Classic cocktail · Guided recipe
Mary Pickford
Start makingA Prohibition-era Havana drink named for the silent-film star: white rum with pineapple, grenadine and a touch of maraschino. Pink and juicy.
In the glassWhite rum · Pineapple juice · Grenadine · Maraschino liqueur
See exact amounts
What goes in
Ingredients
Set up before you pour
Use a coupe glass.
The stem keeps your hand away from a cold drink, while the rounded bowl makes an up serve easy to sip.
- Standard size
- 200 ml6¾ oz
- Ice & serve
- Chill it first; serve without ice.
- If you don’t own one
- Use a small martini glass or stemmed dessert glass.
- cocktail shaker
- strainer (or a small sieve)
- jigger or measuring spoon
- White rum60 ml
- Maraschino liqueur4 ml
- Pineapple juice45 ml
- Grenadine8 ml
From bottle to glass
Method
- 01
Measure into the shaker Pour 60 ml white rum into your shaker
White rum
- 02
Measure into the shaker Add 45 ml pineapple juice
Pineapple juice
- 03
Measure into the shaker Add 8 ml grenadine
Grenadine
- 04
Measure into the shaker Add 4 ml maraschino liqueur
Maraschino liqueur
- 05
Ice the shaker Fill the shaker with ice
- 06
Seal and shake Seal and shake hard
- 07
Strain cleanly Strain into a chilled glass — no ice
- 08
Finish the drink Finish it — add a cocktail cherry
Know your drink
About the Mary Pickford
Teetotal in Havana
Mary Pickford was the most famous woman in the world in the 1920s, and Havana was where Americans went to drink while Prohibition ran at home. Attribution usually lands on a bartender at the Hotel Sevilla-Biltmore, though the name attached shifts depending on which account you trust. Pickford herself was reportedly teetotal, which nobody in Havana appears to have held against the drink.
Grenadine is doing less here than in most pink cocktails. At 8 ml it colors and rounds, and it is the pineapple carrying the sweetness. Push the grenadine to 15 or 20 ml and the drink turns into fruit punch, which is roughly what happened to it in the 1970s and why it spent thirty years with a bad reputation.
Common questions
Mary Pickford FAQ
Fresh pineapple juice or the carton?
Carton juice is sweeter and lower in acid, which is why so many versions taste flabby. Fresh fruit through a blender and a fine strainer is sharper and foams properly. If the carton is all you have, add 5 ml of lime to put the acidity back where the recipe assumes it.
Why doesn't mine get a foam on top?
Pineapple foams from its pulp and protein, and that only happens with a hard shake against very cold ice. Twelve to fifteen seconds, cubes straight from the freezer, and pour the moment you stop. The head collapses inside a minute either way, so make it the last thing you do.
What is 4 ml of maraschino actually doing?
Perfuming, not flavoring. Luxardo maraschino is dense and slightly funky, all cherry stone and almond extract, and ten milliliters would hijack the pineapple completely. If yours tastes like marzipan you overpoured, and it is the easiest thing in this build to overpour.
Does an aged rum ruin it?
No, it just moves the drink. A lightly aged Cuban-style rum adds a faint vanilla that flatters pineapple. A heavy Jamaican pot-still rum fights it, because the funk and the fruit both want to be the loudest thing in the glass. Keep the base light and dry and the drink stays elegant.
What ingredients are in a Mary Pickford?
A classic Mary Pickford calls for 60 ml (2 oz) White rum, 45 ml (1.5 oz) Pineapple juice, 8 ml (0.25 oz) Grenadine, 4 ml (0.25 oz) Maraschino liqueur. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.
How strong is a Mary Pickford?
A standard Mary Pickford is roughly 22% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it spirit-forward — closer to a Martini than to a beer, so sip it slowly.
Is a Mary Pickford shaken or stirred?
A Mary Pickford is shaken. About 13 seconds with plenty of ice chills and dilutes it correctly.
Sharpen the technique
Skills used in this recipe
Where to go next
If you like the Mary Pickford, try these.
Bloody Mary
Vodka, tomato juice and lemon, built over ice and seasoned to taste — brunch’s savory heavyweight. Add pepper, salt and hot sauce to your liking.
View recipe
Virgin Mary
A Bloody Mary with the vodka left out — all the savoury, spiced tomato flavour, none of the alcohol. The brunch drink for everyone.
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Havana Special
Pineapple does most of the talking, but the 4 ml of maraschino underneath is what stops this being a fruit drink. Lime turns up in a small enough measure to sharpen rather than sour. Finishes drier than the ingredients suggest.
View recipe