Melon Ball

No, though the substitutes taste different. Midori is muskmelon, very sweet and aggressively green. De Kuyper and Bols melon liqueurs run drier and paler, so the drink comes out less neon. Taste whichever you have on its own first, then adjust the orange juice to suit it.

Pull the melon liqueur back to 20 ml and add 10 ml of fresh lemon juice. Bottled orange juice is usually the other culprit, being sweeter and duller than fresh. Swapping a third of the orange for grapefruit drags it back toward drinkable as well.

Different drink. A Midori Sour is melon liqueur with lemon and sometimes soda, shaken and sharp. This uses orange juice and no lemon at all, which makes it rounder and much easier to drink quickly. Same bottle, opposite intentions.

It works, and it is arguably better balanced, since pineapple has enough acid to push back against the liqueur. The color turns yellow-green rather than the bright green people expect. Keep the ice heavy either way, because both juices need the dilution.

A classic Melon Ball calls for 30 ml (1 oz) Vodka, 30 ml (1 oz) Melon liqueur, 90 ml (3 oz) Orange juice. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

A standard Melon Ball is roughly 12% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it about as strong as a glass of wine.

A Melon Ball is built directly in the glass over ice — no shaker required. Add the ingredients in order and give it a brief, gentle stir.