Coconut Syrup vs Cream of Coconut: The Tiki Bartender's Cheat Sheet
Coconut in the Glass: Why the Ingredient You Choose Changes Everything
Pull three bottles off a bar shelf labelled "coconut" and you may have three entirely different products — each suited to a different purpose, and each capable of wrecking a cocktail if used in the wrong context. Coconut syrup, cream of coconut, and coconut cream are not interchangeable, and the difference matters as much as using the right rum or the right citrus.
This guide breaks down exactly what each product is, when to use it, and how to build seven outstanding cocktails around Giffard Coconut Syrup 1L — the clear, spirit-soluble format that belongs in every serious tiki programme.
The Coconut Product Glossary: Three Things, Three Uses
Coconut Syrup (What You Want for Cocktails)
Coconut syrup is a sugar-based syrup infused with coconut flavour through cold maceration or natural extract. It is clear (or very lightly tinted), thin enough to stir into cold liquids without curdling, and fully miscible with alcohol. It will not separate in a shaken drink, will not muddy the colour of a finished cocktail, and carries clean coconut flavour without any fatty texture.
Giffard Coconut Syrup is produced at Giffard's distillery in Avrillé using their traditional cold maceration process. Real coconut is steeped in 100% French sugar beet syrup under cold conditions, preserving aromatic compounds that are destroyed under heat. The result tastes like fresh coconut meat, not sunscreen.
Use when: you want clean coconut flavour in shaken, stirred, or built cocktails. Daiquiris, highballs, Old Fashioneds, Margaritas, NA drinks.
Cream of Coconut (The Tiki Emulsifier)
Cream of coconut — most famously Coco López, invented in Puerto Rico in the 1950s — is a thick, sweetened coconut emulsion made from coconut flesh, sugar, and stabilisers. It has a viscosity closer to condensed milk than syrup, contains significant fat, and is not fully alcohol-soluble. When shaken or blended with rum and pineapple, it creates the rich, creamy texture of a classic Piña Colada. You also have the option of using the Giffard Coconut Fruit for Mix/Puree
Use when: you specifically want that rich, almost milky body — Piña Coladas, Painkillers, frozen tiki drinks.
Coconut Cream (Not for Cocktails)
The canned, unsweetened product found in the cooking aisle of every supermarket. High fat, intensely coconut-flavoured, and with no added sugar. It will split in spirits, deliver an unpleasant mouthfeel, and add no sweetness. Unless you are making a Thai curry or experimenting deliberately, keep it out of the cocktail tin.
When a Recipe Calls for Both
The Piña Colada recipe below uses both Giffard Coconut Syrup and cream of coconut together — and this is deliberate. The syrup carries the top-note aromatic coconut flavour; the cream of coconut delivers the body and sweetness. Together they produce a more nuanced coconut character than either ingredient alone.
Seven Coconut Cocktail Recipes
Piña Colada (Proper)
The authentic Piña Colada has been muddied by decades of poolside approximations. Built correctly, it is a genuinely sophisticated drink.
Ingredients
- 45ml white rum (Bacardí Superior or Worthy Park Estate White)
- 30ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 30ml cream of coconut (Coco López)
- 90ml fresh pineapple juice
Method: Combine all ingredients in a blender with two scoops of crushed ice. Blend on high for 15 seconds until smooth and aerated. Alternatively, shake hard with ice and strain into a glass packed with crushed ice — the texture will be different but the flavour equally valid.
Glass: Hurricane or tiki mug
Garnish: Pineapple frond, dehydrated pineapple slice, maraschino cherry on a pick
Painkiller
The Pusser's house drink, created at the Soggy Dollar Bar in the British Virgin Islands. If you cannot source Pusser's, use a funky Jamaican rum — the overproof molasses notes are important.
Ingredients
- 60ml dark rum (Pusser's, or Worthy Park 109)
- 45ml pineapple juice
- 30ml fresh orange juice
- 30ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 15ml cream of coconut
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously. Pour unstrained over crushed ice.
Glass: Double Old Fashioned or tiki vessel
Garnish: Freshly grated nutmeg over the top — this is not optional
Coconut Daiquiri
The Daiquiri is one of the best vehicles for a single quality ingredient. Here, Giffard Coconut Syrup replaces simple syrup entirely, adding aromatic complexity without sweetening the drink beyond its natural balance.
Ingredients
- 60ml white rum (Bacardí or Havana 3 year)
- 22ml fresh lime juice
- 20ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake hard for 12 seconds. Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
Glass: Coupe
Garnish: Expressed lime wheel
Coconut-Lime Old Fashioned
The spirit-forward format is where coconut syrup outperforms cream of coconut most clearly — it integrates into the rum without clouding or separating.
Ingredients
- 60ml aged rum (8-year-plus, Barbadian or Jamaican)
- 20ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- 1 dash orange bitters
- 2 expressed lime peels
Method: Combine rum, syrup, and bitters in a mixing glass with ice. Stir for 30–40 rotations. Strain into a chilled rocks glass over a large ice cube. Express and discard both lime peels.
Glass: Rocks
Garnish: Expressed lime peel draped on the rim
Coconut Margarita
Coconut syrup in place of agave or simple in a Margarita opens a flavour space that pairs unexpectedly well with blanco tequila's vegetal notes.
Ingredients
- 45ml blanco tequila
- 22ml fresh lime juice
- 20ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 15ml triple sec (Cointreau or equivalent)
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake hard. Strain into a chilled coupe or serve on the rocks in a salt-rimmed glass.
Glass: Coupe or rocks
Garnish: Toasted coconut flake rim, lime wheel
Coquito-Inspired Holiday Drink
The Puerto Rican Coquito — a coconut-spiked eggnog — adapted for bar service without the raw egg logistics. Excellent for festive menus in Australian summer.
Ingredients
- 45ml white rum
- 30ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 30ml full-fat coconut milk (canned, unsweetened)
- 15ml condensed milk
- 2 dashes cinnamon syrup (or a pinch of ground cinnamon)
- Pinch of nutmeg
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously until well chilled and slightly aerated. Strain into a chilled glass.
Glass: Coupe or short tumbler
Garnish: Grated nutmeg and cinnamon dust
NA Coconut-Pineapple Spritz
A non-alcoholic option built on the same coconut-pineapple logic as the Piña Colada, with soda lift and citrus balance.
Ingredients
- 30ml Giffard Coconut Syrup
- 60ml fresh pineapple juice
- 15ml fresh lime juice
- Top with soda water (approx. 90ml)
Method: Combine syrup, pineapple juice, and lime juice in a glass with ice. Stir briefly to combine. Top with chilled soda water. Stir gently once.
Glass: Highball
Garnish: Pineapple leaf and expressed lime wheel
Stocking the Bottle
A 1L bottle of Giffard Coconut Syrup will yield approximately 50 single-serve cocktails at a 20ml specification, making it one of the most cost-effective flavour investments in the tiki repertoire. Browse the full Giffard syrup range for the complete 40-flavour lineup available through 3Two1 Drinks. Trade and wholesale pricing is available — visit our wholesale page or contact the team directly.
> Ready to stock your coconut programme?
> Clear, aromatic, alcohol-soluble. The right coconut ingredient for serious cocktail work. Ships Australia-wide from our Western Australian warehouse.
> Shop the full Giffard syrup range