home > Food/Drink > Foods
Tags: food/drink, spirits, foods, summer, alcohol, liquor, cocktails
The Best Cocktails for Warm Weather
List of the best cocktails to drink on lazy summer afternoons. (Or, okay, fine, evenings... Be that way.) These are the most refreshing and light libations that are ideal for hot weather. Any cocktail can be great for unwinding at the end of a long day, but it's only certain cocktails that work ideally for hot summer days. Drinking Negronis and Old Fashioneds may be your ideal way to enjoy alcohol, but surely, when it's hot outside, a Campari Sour or even a Gin Fizz might be more appropriate?
Several ingredients pop up again and again when discussing the ideal cocktail recipes for summer. For the most part, summer cocktails tend to go a bit easier on alcohol content than their winter-time counterparts. Summer days are just longer (which means more drinking time), and it's much easier to get dehydrated quickly when enjoying drinks outside by the pool than it is huddled up by a warm fire. As well, summer cocktails often include the flavorful, sweet fruits that are in season, particularly exotic flavors like pineapple and watermelon. (In some ways, these cocktails harken back to the days of Prohibition, when fruit was frequently included in cocktails in order to blunt the harsh, unpleasant flavor of homemade alcohol.)
Finally, summer is often associated with "tiki cocktails" that tend to include a lot of rum or vodka and fruit flavors, and are associated primarily with the tropics. Drinks like the "Zombie," the Pina Colada and the Mai Tai bring to mind relaxing Hawaiian beachscapes and late-night luaus. Vote on the list below for your favorite cocktails for summer, and if we've left out your favorite hot-weather mix, add it in the space provided at the bottom of the list.
And for garnish, check out this list of the best summer fruits.
Several ingredients pop up again and again when discussing the ideal cocktail recipes for summer. For the most part, summer cocktails tend to go a bit easier on alcohol content than their winter-time counterparts. Summer days are just longer (which means more drinking time), and it's much easier to get dehydrated quickly when enjoying drinks outside by the pool than it is huddled up by a warm fire. As well, summer cocktails often include the flavorful, sweet fruits that are in season, particularly exotic flavors like pineapple and watermelon. (In some ways, these cocktails harken back to the days of Prohibition, when fruit was frequently included in cocktails in order to blunt the harsh, unpleasant flavor of homemade alcohol.)
Finally, summer is often associated with "tiki cocktails" that tend to include a lot of rum or vodka and fruit flavors, and are associated primarily with the tropics. Drinks like the "Zombie," the Pina Colada and the Mai Tai bring to mind relaxing Hawaiian beachscapes and late-night luaus. Vote on the list below for your favorite cocktails for summer, and if we've left out your favorite hot-weather mix, add it in the space provided at the bottom of the list.
And for garnish, check out this list of the best summer fruits.
79 voters +
4 reranks
see all
- 1Up 47Down 5
- 2Up 35Down 5
Daiquiri
- 3Up 39Down 9
- 4Up 33Down 6
- 5Up 28Down 6
- 6Up 21Down 5
Bellini
- 7Up 31Down 9
- 8Up 27Down 7
Tequila Sunrise
- 9Up 23Down 11
Mint Julep
- 10Up 27Down 10
- 11Up 29Down 7
- 12Up 9Down 2
Hurricane
- 13Up 25Down 6
- 14Up 23Down 8
Cuba Libre
- 15Up 18Down 6
- 16Up 6Down 3
Planter's Punch
- 17Up 19Down 8
Gin Fizz
- 18Up 21Down 8
- 19Up 15Down 5
- 20Up 16Down 7
Pisco Sour
- 21Up 13Down 6
Pimm's Cup
- 22Up 13Down 12
Vodka Lemonade
- 23Up 9Down 9
Salty Dog
- 24Up 13Down 7
Blood and Sand
- 25Up 8Down 13
Lemon Drop
- 26Up 10Down 4
John Daly
- 27Up 14Down 7
French 75
- 28Up 2Down 1
Spritz
- 29Up 2Down 2
Tequila & Tonic
- 30Up 1Down 2
Lillet
- 31Up 1Down 2
Sazerac
- 32Up 4Down 11
Michelada
- 33Up 1Down 1
Russian Quelude
added by: snowman69 - 34Up 5Down 11
Campari Sour
- 35Up 4Down 10
Vesper
- 36Up 2Down 14
Aviation
-
rerank this list your way embed list
what's a rerank? -
LOADING HISTORY
today on Ranker
start a list with results
close sorting window
Rank Name
use the search box to filter your list
leave a comment