Grenadine is a red, sweet and viscous syrup used for making cocktails. It is often used to soak cherries and give them their vibrant red color. Its name is said to have come from where it was invented — the mainland of Granada. While many consider grenadine cherry-flavored, it has traditionally been a concoction of sugar and pomegranate juice.

Today, grenadine is usually made from a mixture of artificial color, sometimes berry or cherry juice for flavoring, and corn syrup or sugar. One can still obtain original grenadine from companies like Monin® and Sonoma Syrup®. Occasionally, grenadine is made from black currant juice, pomegranate juice and sugar. Most bartenders recommend finding a good fruit juice-based grenadine instead of resorting to ones made from artificial flavors and colors.

You can also make grenadine at home by using one part pomegranate juice to two cups of sugar. These ingredients can either be poured into a jar and shaken vigorously, or brought to a boil and then simmered until they are reduced by half.

Next, the liquid is refrigerated. The cold version is not as bright red, while the hot version will be more syrupy like commercial variants. Many claim homemade grenadine is better than any brand available.

Anyone making a drink with grenadine should understand the basic principal that less is more. Grenadine is extremely sweet, and should be used in small amounts. It is also not for the calorie conscious. A single ounce (28.35 grams) of grenadine contains 75 calories for example. That’s approximately four and a half teaspoons of sugar per ounce. You can look for sugar free versions, but these are usually artificially flavored.

Grenadine is almost always a non-alcoholic beverage, but some versions contain alcohol. It's also a component in popular kids' drinks where it can be combined with Seven Up® or ginger ale to make a Shirley Temple, or with cola to make a Roy Roger. If you're using grenadine to make a kids' drink you'll want to make sure you check the label to make sure your bottle of grenadine is non-alcoholic.

There are over 500 alcoholic drinks that contain grenadine, but the most well known is probably the Tequila Sunrise which is made from orange juice, a shot of tequila and grenadine. When mixed properly, the grenadine sinks to the bottom of the tall glass providing the fiery red portion of the sunrise.