Internationally Refreshing: Summer Cocktails from Around the World

Summer is a time for travel and, if you’re like us, when you travel you want to know where you can find the best drinks in the city or cities you’re visiting. (Seriously, it’s the number one priority. Food comes in at two, lodging at three. Booze will always be first).

With that in mind, we sought out some great summer cocktails from around the world for you to try, should you be traveling to any of these hot spots this summer.

First Aid – Denmark

(Created by Humberto Marques, Curfew, Copenhagen)

1.5 oz Tanqueray gin
1 oz Aloe vera honey
.5 oz dry port wine
1 oz fresh lime juice

Method: Shake all the ingredients and strain into a lowball glass. Garnish with grapes.

Purple Basil Daiquiri – Italy

(Created for Monastero Santa Rosa, Amalfi Coast, Italy)

1.33 oz White Rum infused with Red Basil leaves*
.75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
.5 oz Simple syrup
Dash of homemade Pomegranate syrup**
Red Basil leaves from the garden

Method: Use a blender to blend all ingredients for 2 minutes; filter the mixture through a strainer twice. Then add the mixture into the shaker and shake vigorously. Pour the cocktail into a chilled double Martini glass. Garnish with lemon peel and red basil leaves.

* Red Basil infused Rum: Infused one bottle of White Rum with .25 cup of Red Basil leaves. Store in refrigerator for one hour. Filter the mixture by removing the Basil leaves. The result will be a light violet-colored liquid.

**Pomegranate syrup: Peel the pomegranates, cutting the fruit and carefully removing all white skins between the seeds. Put the Pomegranate seeds in a blender, filtering out the Juice, and let stand covered for 24 Hours. Remove the white foam that forms on the surface. Add sugar to the juice. Mix well and leave to rest in a cool place for 48 hours. Add additional sugar with some water and boil for 15 minutes.

Cool and strain the mixture.

Elephant Drink – Germany

(Created for Hotel Adlon Kempinski, Berlin)

1.33 oz Gin
.33 oz Lillet Rosé
Dash of dark grenadine
Dash of grapefruit juice

Method: Combine ingredients in a mixing glass (filled with ice) and stir well. Decorate with fruits.

The Wilding Pine – New Zealand

(Created for Red’s Bar, New Zealand)

2 tbsp Hayman’s London Dry Gin
2 tbsp Lillet Blanc
2 tbsp Fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp Pine needle syrup (1:1)
4 Drops of Bittermens Celery Shrub
1 Egg White
2 Pine sprigs

Method: Smoke a coupe glass with pine by lighting a pine sprig and placing the glass upside down over the flaming sprig. Shake all the ingredients, except the egg white with ice. Then, using a hawthorn strainer, strain the mix into the small tin of your Boston shaker, add the egg white and then shake again without any ice. This reverse dry shake gives a much fluffier finish to the drink. Double strain into a smoked coupe and garnish with a pine sprig.