Fragrant drinks, heady with summer fruit and herbs, are a beautifully British way to start an evening – or a lunchtime for that matter. Think of Pimm’s stuffed with borage, cucumber and elderflower cordial – even if the weather isn’t all it might be, they are a reminder that it is, after all, summer.
But with this weekend set to be a scorcher, it really is an excellent way to celebrate the season.
Oh, I know, you could just stick a bottle of rosé in the fridge. But going to the effort – and it’s really not very much effort – to conjure up some special drinks will make you and your guests feel properly nurtured.
And the upside is that you can pass on the canapés – you’ve done the home-made bit, so a plate of charcuterie and some olives is more than enough.
Another good reason to get busy with the cocktail shaker is for booze-free options. Lots of people are drinking less – under 25s especially – but the ready-made drinks industry hasn’t quite caught up.
There are non alcoholic distillates like Seedlip and Ceder’s which are lovely, but you may need a stiff drink to get over shelling out £40 a litre. Kombucha is a great low-alcohol drink, but not everyone likes its rather prickly flavour. Low or alcohol-free beer is far better than the wine equivalent, but a pint isn’t always what’s called for.
Most of the other so-called adult alcohol-free options are so sweet that those who are off the sauce can feel like they’ve been banished to the nursery. But it is possible to make something really interesting and grown-up with nothing more than the contents of your kitchen cupboard – like the camomile tea-based fizz below for example.
Rain or shine, it’s guaranteed to prove a winner.
Watermelon punch with blackberry
The most refreshing summer punch. Adjust the amount of alcohol to suit you, or leave it out altogether. Crème de mûre is blackberry liqueur, and if you do splash out on a bottle it’s gorgeous trickled over blackberries as a pudding too, but you could use crème de cassis instead.
Prep time: 20 minutes | Cooking time: 2 minutes
MAKES
Enough for eight drinks
INGREDIENTS
- 100g granulated sugar
- Zest of ½ lime and juice of 2
- 1 watermelon, weighing around 3kg
- 60ml crème de mûre (optional)
- 300ml vodka
- 100g blackberries
- Ice cubes, to serve
- 6 sprigs of mint
METHOD
- Put the sugar in a pan with 100ml water and the lime zest. Heat until the sugar is dissolved, then bring to the boil and simmer for two minutes to make a syrup. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
- Cut a slice off the top of the watermelon. Scoop out some of the watermelon with a melon baller to make about 15 small balls, or cut out a chunk of flesh (without damaging the skin) and cut some small cubes.
- Scoop the rest of the flesh out of the watermelon into a blender, keeping the empty watermelon shell. Purée the watermelon, and measure out one litre. Add the lime juice and two tablespoons of the sugar syrup to this. Rub the purée through a sieve, and chill.
- Add the crème de mûre if you are using it, taste and add more sugar syrup to taste. Mix in the vodka and pour into the watermelon bowl.
- Top with watermelon balls or cubes, blackberries, ice cubes and mint leaves.
