With temperatures soaring into the nineties in many parts of the country, it seems we’re all looking for that perfect summer drink. On recent “prowls” through Maine, South Carolina and Florida, we discovered some particularly thirst-quenching cocktails. Keep reading….
Changes in Latitude
This drink was the hands-down favorite at the 2012 Charleston Bacardi Cocktail Classic! It comes from Eurasia, a Mount Pleasant, S.C., restaurant, known for its world-embracing cuisine. The drink’s creative mix of ingredients, designed by general manager Mike Barnum, perfectly suits Eurasia’s eclectic style.
What you’ll need:
1.5 oz. Bacardi silver
.5 oz. St. Germain Elderflower liqueur
1 scoop lemon basil sorbet
1 star anise
1.5 oz. Blenheim ginger ale (red cap).
Combine the ingredients in a shaker. Add ice and shake. Serve in a Collins glass.
The Flirtini
In Palm Beach, Fla, after a day of swimming, golfing and spa-ing, it’s time to head to The Breaker’s Seafood Bar. There, in air-conditioned comfort, you can look out to sea, then glance down to watch the fish swimming beneath your martini glass. Don’t worry—you didn’t have one too many—the bar is really one long aquarium! While there, be sure to order this bubbly take on a classic Cosmo.
What you’ll need:
3 oz. pineapple-Infused Vodka*
1 oz. Cointreau
1 oz. cranberry juice
3/4 oz. champagne floater
*Pineapple-infused vodka hint: The vodka should be infused with fresh cut pineapple for at least two or three days before serving.
In a large shaker with ice, combine all the ingredients except for champagne . Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled martini glass . Top with champagne and garnish with some fresh fruit .
The Garden Bohemian
This mint-and-grapefruit refresher is served at The Bradley Inn, a classic shingle-style New England inn located near the rocky tip of Maine’s Pemaquid Peninsula. Here, super-friendly bartender Susie whips up drinks in the inn’s pine-paneled, nautically themed Chartroom Tavern. (Sorry, there’s no photo of this one. But take our word: it’s beautiful.)
What you’ll need:
3 oz. Tangueray gin
1 1/2 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
1 1/2 oz. fresh squeezed grapefruit juice
6 – 8 mint leaves, twisted
Fill a shaker 2/3 full of ice add above ingredients and shake.
Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a mint.