Summer ain’t over yet. That’s why we asked a few of this year’s Best Bartender participants to drop some weather-appropriate cocktail knowledge we all can benefit from. Stock your bar for these four refreshing summer drink recipes that make you the craftmaster at home. And don’t let the ingredients intimidate you. The experts agree you’re totally capable of mastering all four drinks on your own. Plan one last party, invite your summer fling over, sprawl out in your backyard and drink up the remaining weeks of the season, craft cocktail-style. Shake. Drink. Repeat.
Aperol Spritz Classic
Lailaw Taherzadeh, The California Clipper
Best Bartender contender
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This summery cocktail, based with Aperol, an Italian aperitif made with orange, rhubarb and other herbaceous ingredients, has been “flying out of The California Clipper like hotcakes,” Taherzadeh said.
Source: RedEye Illustration
Ingredients:
1 1/2 ounces Aperol
1/2 ounce lemon juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup*
Club soda
Grapefruit peel garnish
Directions:
Combine aperol, lemon juice and simple syrup in a shaker. Add ice, shake and strain into a glass filled with ice. Top with club soda and stir gently. Garnish with grapefruit peel.
*Simple syrup: Combine 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar in a pot. Bring to boil and simmer until sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature.
Rey de Verano
Manny Sofios, RPM Steak and Slippery Slope
Best Bartender finalist
Sofios created this citrusy tequila cocktail exclusively for RedEye. The name is a Spanish phrase that translates to “king of summer.” “I named it Rey de Verano because I feel like the mint on top resembles a crown,” he said. “And the drink tastes like how I envision summer tasting: refreshing and boozy.”
Source: RedEye Illustration
Ingredients:
2 ounces blanco tequila
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce fresh grapefruit juice
1 ounce ginger beer
Housemade grenadine* (can use store-bought syrup)
Fresh mint garnish
Directions:
Combine tequila and fruit juices in a shaker. Add ice and shake briefly. Strain into a tall glass filled with ice. Top with ginger beer and lightly drizzle grenadine over top, so it appears to cascade through cocktail. Garnish with the top of a mint sprig. Add straw.
*Housemade grenadine: Combine 6 ounces pomegranate juice (such as Pom Wonderful) and 6 ounces sugar in a glass and shake or stir until sugar dissolves (lasts in refrigerator about one week).
Whitewalker
Dan Rook, South Water Kitchen
Best Bartender champ
From his summer tiki menu, this rum-heavy drink is Rook’s play on the classic zombie cocktail. Watch a video of Rook making his drink here.
Source: RedEye Illustration
Ingredients:
1 1/2 ounces Banks 7 Golden Age rum
1/2 ounce Caña Brava rum
1 1/2 ounces fresh pineapple juice
1/3 ounce cinnamon syrup*
1/3 ounce fresh lemon juice
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake. Pour over crushed ice.
*Cinnamon syrup: Crush 1 cinnamon stick and toast 1–2 minutes in a pan on the stove. Combine toasted cinnamon, 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar in the raw. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer until liquid thickens. Chill.*
Verano de Amor
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, WoodBest Bartender finalist
Lansaw’s concoction, which translates to “summer of love,” is a little bit sweet and a little bit spicy, like a hot August romance.
Source: RedEye Illustration
Ingredients:
3/4 ounce Pimm’s
3/4 ounce blanco tequila
1/2 ounce jalapeno syrup*
3/4 ounce fresh lime juice
6-7 mint leaves, plus a sprig for garnish
Mexican lager topper (such as Corona)
Lime wheel garnish
Directions:
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and combine Pimm’s, tequila, jalapeno syrup, lime juice and mint leaves. Shake well so the ice opens up the mint leaves. Strain into a tall glass, such as a Collins glass. Top with Mexican lager and garnish with mint sprig and lime wheel.
*Jalapeno syrup: Combine 2 cups sugar, 2 cups water and 1 diced jalapeno in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and set aside until syrup cools to room temperature.
*Some print versions of this story mislabeled an instruction in the Whitewalker. It should have said “Cinnamon syrup” to correspond with the cocktail ingredient. RedEye apologizes for this error. For more eat & drink news, click here.