6 Cocktails For A Texas Summer
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Summers in Texas could be rather harsh and you should try to do what you can to cool yourself off. This isn’t just about going to the local swimming hole and cranking up the AC. It’s also about modifying your diet and using local and seasonal plants and produce.
This isn’t just about the food but also about the cocktails that could both cool you off and be enjoyable and fund to make and drink during the summer. All of these cocktails are made with the local Texas cuisine as their inspiration.
Texas Hurricane Cocktail
This cocktail isn’t only a summer drink to keep you fresh and cool, it also packs quite a punch when it comes to how strong it is. Make sure that you know that it’s an evening drink or something that you should sip over a meal.
Fill a hurricane glass with ice.
Pour in the rum, coconut rum, vodka, gin, triple sec, orange juice, pineapple juice, and grenadine.
Stir well with a bar spoon, and then pour the 151 rum over the back of the spoon to float the liquor on top of the drink.
Southern Hospitality Float
It’s an adult spin on classic kids drink – root beer float. That’s pretty much a universal treat for kids in the US, but if you want to make it more southern as the name implies, you could add butter pecan ice cream and off course a bit of bourbon.
Scoop the ice cream into a tall glass. You’ll need 2-3 scoops of it and 1.5oz of bourbon. You should also hard (meaning alcoholic) root beer instead of the ordinary one.
Add the bourbon and top with hard root beer. Watch out for the fizz and foam!
Sparkling Blackberry Mint Julep
What makes a cocktail interesting is how its ingredients are mixed and how they work with one another. It combines the tart taste of blackberries (how long do blackberries last?)and the smoothness of rum. The two are offset by the refreshing quality of sparkling wine. It’s the best thing for a lazy summer afternoon.
Fill a julep or small rocks glass overflowing with ice cubes.
In a shaker, muddle the blackberries, mint leaves and simple syrup.
Add 1 cup of ice cubes and bourbon to the shaker and shake well. Strain the drink into the glass filling it 3/4 full.
Finish filling the glass with the Prosecco, gently stir to combine.
Gently press on the mint leaves for garnish to release their aroma before putting a bunch into each cocktail; finish with a blackberry and serve with a short straw.
Watermelon Crawl Cocktail
This is a cocktail with a clear birthplace here in Austin Texas. It’s something you can order at Lucy’s Fried Chicken or you can make one yourself at home. The recipe is rather simple and it’s both simple and refreshing while being clearly southern in its ingredients.
Add gin, St. Germain, and watermelon juice to cocktail shaker.
Fill with ice and shake for 15 seconds. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with lemon peel.
Blood Orange Mojito
A good cocktail should look as good as it tastes. This is truly the case with a blood orange mojito since it’s rather instagramable as well as tasting great. It’s rather similar to a classic mojito and a splash of orange is what makes it a “blood” mojito.
In a cocktail shaker, combine a handful of mint leaves with the lime juice. Using a wooden spoon or muddler muddle together to break down the mint.
Fill the shaker with ice and pour in the blood orange juice, agave, and rum. Shake vigorously until chilled. Fill 2 glasses with ice and divide the mojito evenly among both. Top off each with sparkling water and garnish with fresh mint leaves, lime wedge, and a slice of blood orange.
Texas Tea
Texas Tea is the southern take the Long Island Ice Tea. The old saying goes that everything is a bit bigger in Texas and this is the case with this cocktail as well. It’s rather cool and refreshing but it packs quite a punch as well.
Place a rocks glass into the freezer for 5 minutes to chill.
Put the vodka, gin, tequila, rum, bourbon, lemon juice, triple sec, and sugar in a cocktail shaker filled with ice, and then shake the mixture vigorously for 30 seconds to combine.
Strain the mixture into the prepared glass filled with fresh ice and top with the cold cola.
Garnish the cocktail with the lime wheel and serve immediately.
Make sure you drink responsibly and have in mind that every one of these cocktails could be made to be less strong if you want them to. Which one is your favorite and which will you try first?
