Summertime is the best time to make and drink refreshing summer cocktails at home. Check out our recipes for 16 easy summer cocktails with a global twist and craft one today.
Things are exciting right now. Travel is returning and the world is in emerging from a pandemic.
And to this… we say CHEERS.
Last year wasn’t a total bust. Instead of sticking our heads in the sand, we flexed our kitchen muscles by learning how to cook Asian cuisine. We also had fun exploring the sites and streets in our current home town of Lisbon.
And that’s not all. One of the best things we did was to travel around the world vicariously by making and drinking cocktails with a global twist.
Yes, we spent a full year in Portugal eating Chinese food and drinking refreshing cocktails from around the world.
Summer Is for Cocktails
Inspiration hit us after we crafted our first Porto Tonico, the popular Portuguese cocktail made with white port and tonic water.
We quickly realized that we love creating easy cocktail recipes that don’t involve a lot of steps or require a lot of time. Five is our max when it comes to both ingredients and minutes!
FYI, we don’t count ice as an ingredient. Our Recipes = Our Rules.
Since we don’t like cleaning a mess, using a blender isn’t an option. Seriously, who wants to wash a blender when you could be watching a lingering sunset instead?
Pro Tip
Avoid extra work by ordering complicated but fun summer cocktails at outside bars that offer adequate social distancing. We include Piña Colada, Frozen Strawberry Margarita and Long Island Iced Tea cocktails in this category.
The Best Summer Cocktails
The best summer cocktails will make your summer extra hot while cooling you down from the inside out. Beyond liquor, ingredients include wholesome items like fresh lime juice and simple syrup.
It’s a given that summer drinks should taste great. They should also be easy to make at home with a minimal amount of equipment and ingredients.
→ Discover the 10 necessary bar tools for lazy mixologists like us.
Our Top Summer Sippers
Our top summer sippers will take you around the world to countries like Brazil, France, Italy, Cuba, Mexico and the UK. Not surprisingly, we feature a drink from our home base of Portugal too.
If you’re looking for a spritz or sangria recipe, you won’t find that here. You can find those drink recipes somewhere else.
Instead, we’ve included classic cocktails like the Daiquiri and Mojito as well as more exotic Mauresque and Porto Tonico cocktails. It’s our own personal list of the best summer cocktails to make at home for lazy mixologists like us.
Pro Tip
Not sure which summer cocktail to make first? Choose based on your favorite liquor whether it’s rum, gin, cachaça or tequila.
Make one cocktail or make ten. There’s no rush. You have all summer.
Our Favorite Easy Summer Cocktails
Caipirinha
Country of Origin: Brazil
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Cachaça, Lime, Sugar and Ice Cubes
Daiquiri
Country of Origin: Cuba
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Rum, Granulated Sugar, Lime, Fresh Mint Leaves and Ice Cubes
Mojito
Country of Origin: Cuba
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Rum, Granulated Sugar, Lime, Fresh Mint Leaves, Club Soda and Ice Cubes
Bee's Knees
Country of Origin: France
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Rum, Honey Syrup, Lemon and Ice Cubes
French 75
Country of Origin: France
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Gin, Cointreau, Champagne, Simple Syrup, Lemon and Ice Cubes
Gin and Tonic
Country of Origin: Great Britain
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Gin, Tonic Water, Lime, Rosemary, Orange and Ice Cubes
Mint Julep
Country of Origin: USA
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Bourbon, Simple Syrup, Fresh Mint and Crushed Ice
Negroni
Country of Origin: Italy
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Campari, Gin, Sweet Red Vermouth, Orange and Ice Cubes
Spicy Margarita
Country of Origin: Mexico
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Tequila, Cointreau, Fresh Lime Juice, Coarse Salt, Cayenne Pepper Powder and Ice Cubes
Mauresque
Country of Origin: France
Prep Time: 2 Minutes
Ingredients: Pastis de Marseille, Orgeat, Cold Water and Ice Cubes
Porto Tonico
Country of Origin: Portugal
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: White Port, Tonic Water, Fresh Mint, Orange and Ice Cubes
Hemingway Daiquiri
Country of Origin: Cuba
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Rum, Maraschino Liqueur, Simple Sugar, Lime Juice, Lime Wheel, Pineapple Juice and Ice Cubes
Orange Creamsicle Cocktail
Country of Origin: USA
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: White Chocolate Vanilla Cream Liqueur, Cointreau, Low Fat Milk, Orange Juice, Orange Zest and Ice Cubes
Gin Gimlet Cocktail
Country of Origin: Great Britain (probably)
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Dry Gin, Lime Juice, Lime Wheel, Simple Syrup and Ice Cubes
Pink Lady Cocktail
Country of Origin: Unknown
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Dry Gin, Grenadine Syrup, Egg White, Maraschino Cherry and Ice Cubes
Bourbon Sidecar Cocktail
Country of Origin: Unknown
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients: Bourbon, Cointreau, Lemon Juice and Ice Cubes
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About the Authors
Daryl & Mindi Hirsch
Saveur Magazine’s BEST TRAVEL BLOG award winners Daryl and Mindi Hirsch share their culinary travel experiences and recipes on the 2foodtrippers website and YouTube. The married Food and Travel content creators live in Lisbon, Portugal.