The Hand Grenade cocktail is a very boozy drink created at the Tropical Isle Bar on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, USA.

The bar itself has a branding sign at the entrance claiming to be the home of the Hand Grenade Cocktail and to be the “New Orleans Most Powerful Drink”.

The drink was invented by the bar owners Pam Fortner and Earl Bernhardt after opening the Tropical Isle Bar in 1984.

At the time the most popular drink in the French Quarter was the Hurricane Cocktail which was known as a very powerful and knockout drink, so Pam and Earl decided to come up with something even stronger.

Originally, the cocktail is served in a special glass with a shape of a grenade. 

Over the years and through some marketing behind, they managed to make it a success worldwide.