Best Summer Cocktails For Your Next Outdoor Party

When it’s hot outside, the grass is freshly cut and you’ve prepared all of the appetizers and main dishes you learned in basic cooking for your fun outdoor extravaganza, it’s only fitting that a cool, refreshing cocktail should be in order. Summer was practically made for the patio – and we like to think that a refreshing libation should be the perfect complement to all of the hard work you put into planning a great outdoor party.

However, preparing individual cocktails for all of your guests can be easier said than done. Although everyone’s tastes are different, there are few people out there who don’t love a fruity, ice-filled cocktail on a hot summer’s day (umbrella included!), and luckily, many of these favorites are easy to make in big batches or pitchers!

Here are some excellent and refreshing summer cocktail recipes that will cool everyone down at your party without all the extra work. In fact, some of these recipes can be made ahead of time, which can open up your party-planning schedule even more.

Spiked Pink Lemonade – Rachael Ray

What you need:

1 750-milliliter bottle of vodka or gin (your choice)
5 cups lemonade
2 cups cranberry juice
3 cups ginger ale

What to do:

There is no fuss needed here: All you need to do is stir, serve, put the pitcher out on the patio with some cups and get back to cooking.

Champagne Punch – Martha Stewart

What you need:

1 ¾ cups champagne
3 tablespoons Cointreau (or another brand of orange liqueur)
2 tablespoons brandy
3 tablespoons grenadine
raspberries, apples or other summer fruits

What to do:

Grab an ice bucket and fill it halfway to the top with ice. Mix in the brandy, Cointreau, champagne and grenadine over the ice. Gently stir all of the liquid ingredients together, then use a ladle to fill glasses and garnish with your assorted fruits. This recipe calls for six servings, but you can always double the amount if you are planning a bigger get-together.

Strawberry-Basil Margarita – The Kitchn

What you’ll need:

2 to 2 ½ cups tequila (take your pick from gold or silver)
10 to 12 strawberries
1 12-ounce can of frozen limeade concentrate
8 leaves of fresh basil

What to do:

Grab a serving pitcher and empty your can of limeade into it. Pour in 2 ½ cans of water and 1 ½ cans (18 ounces) of tequila (you can use less if you don’t want your margaritas to be too strong).

Next, hull your strawberries, slice them lengthwise and add them to the mixture. Grab the basil with clean hands and crumple them (this releases the flavor from the leaves) and place them in the pitcher as well.

All you need to do now is cover the pitcher and allow the margaritas to chill overnight, or at least four hours. The next day, pull the container out, give everything a stir and serve the mixture over ice-filled glasses with lime wedges. Yum.

Stone Fruit Sangria – Bon Appetit

What you’ll need:

For the fruit puree:

1 small peach
1 apricot
1 nectarine
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

For the sangria:

2 cups chilled elderflower liqueur (St. Germain is a popular choice)
2 750-milliliter bottles of chilled dry rosé wine (like Côtes de Provence)
3 plums
2 apricots
2 nectarines
1 peach
20 fresh cherries
sparkling water
½ vanilla bean, halved lengthwise

What to do:

For the fruit puree:

Peel all of the fruits, then halve them, pit them and chop the pulp coarsely. Then, pour the fruit pulp into a blender or food processor and puree until the mixture is smooth. Pour the puree into a large pitcher.

For the sangria:

Add the wine and elderflower liqueur to the fruit puree. Then, use a spoon to scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the pitcher, then toss the bean in as well. Next, pit and halve all of the remaining stone fruit, then cut into ½-inch wedges. Place all of the fruit, including the whole cherries, into the pitcher.

Chill the mixture for at least one hour and up to 48 hours. When ready to serve, fill glasses with ice and pour in the sangria mixture until the glasses are two-thirds full. Fill the rest of the glasses with sparkling water, stir and serve.

If you like this post, please be sure to check out the following!

How To Make A Gin Drink
How To Make A Martini
How To Make A Mixed Drink

If you have questions or comments about this recipe please leave them below.