweet Tart recipe, I started thinking about how I'd create my ideal shot. And I realized it could actually be quite simple with one main ingredient: Sweet Tarts.

Why wouldn't we use actual Sweet Tarts to make a Sweet Tart drink? Not only would this ensure that the drink tastes just like the candy, but we wouldn't have to purchase any random bottles of alcohol we'd only use once. And also? We can make the shots in all the different colors we want!

This Sweet Tart shot recipe is so easy and will cause you to pucker just a little bit... But in the sweetest way!

❤️ Why you'll love this recipe

If you love Sweet Tart candies and are looking for a shot (or cocktail) that tastes just like them, this is the recipe for you!

You'll especially love this recipe if you want to make the drink without purchasing a lot of different ingredients.

It requires making a syrup, but once the Sweet Tart syrup is made, you can keep it in your fridge and whip up Sweet Tart shots whenever you want! One batch of syrup makes about 16 shots.

🗒 Ingredients

Instead of purchasing an odd combination of liquors and sour mixes, you just need a few simple ingredients for this drink.

With these simple ingredients, you can make basically any color Sweet Tart shot you want... With other recipes, you'll need to purchase different kinds of liquors to make different colored shots.

Here's everything you need (be sure to check out the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):

For the syrup:

• Water
• Granulated sugar
• Sweet Tart candies: color or color combination of your choice

And for the shot:

• Sweet Tart syrup
• Vodka
• Sanding sugar: for rimming the glass if desired

If you already have a stocked pantry and bar like I do, you'll probably only need to purchase the candy for this drink!

👩‍🍳 How to make Sweet Tart syrup

The first step to this shot is to make the Sweet Tart syrup.

First you'll want to determine what color Sweet Tart shot you want. I like to make purple because I can mix the purple, pink, and blue Sweet Tarts together to get a pretty hue.

If you're using those three colors, you will only need one regular-sized box of candy (unless these are your husband's favorite candies and they keep mysteriously disappearing as you're testing this recipe... ahem.). Otherwise, you may need two or three to get enough of the same color.

Put water, sugar, and your choice of multi-colored candies in a medium saucepan and stir to combine.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over low heat and let mixture simmer for about 10 minutes, until syrup has thickened.

Remove the saucepan from the heat.

You'll have a beautiful vibrantly colored syrup that will continue to thicken a bit as it cools.

Pour the syrup into a heat-proof bowl or mason jar. Place bowl or jar in fridge to cool completely before using.

And your Sweet Tart syrup is ready to use however you desire. I'm showing you how to turn it into fun Sweet Tart shots!

The syrup should keep in your fridge for about a month when stored in an airtight container.

😚 How to make a Sweet Tart shot

Now that the syrup is made, you just need to shake it with some vodka and ice cubes to create your shot. Really, that's all you do!

And then pour into a shot glass. You can rim the shot glasses in colored sugar if you want. I think this helps make the drink even more fun and sweet!

And take a sip (or a gulp) of an ice cold shot that tastes exactly like Sweet Tarts candies! Which is probably what you were looking for in a Sweet Tart shot in the first place, right?

Using the candy is the absolute best way to get the flavor!

I admit I don't indulge in shots very much these days. But I saw this little story on whether or not you can make shots sophisticated and the consensus seems to be yes.

I think this is a fun shot to sip on for the awesome tart but still amazingly sweet flavor.

🍹 How to turn this into a cocktail

That said, if you're more of a cocktail person than a shot person and you love the idea of a Sweet Tart cocktail, that's easy to do too! You can really use the syrup in any of your favorite drink recipes to create all kinds of different Sweet Tart drinks.

I like to use 2 oz. vodka, 1 oz. Sweet Tart syrup, and soda water for a Sweet Tart cocktail. You can use more or less syrup depending on how sweet you like your drinks!

You could also double the ingredients of the shot and serve them in a martini glass for a Sweet Tart martini.

You can add a bit of fresh lime juice or lemon juice if you want, but I think the Sweet Tart syrup brings the perfect amount of tart.

You can even use the vodka and syrup to make jello shots!

💙 How to make a blue Sweet Tart shot (and green, red, etc.)

This is an easy one! Before you make your syrup, decide what color you want your shot to be. If you want a blue Sweet Tart shot, use all blue Sweet Tarts or a mixture of blue, green, and yellow candies.

For red, use all red/pink Sweet Tarts, and for green, use all green candy. If you're just using one color in the syrup, you'll likely need a couple boxes (2-3) to get ½ cup of them. If you're using a mix of 3 colors, you should be able to get them all from one box.

With other recipes, you'd need to purchase things like blue curacao for the blue shot, raspberry vodka for the pink, black raspberry liqueur for the purple, etc. Along with things like triple sec, sour mix, peach schnapps, Red Bull, lemon lime soda; and juice like cranberry juice, pineapple juice, grapefruit juice, and more.

With my drink recipe, if you already have vodka at home, you won't even have to go to your local liquor store to get any more ingredients. And you can make all the colorful shots you want!

🍭 Other candy recipes

I absolutely love incorporating candy into my recipes (especially cocktail recipes!) and have lots of delicious candy-focused treats on my blog. Here are some of my favorites:

• Make Your Own Rock Candy
• Rock Candy Cocktail
• M&M Pancakes
• Sour Patch Kids Margarita
• Bubblegum Simple Syrup
• Bubblegum Cocktail
• Starburst Ice Cream
• Twix Frappuccino
• Cadbury Mini Egg Donuts
• Jelly Bean Ice Cream

Sweet Tart shots are prefect for sharing with your loved ones on Valentine's Day, but they can obviously be enjoyed any time you're craving a sip that's a little bit sweet and a little bit tart!

Bring these sweet drinks out at your next gathering for some extra fun!

What candy would you turn into a drink?

📖 Recipe