Inspired by Jack Torrance’s infamous “Here’s Johnny!” moment in The Shining, this bold cocktail blends spiced rum, grenadine, peach schnapps, Campari, and aquafaba to deliver a bitter-sweet, blood-red drink that captures the madness, menace, and dark humor of the snowbound Overlook Hotel. (Recipe Below)
What do you do with your family in an enormous hotel that's been snowed-in. Eat peaches out of the commercial-sized cans in the pantry? Write endless lines of poetry, or rather, the same line over and over again? Dance and have cocktails with the ghosts in the ballroom? No, play chase in the vibrating hallways with an ax and present yourself saying, "Here's Johnny!" . Jack knew how to treat his family to a good time and we've put that into a cocktail starting with Spiced Rum and grenadine to give it that "Red Rum" appeal, peach schnapps for those commercial sized cans of peaches, Campari for the bit of bitterness one might feel when getting interrupted while writing, and aquafaba to give it the body that Lloyd the Bartender (Joe Turkel) wishes he had and the perfect platform for the cinnamon-dusted Hick's Hexagon pattern of the hotel's carpet. So, how about a drink, Lloyd? Make a Here's Johnny and you'll be dancing like the Torrence's around the hotel and through the maze for a family activity you'll never forget.
Here’s Johnny!
1.5 oz (45mL) Spiced Rum
.5 oz (15mL) Peach Schnapps
.5 oz (15mL) Campari
.5 oz (15mL) Grenadine
1 oz (30mL) Aquafaba
Ground Cinnamon
Combine in a shaker tin, 1.5 oz Spiced Rum, .5 oz Peach Schnapps, .5 oz of Campari, .5 oz Grenadine and 1 oz Aquafaba. Add large ice, spring, large ice, cover and shake very vigorously for 30 seconds. Double strain into a coupe. Place a Hick's hexagon stencil on top and dust with ground cinnamon.
Cocktails and Videos created by Boozy Movies
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Kraken Spiced Rum
Country: Dominican Republic
ABV: 94 proof/84%
Brand: Proximo Spirits
Spirits Type: Spiced Rum
Taste: Spice, Caramel
Price Category: $
Distilled from sugar cane molasses, aged, then blended with proprietary blend of spices. The result is a warming rum by flavor and alcohol burn. Vanilla and pie spice flavors accompany the warmth.
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Peachtree Schnapps
Country: United States
ABV: 30 proof/15%
Brand: DeKuyper/Suntory Global Spirits
Spirits Type: Liqueurs/Cordials/Schnapps
Taste: Syrupy Sweet peach flavor
Price Category: $
Known for its price point and its popularity in bars and restaurants. Peachtree is redistilled fruit brandy with other flavoring materials. It's flavor is syrupy sweet and reminiscent of tree-ripened peaches.
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Campari Amaro
Country: Italy
ABV: 48 proof/24%
Brand: Campari
Spirits Type: Amaro, Aperitif & Vermouth
Taste: Cinnamon, Clove, and Bittersweet Citrus
Price Category: $
Campari is made with a secret blend of bitter herbs, spices, fruit and citrus peels steeped with water and a neutral grain alcohol. After infusion it is blended with sugar, artificial food dye and additional spices to achieve its signature flavor of a grapefruit bitterness with hints of warming spices.
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Grenadine
Grenadine is a common non-alcoholic beverage syrup used for its color, sweetness and syrup consistency. Commercially produced grenadine is more sweet and less citrusy from artisan made grenadine. Grenadine syrup is easy to make in small batches at home resulting in more pomegranate flavor.
To Make It:
1 cup (8 oz, 240mL) Pomegranate Juice
1 cup (200 g) Organic Cane Sugar
In a small saucepan, combine Pomegranate Juice and Sugar over medium low heat. Stir to combine and allow to heat until the sugar has dissolved and very small bubbles appear, remove from heat and do not stir. Allow to cool to room temperature and strain into a syrup bottle.
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Aquafaba
An Egg White Substitute for cocktails
1- 15 oz can Garbanzo Beans/Chickpeas 1
barspoon Cream of Tartar
Strain out the chickpeas using a fine mesh strainer. Pour chickpea brine in a clean and dry condiment bottle, add 1 tsp cream of tartar and stir gently to combine. Seal and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks. * A note on using aquafaba for cocktails: Gently swirl prepared aquafaba before use to redistribute the settled cream of tartar; acid such as citrus juice will be necessary for frothing emulsion.
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Ground Cinnamon
Ground cinnamon adds a warming and earthy flavor in the front bringing out fruit flavors towards the middle of the palate and bring chocolate flavors from the back towards the front. Ground Cinnamon can also add a texture in the form of grittiness when laid on top of the cocktail and a silkiness when suspended inside the cocktail.
All Work and No Play: Two Cocktails Inspired by The Shining
In Stanley Kubrick's The Shining, Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) accepts a winter caretaker position at the isolated Overlook Hotel, bringing his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and son Danny (Danny Lloyd) into a snowbound nightmare where supernatural forces prey on loneliness, obsession, and madness. Danny's psychic gift—known as "the shining"—allows him to connect with the hotel's dark history, transforming the majestic Rocky Mountain retreat into one of cinema's most unforgettable haunted houses. Inspired by the hotel's icy grandeur, our "The Overlook" cocktail layers botanical gin, rosemary syrup, Mount Rigi liqueur, Cointreau, and Rumple Minze over crushed ice, creating a crisp, woodsy drink that captures both the beauty of the Colorado wilderness and the chilling presence lurking beneath it. Our second cocktail, "Here's Johnny," channels Jack's descent into madness with a rich blend of spiced rum, grenadine, peach schnapps, Campari, and aquafaba, balancing sweetness, bitterness, and spice in a way that's every bit as unsettling as the film's most iconic moments. Like The Shining itself, these cocktails invite you deeper into the maze—one cold, haunting sip at a time—until you're left wondering whether the hotel is unraveling its guests or revealing who they were all along.
Cocktails and Videos created by Boozy Movies
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