--- title: The Best Summer Cocktails description: Discover the recipes for 6 refreshing cocktails perfect to serve at any summer party. canonical: https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/ author: Adrienne Stillman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-06-09T16:54:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T09:05:43.225Z og:title: 6 Surprising and Refreshing Cocktails for a Summer Soirée og:description: Vodka-tonics and beer need not apply og:url: https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt542e1aa0246740fb/6988d10b0a4a2258cf9ce8d2/best-summer-cocktail-recipes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4920 og:image:height: 2768 og:image:alt: Glasses of punch og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 6 Surprising and Refreshing Cocktails for a Summer Soirée twitter:description: Vodka-tonics and beer need not apply twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt542e1aa0246740fb/6988d10b0a4a2258cf9ce8d2/best-summer-cocktail-recipes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 6 Surprising and Refreshing Cocktails for a Summer Soirée > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published Tuesdays and Saturdays to 40,000 subscribers as of August 2026. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. by [Adrienne Stillman](https://time.com/author/adrienne-stillman/) ## Adrienne Stillman Jun 9, 2017 4:54 PM UTC  Top down view of 2 glasses of fruity punch with ice cubes and slices of lime and orange. Top down view of 2 glasses of fruity punch with ice cubes and slices of lime and orange. Getty Images by [Adrienne Stillman](https://time.com/author/adrienne-stillman/) ## Adrienne Stillman Jun 9, 2017 4:54 PM UTC Whether you’re throwing a casual barbecue, a big birthday bash or an outdoor [wedding](http://motto.time.com/4284040/average-wedding-cost/), the cocktails you serve will set the tone for any summer event. It’s a balancing act: You want to [keep your drinks interesting](http://motto.time.com/4606428/holiday-party-healthy-cocktails/) (vodka-tonics and beer need not apply), satisfy a variety of tastes and avoid sending your guests home too buzzed — all while operating within a reasonable budget. ## First, a few guidelines. **1\. Keep the alcohol content low:** For any gathering under the beating sun, serving cocktails that are relatively low in alcohol is prudent. Make sure you provide plenty of water to help people keep hydrated. **2\. Keep it simple:** No [host](http://motto.time.com/4809102/meet-new-people-at-events/) wants to spend the whole party playing bartender, and unless you’re hiring a professional mixologist, even a catering staff might not be trained in the art of mixing drinks. To avoid disappointment, choose relatively simple cocktails that you can batch ahead of time and serve in a pitcher or punch bowl. **3\. Take advantage of bottled cocktails, syrups and liqueurs:** Following on the “keep it simple” rule, an easy way to add pizzazz is to use bottled cocktails or syrups. [Crafthouse Cocktails](https://crafthousecocktails.com/), created by [Charles Joly](https://crafthousecocktails.com/tag/the-aviary/), formerly of Chicago’s The Aviary, is a great source for high-quality bottled cocktails. [Cocktail & Sons ](http://cocktailandsons.com/index.html)makes delicious syrups that instantly dress up basic favorites with flavors like Mint-Lemon Verbena and Honeysuckle-Peppercorn. Liqueurs like St-Germain and Aperol also work well as mixers. **4\. When in doubt, add bubbles:** Nothing says celebration like bubbly, and it’s easy to make great sparkling cocktails. Play with adding sparkling wine to familiar drinks — like the Mojito or the Southside — for a jazzed-up alternative. ## And now, the best cocktails to serve at a summer bash. **Mules and Collins** I love Mules and Collins for parties because they’re dead simple, refreshing and can easily be batched in advance. They cater to diverse tastes, because you can use almost any liquor you want. **Moscow Mule** 2 parts vodka 1/2 part lime juice 3 parts ginger beer (not ginger ale) Garnish: Lime wedge Combine ingredients over ice in a highball glass. Use bourbon for a Kentucky Mule, Gin and mint for a Gin-Gin Mule or rum to make it a Dark & Stormy. [_Follow Motto on Facebook_](https://www.facebook.com/mottoworkplaylive/)_._ **Tom Collins** 2 parts gin 3/4 parts lemon juice 3/4 parts simple syrup 2 parts club soda (give or take) Garnish: Lemon wedge Combine ingredients over ice and serve in a highball glass on the rocks. Use vodka for an Ivan Collins, whiskey for a John Collins or tequila for a Juan Collins. **Southside** This is one of my all-time favorite cocktails, and an excellent choice for a summer soirée because it can easily be lengthened with club soda or sparkling wine. 2 parts gin 1 parts lime juice 3/4 parts simple syrup Few mint leaves Garnish: Lime wheel Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe, or serve over ice in a highball glass and top with club soda or sparkling wine. **Gold Rush** This classic bourbon-honey-lemon cocktail will delight whiskey lovers and convert the hesitant. 2 parts bourbon 3/4 part lemon juice 3/4 part honey syrup (1:1 ratio honey to water) Shake with ice and strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass. **Negroni** Any version of this Italian staple is a solid party choice, because it consists of three readily available bottled ingredients (Campari, vermouth and gin). One caveat: the Negroni breaks the low-alcohol rule, so may not be the best choice for a daytime event. For a lower-alcohol version, swap the gin for prosecco to create a Negroni Sbagliato (a “mistaken” Negroni, so called because — according to mixology folklore — a distracted bartender [created the drink by accident](http://www.bonappetit.com/drinks/cocktails/article/the-negroni-sbagliato) when he grabbed the wrong bottle). Negroni Sbagliato 1 part prosecco (or other dry sparkling wine) 1 part Campari 1 part sweet vermouth Garnish: Orange peel Combine all ingredients in a rocks glass over ice. **Stars in the Garden** If I may recommend one final guiding principle: Embrace edible glitter. It’s a fun way to bring a little glam to your glasses. [Prairie Rose](http://bitbyafox.com/about/) of the cocktail blog [Bit By a Fox ](http://bitbyafox.com/)added gold stars to this dreamy creation that ticks all the boxes: It’s low-alcohol, super simple and bubbly. 2 parts pink grapefruit juice 1 part St-Germain 3 parts sparkling wine Garnish: [Edible glitter ](https://www.michaels.com/wilton-pearl-dust-gold/10420681.html)and [edible stars](https://www.amazon.com/Wilton-Edible-Glitter-Stars-Ounce/dp/B003KK9HD8) In an ice-filled shaker, add 1/2 tsp edible glitter, pink grapefruit juice and St-Germain. Shake until well chilled and strain into a coupe glass. Top off with sparkling wine and sprinkle with edible stars. _Adrienne Stillman is the author of_ [Where Bartenders Drink](https://www.amazon.com/Where-Bartenders-Drink-Adrienne-Stillman/dp/0714873152/mottocom-20) _and co-founder of_ [_Dipsology_](http://dipsology.com/)_, a curated guide to cocktail bars in New York City. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@alstillman_](https://twitter.com/alstillman)_._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/"},"headline":"6 Surprising and Refreshing Cocktails for a Summer Soirée","datePublished":"2017-06-09T16:54:43.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:05:43.225Z","description":"Vodka-tonics and beer need not apply","url":"https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/","keywords":["motto","Summer","Cocktails"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt542e1aa0246740fb/6988d10b0a4a2258cf9ce8d2/best-summer-cocktail-recipes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Adrienne Stillman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/adrienne-stillman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt542e1aa0246740fb/6988d10b0a4a2258cf9ce8d2/best-summer-cocktail-recipes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Glasses of punch","caption":"Glasses of punch","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/motto/","name":"motto"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4812731/best-summer-cocktail-recipes/","name":"6 Surprising and Refreshing Cocktails for a Summer Soirée"}}]}] ```