The three essential elements of a summer cocktail

What makes summer feel like summer? Sure, the weather certainly helps, but woven within the fabric of every summer delight are the tastes, activities, and people we meet when nights are warm and days are hot.

From the smell of a firework to the view from a rooftop bar, there are quintessential experiences we all share that make summer the season of memory-making. For those 21 and over, part of that experience includes the consumption of a summer cocktail.

Whether it’s at a baseball game, an outdoor concert, or at a barbecue down the street, alcohol consumption is highest in the summer because it can help facilitate those uniquely summertime experiences. But with the romance of summer on the line, can you afford to limit your customers to surface-level drinks like a draft beer or a hard-seltzer?

With our help, you won’t have to!

We’ve analyzed the successes of summer’s best cocktails and distilled them down to three essential elements in order to help you offer drinks that will make your customers swoon. 

Fresh Herbs

First thing’s first — a great cocktail is more than carbonated corn syrup, ice, and alcohol. To achieve a cocktail that sings for summer, you’ll need to utilize the growing season and harvest (or buy) some fresh herbs.

Basil, thyme, lavender, rosemary, and mint are heavily displayed in a summer cocktail due to their vibrant flavors and how well they can be balanced with other ingredients. Additionally, these herbs will work two-fold to transform the aesthetics of your cocktails.

Herbs look great, so be sure to display them before mixing on top of your bar. The mojito is your standard herb cocktail, but don’t be afraid to muddle up some old cocktail standouts with an herbaceous twist.

A Rosemary Gin Fizz and a Basil Gimlet are simple but potent drinks that highlight your herbs without going overboard.

Seasonal Fruits

Not all fruits are in season during summer, but the ones that are can provide a perfect base for a sweet and refreshing cocktail. Pineapple, strawberries, watermelon, raspberries, blueberries, cherries, and tomatoes (they’re a fruit!) can easily form the foundation of a stellar drink.

You’ll want to juice some of your fruits if you just want a hint of sweetness, but be sure to blend others like pineapple or strawberries to create a thicker, cooler treat with the help of some ice and pulp.

Try this Blueberry Daquiri as a blended coup de grâce, and this Vodka Lemonade will be sure to quench even the thirstiest bar patron. 

Flare

This may be hard to swallow, but a cocktail with flare outsells a boring cocktail 9 times out of 10. But what constitutes as flare?

Cocktail flare is an addition that turns heads and makes onlookers want to try the cocktail not just for the taste, but for the uniqueness of its addition. This can be a smoking cinnamon stick, hibiscus, or yes, even a tiki umbrella. Sometimes, simply elevating the visual presentation of your liquor or using the right glass can be enough to make a head turn.

Heat isn’t just for the weather during the summer months, so if none of the above ideas tickle your fancy, try mixing some kick into your cocktails with spices that can take you from a bar in Boston to a beach in Mexico. Cayenne pepper, coconut, and jalapeños will raise the collective eyebrows of your customers and guarantee orders out of the adventurous among them.

Some of our favorite cocktails with flare are the Jalapeño Mule, the classic Mai Tai, or a smoked Old Fashioned.

Bring the taste and styles of summer to the people with cocktails that use at least one of these three essentials, or combine them all and offer something entirely unique to your customers. Have you ever tried a spicy daiquiri? How about mixing rosemary with cherries?

Make this a summer to remember and order all the cocktail supplies you need to do it right at www.etundra.com.