Dawa with a twist: Three flu-fighting cocktails to try this cold season
By Nailantei Norari, June 7, 2025The cold season is here. With it comes a drive of cold-related complications such as coughs and colds.
But lucky for you, we have scoured the Nairobi and Internet streets to bring you some dawa variations you can enjoy even as you beat the sniffles.
These dawas are available at your nearest coffee house. Better still, you can make some in your kitchen!
Just remember that dawa can be hot or cold. Mix your favourite tea, add a splash of honey and vodka, pour in some hibiscus tea, and you have the perfect anti-flu remedy.
Kenya is known the world over for its special cocktail ‘dawa’, which is a special mix of honey, lime and vodka.
Dawa is touted as having healing properties, especially if one has a cold.
Though there are two main variations of dawa, the hot toddy and the cold, more preferred dawa, today we will share the recipe for the cold one alone.
We will also share other dawa variations such as naranja y mango, an orange and mango juice that is full of vitamin C and therefore a good curative potent for colds commonly used in Spain, and caiprinha d’uva, which is a cocktail made with grapes, lime wedges and vodka and commonly drunk in Italy.
All three dawa variations use vodka because it has scientifically been proven to increase circulation, keep colds at bay due to its strong antibacterial function and lower cholesterol levels; yet another reason to get mixing and tipsy.
After all, you can claim these potent dawas do more good than harm, right?
Cold Kenya dawa
Ingredients:
4 quarters of lime
1 tablespoon sugar
6 ice cubes
2 tots of vodka
Honey for colour
Preparation:
Put the lime quarters in a lowball glass.
Add a tablespoon of sugar and muddle the mixture using a stirring stick.
Add the 6 ice cubes, then pour the two tots of vodka over the ice.
Dip the stirring stick in honey, then lightly stir it into the drink for colour.
Enjoy.
Naranja y mango
Ingredients:
2 quarters of lime
1 full mango diced
¼ glass of water
1 orange
2 tots of vodka
Garnish: a mint sprig, a mango slice or an orange wedge
Blender
Preparation:
Put the lime quarters, peeled orange, water, and diced mango into a blender.
Blend until smooth, then sieve into a glass.
Add the 2 tots of vodka and stir.
Garnish with an orange wedge, a mango slice or a mint sprig.
Serve.
Caiprinha d’uva
Ingredients:
4 quarters of lime
1 tablespoon of sugar
7 grapes
2 tots of vodka
Schweppes, Sprite or juice of choice.
Ice cubes
Preparation:
Put the lime quarters, 7 grapes, and sugar into a cocktail shaker and muddle until the fruit is crushed and juices are released.
Add the vodka and ice, and shake vigorously until condensation forms on the shaker.
Pour into an old-fashioned glass half filled with ice and top off with either Schweppes, Sprite or juice of choice.
Garnish with a few grapes.
Serve.