The most expensive and over-the-top cocktails in Miami

Fat shaved from Iberian ham legs typically gets tossed, but not under mixologist Nicholas Casanova's watch. He uses the trimmings from coveted Cinco Jotas jamon ibérico in a “fat wash” of a rare whiskey, the Macallan Harmony Collection Rich Cacao. The unctuous scotch then gets mixed with Creme de Cacao, Pedro Ximenez Sherry and chocolate and orange bitters. For $75, it’s served with a slice of said jamón and a chocolate-covered foie gras acorn. Will you ever again have an Old Fashioned as lavish as this? Only if you come back.

You probably know the Setai for its jazz brunch and A-list guests (Madonna, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, et al). And the bar is appropriately glamorous, headlined by the Five Star Gold Martini made with Remy Martin Louis XIII Cognac and Grand Marnier Centenaire. It’s strained into a Riedel crystal coupe glass and dotted with 24-karat gold flakes. The $125 price tag might be steep, but so is the cost of fame. 

With a vibe like a 1930s beachside lounge frequented by the Rockefellers and Fords of that era, The Champagne Bar already feels like something special. But order the Cocktail Trolley experience (anytime after 6pm), and it’s like you’ve got your own personal bar, with a tableside cart from which a bartender will prepare your drinks to order. It costs $85 for the cart service and a drink, but when you’ve got your own personal bar, are you really going to just stop at one?

An Andalusian bar on Espanola Way known for its gin and tapas, Tropezón creates a couple of in-house creations that you just won’t find anywhere else. For $48, the bar offers a pour of its gin washed in a jamon ibérico de Bellota that cured for four years. Thirty dollars will get you a pour of a gin infused with 12-month-aged queso manchego. Take one after the other and it’s a veritable meat and cheese plate.

Truth is, most of the whiskey we drink is like a kitchen sink of various casks from multiple years, meant to taste exactly like the last time you had Maker’s Mark. But Bhakta Spirits gathers some of the rarest liquors in the world, vintages from certain years that are prized by collectors. TUR in Coral Gables is one of only five spots in Florida that serves the Bhakta Experience, and here you can taste three of them—as long as you’re willing to part with $400.

One of the finest of the fine restaurants in town, Fiola serves up a cocktail that’s befitting of its captains-of-industry-level space. The $55 Rare Breed is made with a scotch that’d make any whiskey drinker’s birthday list, Macallan 15 Double Cask, along with coffee-infused Carpano Antica Vermouth, Grand Marnier, Cuvée Du Centenaire and a few dashes of Amaro Nonino.

The Vegas-style pool parties at Hyde Beach are already explicitly over-the-top affairs. Now take it to another level by upgrading any of their signature cocktails to the oversized martini glass format, designed for your whole friend group to share. This drink receptacle is literally larger-than-life. Our favorite is the Miami Mule made with vodka, mango puree, Owen's Ginger + Lime and Red Bull Yellow Edition. Whether you opt to consume via giant straws or big ladle, these babies go down smooth.

The Confidante, a retro-glam darling in the heart of art deco South Beach, employs a lead mixologist by the name of Pascal Pinault who shakes up an Ambersweet Margarita that’ll set you back $125. Yes, it’s a margarita, but an extraordinary one made with the finest ingredients Pinault could find: Patron Gran Burdeos tequila, Grand Marnier 1880, agave nectar and fresh-pressed lime and blood orange. It's all blended together in a tear-drop-shaped ice and garnished with a salt rim and $100 bill because why not?

Chef Pawan Pinisetti designed his signature dessert to be as extravagant and over-the-top as Miami itself. He starts with a classic affogato—vanilla ice cream and espresso—and then pours over a shot of Louis XIII, one of the world's most pricy cognacs at at least four grand retail. The whole thing also gets blinged out with edible 24-karat gold. As the name suggests, the very expensive affair comes with a price: $305. Stay tuned to see if he creates another drink celebrating the 786 area code.

Yes, there’s a very Instagrammable vodka-rosé drink here served in a communal glass shaped like a high heel shoe. But it’s a mere $54. The real baller game is to order the Giselle’s Treasure for $72. It’s a two-parter, a vanilla-flavored shot and a cocktail made of Grand Marnier, Don Julio 1942 and Codigo Mezcal. Both are brought tableside in a box that wafts with smoke, like a very South Beach themed Christmas present.

The London transplant with an upscale Japanese izakaya theme boasts a deep list of Japanese whiskies. At th top of that list are bottles from whiskey legend Yamazaki, and pours from the Mizunara, Peated Malt or Spanish Oak varieties will set you back $260 to start. Kanpai indeed.