The sun is hot!! The air is so humid!! Surely anything icey cold will help quench your thirst, but with all the fresh fruits and herbs in season, try to get creative when satiating your palate with some refreshing summertime cocktails!
At a rooftop party last week, my girlfriend was blending up some creative “smoothies”. Mango Haagen Das Sorbet with vodka and club soda… very delicious and very dangerous. They were heavily spiked, but tasted nothing more than delightful mango sorbet… After two of them, I was lit up more than the string lantern-lights surrounding her terrace!
I used her idea at a different girlfriend’s birthday shin-dig that following Saturday. I bought Lemon Sorbet, Ketel One, fresh squeeze lemon, tbsp sugar, fresh mint from my herb garden, and Club Soda. After a few spins in the blender, the ladies were squealing! They went down so fast we ran out of vodka before the 3rd cocktail!
Another one of my favorite summertime drinks is the St-Germain Cocktail (Elderflower Liquor) with Champagne or Sparkling Wine. If you need a little more kick, you can add the St-Germain to a vodka and soda. It also tops well with a gin and tonic (which is refreshing enough alone!).
If you are a rum drinker, try to lighten it up a bit for the summertime. Drop the coke and try gingerale with fresh lime. I suggest a spiced rum like Captain Morgan. And of course the Mojito is a great warm weather favorite! I also recommend trying a spiced rum or a Bacardi Limon to boost the flavor of your mojito as well.
Then there are the tequila lovers! Of course a margarita might be at the top of the list (frozen or rocks, with/out salt)… But another refreshing and lower calorie option is tequila with Fresca and fresh lime, I recommend Patron Silver. I learned about this cocktail from one of my girlfriends on the west coast. Fresca is zero calories, so you can have more cocktails without feeling guilty of the calories 
Also, less sugar means a lesser hangover!
Finally, for those beer drinkers out there… Try to switch it up to a nice cider (Magners, Woodchuck Granny Smith, Woodchuck Amber). Try them poured over ice for a crispy, refreshing taste that has the same alcohol content (if not more) than a beer. If the cider is too sweet for your flavor, try a “Snake Bite” (half beer, half cider). Another mix-up is half cider, half Guinness (sometimes referred to as “Black Velvet” or a “Crown Float”)
When the weather gets hotter, our thirst is greater. Be creative. Find a rooftop, start up the blender and always remember to hydrate along the way with water!! Be safe and CHEERS!!!
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Mmmm…beer!