Tony's Top Ten Summer Cocktails 2016

Ahhh Summer…

The time for warm weather, barbeques and cold adult beverages with friends, gloriously upon us! Which is why this week's blog post is a celebration of MY favorite recipes for cocktails I enjoy when the temperature spikes past 70 degrees.

Just in time for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, right!

So lets get started shall we. First up...

Blue Margarita for Two

Ingredients

1 teaspoon coarse salt

4 ounces Tequila

2 ounces Triple Sec

2 ounces freshly-squeezed lime juice

2 ounces blue Curacaco liqueur

2 teaspoons superfine sugar

2 (1/4-inch) slices star fruit for garnish (optional)

1 lime, cut into wedges

Directions

Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Place Tequila, Triple Sec, lime juice, blue Curacaco, and sugar in the shaker; shake hard for 30 seconds. Serve in Margarita Glasses with coarse salt or Margarita Salt on the rims of the glasses.

Strain the Blue Margarita into the glasses. Garnish each with a slice of star fruit or a lime wedge.

NOTE: To create a salt-rimmed glass, take a lemon or lime wedge and rub the drinking surface of the glass so it is barely moist. Dip the edge of the glass into coarse or Kosher salt.

Mai Tai

Ingredients

1 oz light rum

1/2 oz creme de almond

1/2 oz triple sec

sweet and sour mix

pineapple juice

1/2 oz Myer's® dark rum

Directions

Pour light rum, creme de almond and triple sec, in order, into a collins glass. Almost fill with equal parts of sweet and sour mix and pineapple juice. Add dark rum, a large straw, and serve unstirred.

Watermelon Vodka Slush

Ingredients

4 cups watermelon flesh, seeds removed

2 fluid ounces simple syrup

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 cup vodka

2 fluid ounces melon liqueur

4 twists lemon zest, garnish

Directions

In a food processor, puree the watermelon flesh. Pour the pureed watermelon into empty ice cube trays and freeze for at least 4 hours. Also, freeze 4 martini glasses.

In a blender combine the frozen watermelon cubes, simple syrup, lemon juice, vodka, and melon liqueur; blend until smooth. Pour into 4 frozen martini glasses and garnish each with a lemon twist.

Apple Martini

Ingredients

1 fluid ounce apple schnapps

1 fluid ounce vodka

1 fluid ounce apple juice

Directions

In a cocktail shaker full of ice, combine apple schnapps, vodka and apple juice. Mix well. Pour into glasses and garnish with a slice of Granny Smith apple.

Mint Juleps

Ingredients

2 cups water

2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh mint leaves

32 fluid ounces Kentucky bourbon

8 sprigs fresh mint leaves for garnish

Directions

Combine water, sugar and chopped mint leaves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat until the sugar is completely dissolved. Allow syrup to cool, approximately 1 hour.

Pour syrup through a strainer to remove mint leaves.

Fill eight cups or frozen goblets with crushed ice and pour 4 ounces of bourbon and 1/4 cup mint syrup in each. (Proportions can be adjusted depending on each person's sweet tooth). Top each cup with a mint sprig and a straw. Trim straws to just barely protrude from the top of the cups. Serve juleps on a silver platter.

Hummingbird

Ingredients

1 fluid ounce rum cream liqueur

1 fluid ounce coffee flavored liqueur

1 fluid ounce milk

1/2 fluid ounce strawberry flavored syrup

1/2 banana

1 cup crushed ice

Directions

In a blender, combine rum cream liqueur, coffee liqueur, milk and strawberry syrup. Add the banana and crushed ice. Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.

Limoncello

Ingredients

10 lemon

1 liter vodka

3 cups white sugar

4 cups water

Directions

Zest the lemons, and place zest into a large glass bottle or jar. Pour in vodka. Cover loosely and let infuse for one week at room temperature. After one week, combine sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. DO NOT STIR. Boil for 15 minutes. Allow syrup to cool to room temperature.

Stir vodka mixture into syrup. Strain into glass bottles, and seal each bottle with a cork. Let mixture age for 2 weeks at room temperature. Place bottled liqueur into the freezer. When icy cold, serve in chilled vodka glasses or shot glasses.

Bee's Knees

Ingredients

1 (46 fluid ounce) can pineapple juice

1 (46 fluid ounce) can grapefruit juice

1 (8 ounce) jar honey

2 cups gin

Directions

In a blender combine pineapple juice, grapefruit juice, honey and gin. Blend until frothy. Pour into a pitcher and serve.

Tom Collins

Ingredients

1 1/4 ounces Tanqueray(R) London Dry gin

1 ounce lemon or lime juice

1 teaspoon sweet and sour mix

1 tablespoon club soda

1 maraschino cherry

1 slice orange

Directions

In a shaker half filled with ice cubes, add Tanqueray(R) London Dry Gin, lemon or lime juice, and sweet and sour mix; shake well and strain into a collins glass filled with ice.

Add club soda to the cocktail and stir well; garnish with maraschino cherry and orange slice to serve.

Sangria

Ingredients

1/2 apple, cored, skin on, chopped into small pieces

1/2 orange, rind on, sliced into small pieces, large seeds removed (plus more for garnish)

3-4 Tbsp (41-55 g) organic brown sugar (or 3 Tbsp (37.5 g) organic cane sugar)

3/4 cup (180 ml) orange juice, plus more to taste

1/3 cup (80 ml) brandy, plus more to taste

1 750 ml bottle dry Spanish red wine*

Ice to chill (~1 cup)

Instructions

Add apples, oranges and sugar to a large pitcher and muddle with a muddler or wooden spoon for 45 seconds.Add orange juice and brandy and muddle again to combine for 30 seconds. Add red wine and stir to incorporate, then taste and adjust flavor as needed. I added a bit more brandy, orange juice and brown sugar. Stir to combine.

Add ice and stir once more to chill.

Serve as is, or with a bit more ice. Garnish with orange segments (optional). Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours, though best when fresh.

Hope you enjoy these delicious and refreshing cocktails as much as I do! Check back in two weeks for another great "Color Me There" blog post! Until then, lets chat on Facebook and Twitter.