What is the Piña Corona cocktail trend all about?

One DIY cocktail trend is taking off on TikTok this summer, but which ingredients go into a Piña Corona and how do you make one? db investigates.

What’s the first drink that springs to mind when you think about hitting the sun lounger by the pool or beach? We’ll warrant it’s either an ice cold beer or, for fans of paper cocktail umbrellas, a Piña Colada.

Now a new social media trend is championing the merging of both drinks to make the ultimate summer cocktail. And one beer brand in particular stands to benefit.

Enter the Piña Corona.

Made by pouring out (or drinking) half a bottle of Mexican beer Corona, then topping it up with a splash of white rum, a dollop of coconut cream and a generous serving of pineapple juice, the Piña Corona is said to be the perfect balance of sweet and dry flavours.

Those who have made the drink recommend placing your thumb over the mouth of the bottle and gently turning it upside down to mix the ingredients together.

“Don’t shake, because it has carbonation, which I had to learn the hard way… after it’s done exploding everywhere you can add a lime garnish,” said @madisoncmatlock in a TikTok video, who added that the final result tastes “delicious”.

Alternatively, mix the rum, coconut cream and pineapple juice into a cocktail shaker first, and then use a funnel to pour the mixture into the beer bottle.

Variations

Variations of the drink include using alcohol-free Corona for a slightly less potent mix, or going the full hog and using an alcohol-free rum dupe too to make a 100% virgin mocktail. Others are keeping the booze but freezing the concoction to make frozen Piña Coronas.

Fans are divided over whether coconut milk (around 17ml) is better than coconut cream, with the former offering more flavour and less mess:

With coconut cream, “you’re going to have to stir, you’re going to have to move it around a bit as it does settle in the bottom…” says @madisoncmatlock.

And as for measurements, @SkittleRose recommends as follows: “Corona filled under the corona logo. White rum to top of logo. Pineapple juice to the neck and dash of coconut cream.”

Mixed reactions

Not all are on board with the combination, with one TikTok user commenting on a video demonstrating how to make the drink: “I had anxiety watching this.”

A comment from @jigsaw puzzle on the social media platform reads: “The best way to fuk [sic] up a Corona”, while @joeherrera900 wrote: “Made this. The idea of it was a lot better than the actual taste.”

@Jorge Zuniga gave the idea the thumbs down, saying: “Got to do all that just to make that beer drinkable…”

One fan of the drink claims it’s been doing the rounds in a slightly different form for decades with @James Highsmith59 saying: “Just add Bacardi Limon…..been doing tho since the late 90’s”.

However, others hailed the Piña Corona as being “perfect for the summer time”, with one TikTok commenter adding: “I don’t even like beer … but this I can get behind.”

“Super refreshing and just creamy enough,” wrote @ChampagneAng.

Other reactions include: “Immediately, yes!” and “I need to try that.”

Which rum is best?

Many TikTok users have come forward with their favourite choice of rum brand for making a Piña Corona.

@Bobby.275 wrote: “Had several of these now and it’s much better with just Malibu and pineapple.”

According to @Rafael Ramos: “Try using rum Don Q Coco is better.”

Dead Man’s Fingers Coconut rum is another product that crops up.

Last year, the Corona brand was valued at US$7.4 billion, but lost the crown of the United States’ favourite beer to Modelo Especial, also owned by Constellation Brands. Will the growing popularity of the Piña Corona trend help to claw back lost sales?