Independence Day is nearly here, and people are ready to celebrate the USA. A few red or blue cocktails are always welcome, along with fresh berries, herbs and other flavors of summer. (Bring on the Pop Rocks garnish for extra sizzle!) Here are eight cocktails we like for this year, and here’s a look back at the 2023 July 4th drinks.
Sunset Paradise
Ingredients
- ½ oz. Tequila blanco
- ½ oz. Butterfly pea flower tea
- ¼ oz. Triple sec
- 1 tsp. Peach brandy
- 1 ½ oz. Orange juice
- 1 oz. Cranberry juice
- ¼ oz. Lime juice
- Vodka float
Instructions
- Combine peach brandy, orange juice, triple sec, lime juice and tequila and shake.
- Mix the vodka floater with the butterfly pea tea.
- In a rocks glass with ice, first layer cranberry juice, then orange-peach tequila mixture.
- Top it off with the butterfly pea tea vodka floater.
- Garnish with a dried orange slice.
Notes
Valentino Longo created this recipe for Flor de Sal at Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Puerto Rico.
Summer Blues Spritzer
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz. Bushmills Irish whiskey
- ¾ oz. Lemon juice
- ¾ oz. Simple syrup
- ½ oz. Lychee liqueur
- ½ oz. Stoli Blueberry vodka
- Blueberries
- Mint
Instructions
- Muddle 6 blueberries and mint in a shaker tin.
- Add all ingredients and ice to a shaker tin.
- Pour into Collins glass.
- Top off with club soda.
Notes
Oscar Garcia, lead bartender at seafood grill Corvina in Boca Raton, FL, created this recipe.
Rocket Pop
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz. Cutwater Horchata Vodka
- ½ oz. Blue Curaçao
- ¾ oz. Orgeat
- ¾ oz. Lemon juice
- Peychaud’s bitters
Instructions
- Add blue Curaçao to the bottom of a tall cocktail glass.
- In a shaker tin, combine lemon juice, orgeat and vodka.
- Shake vigorously with ice until well chilled.
- Strain the mixture over crushed ice in the prepared glass, allowing it to layer over the blue Curaçao.
- Top with additional crushed ice and add a generous float of bitters.
- Garnish with a popsicle stick.
- Rim the glass with Pop Rocks for an extra festive touch.
Notes
The mixologists at Cutwater created this recipe.
Watermelon Rosé Punch
Ingredients
- 1 750- ml. bottle Hampton Water Rosé
- 3 cups Watermelon juice
- ¼ cup Lemon juice
- ½ cup Simple syrup
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a pitcher and stir.
- Refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Serve over ice garnished with watermelon slices.
Notes
The mixologists at Hampton Water created this recipe.
Pop Rock
Ingredients
- 3 oz. Bushwacker Rum Cream
- 2 oz. Raspberry liqueur
- 1 packet Blue Razz Pop Rocks
- 1 packet Strawberry Pop Rocks
- 1 Lime wedge
Instructions
- Fill a shaker with ice and add rum cream and raspberry liquor; shake.
- Spread Pop Rocks out on a plate.
- Cut a slit across the lime wedge and slide it around the rim of your glass.
- Dip the rim of the glass into lime juice and then into Pop Rocks.
- Fill the glass half full with ice and strain the Bushwacker mixture into the glass.
Notes
The mixologists at Bushwacker created this recipe.
Blackberry Basil Spritzer
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz. Broker’s Gin
- ½ oz. The Perfect Purée Blackberry Puree thawed
- ½ oz. Simple syrup
- 5 Thai basil leaves
- Ginger ale
- 1 lime wedge
Instructions
- Muddle blackberry puree, lime wedge, basil leaves and simple syrup.
- Add the gin and enough ice to fill a tall Collins glass.
- Give the mix a good shake, then pour it into the Collins glass.
- Top with ginger ale and garnish with a lime wedge.
Notes
Lindsay Shea Bolster, general manager at Presidio in Chicago, created this recipe.
