The Best Summer Cocktails

The summer months are hot which make them the perfect time to enjoy a refreshing cocktail. We've whipped up some of our favorite summer cocktail recipes and want to share them with you! Read more below. 

Mimosa - The Mimosa makes for a great Sunday Brunch drink, and it's easy, which makes the Mimosa perfect to prepare in large quantities for guests. Mimosas only take two to three ingredients, which are: 

Serve in a champagne flute, or in a pitcher for guests.

Margarita - The Margarita is a classic and super popular Tequila-based cocktail, combining the flavors of lime and orange with tequila, which makes it a hit for any occasion. This is our recipe for the perfect margarita:

Pour all ingredients into a shaker with ice, shake, strain into a glass with ice and a salted rim, and then garnish with a lime wheel.

Malibu Sunset - The Malibu Sunset is a delicious and easy tropical feeling drink with fruity and refreshing flavors. It’s got a handful of ingredients, which are:

Pour the juices over ice, then add the Malibu and stir. Pour the Grenadine for a couple of seconds until it reaches the bottom of the glass (using as much as you want), and drop the cherries on top. Optionally, you can garnish with a pineapple slice.

Frosé - The Frosé cocktail is a frozen, refreshing drink that takes some preparation. You want to start the night before, but trust us, it’s worth it! Here’s how to make the Frose:

Pour your bottle of rose into a 1-gallon Ziplock bag and leave it in the freezer overnight. It’s going to get slushy but not totally frozen. While that’s freezing, mix your water and sugar into a bowl or jar and bring to a boil. Once sugar is dissolved, ad your chopped strawberries and refrigerate overnight. 

NEXT DAY: Pour your wine bag into a blender, add your 1/4 cup of vodka and 4 tablespoons of your strawberry simple syrup (strain if you don’t want strawberry chunks), blend and serve!

Sangria - This is a drink that really allows you to explore your creativity and your own favorite combination of flavors to make it your own. We’ll share our favorite recipe, but you should feel free to experiment with your own blend of fruits and wine. Oh, by the way, it’s a lot easier to make in a pitcher to serve friends and family, so we’re using a whole bottle of wine! Here’s our ingredient list:

First dice up your fruits and put them in the pitcher. Then pour in your bottle of red wine, the brandy, and then squeeze the juice from an orange. Then you can add sugar until it’s as sweet as you like, and either pour over ice, or refrigerate. When you’re ready to serve, try pouring a little bit of club soda or sparkling water over top to give it a layer of bubbles!

Bahama Mama - The Bahama Mama is a classic frozen Caribbean cocktail, which you can often find served in a carved-out pineapple. It includes a bunch of tropical flavors, which are:

Pour all the ingredients into a blender with the cup of ice and make it slushy. Pour into a glass (or a hollowed-out pineapple) and serve!

Tequila Sunset - Very similar to a Tequila Sunrise, the Tequila Sunset is a popular and refreshing tequila cocktail guaranteed to impress. Here are the ingredients:

Fill a glass with ice, then pour in your tequila, followed by the orange juice, and stir. Top it off with the blackberry brandy or Chambord, which will settle at the bottom of the glass. Garnish with a cherry and serve!

Pink Lady - This is a beautiful pink cocktail made with Gin and and egg white - yes, we know, that seems weird. But trust us, it’s totally worth a try! Here are the ingredients:

First, separate your egg white from the yolk. Then pour all of your liquid ingredients into a shaker with NO ice. Shake for about 10-15 seconds. Then add ice, and shake again for 20 or so second. Pour the contdents into a glass and garnish with a cherry and/or a twist of lemon. The egg white will give your drink a frothy top and a nice layer of complexity.

Piña Colada - This is a classic and extremely popular frozen coconut-based cocktail which can be made a number of ways, but here’s our favorite recipe to feed a group:

Toss all of your ingredients into a blender until well blended, then pour. Garnish with pineapple slices and try with a drizzle of chocolate syrup if desired.

Chambord Royale - The Chambord Royale is based around Chambord, which is a raspberry liqueur. It’s a delicious and classy cocktail that is very enjoyable. Here are the ingredients:

Pour all of your liquid ingredients into a shaker with ice, and strain into a glass. Garnish with lemon and serve.

Gin & Tonic - The gin & tonic is a classic and simple cocktail, with numerous variations to spice it up. Here’s our favorite:

Very simply fill a pint or Collins glass with ice, pour in 1.5-2 oz of gin, and fill to the top with Tonic. Add a few cucumber slices and you’re all set. You can try different fruits to add to your recipe to make it your own.

Daiquiri - The Daiquiri is one of the original rum cocktails from Havana Cuba. It’s a favorite all over the world for its simplicity and refreshing flavor, and here’s how you can make your own:

Pour your rum, lime juice and simple syrup into a shaker with ice and then strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime twist and you’re good! Let us know if you try any of these great recipes! 

This blog was written by Nick Melillo aka The Casual Bartender. Follow him on Instagram