7 Refreshing Wine Cocktails
Wines, there are red ones, white ones, orange ones, fortified ones, fizzy ones…So many to choose from, and they are of course all delicious in their own ways. However, that doesn’t mean that sometimes they can’t be just as delicious mixed into a cocktail. These 7 refreshing wine cocktails are proof of that!
Many countries have one or more traditional wine based mixed drinks or cocktails. Some are shorter and strong, others are longer, lower in strength and perfect for sharing. The recipes we’re going to focus on here are the latter. Longer, lower strength and perfect for both sharing or mixing individual glasses of. The sort of recipes you imagine drinking with the sun on your face!
01. Hermosa Mimosa
The Mimosa, one of the most loved brunch recipes. However, it’s not often drunk beyond that environment. This recipe looks to correct that by subbing out the orange juice for a blend of apple and pink grapefruit juices with a dash of bitters.
It’s still an incredibly easy recipe to make, but leaving the orange juice behind takes it beyond its obvious association with breakfast fare. This is a Mimosa you can enjoy anytime.
02. Aperol Spritz
What can you say about this refreshing little number? Some recipes come into cocktail culture and influence what we’re drinking, then others come along and cause a paradigm shift in drinking culture. The Aperol Spritz is one such recipe.
The summers going forward from 2011 was when the juggernaut that is the Aperol Spritz began to get up to speed. Before this time, Aperol was only really drunk in Italy or used by bartenders in cocktail bars to mix lighter variations on Negronis or other Campari classics.
The Aperol Spritz real trick is that it made the successful jump from cocktail bar to any and every bar on the planet. Why? Inexpensive and familiar ingredients. No tools required. Served in a familiar glass that every bar carries. Simple garnish. Great colour. Light and easy to drink.
However, not only did the Aperol Spritz become a phenomenon, it inspired thousands of new or reinvented spritz recipes and made drinking sparkling, wine based, lower strength cocktails very cool! Before the Aperol Spritz, the only time you’d really hear reference to a Spritz was the White Wine Spritzer. A simple combination of white wine and sparkling water over ice, that was definitely not setting any cultural trends.
03. Royal Bitter Spritz
Here’s a recipe that can be traced straight back to the influence of the Aperol Spritz phenomenon, it’s just elevated beyond the sort of recipe you’re going to find being served in any old bar. However, that’s not to say it’s difficult to make.
Slices of fresh strawberry, gentle acidity from pink grapefruit juice, and the dry botanical complexity of gin, combine together with the traditional spritz ingredients. Whilst combining fruity notes of strawberry and grapefruit and looking like it could be a tacky disco drink. This drink is actually crisp, fresh and dry with a gentle bitter finish.
04. Spiced Honey Wine
This recipe is a twofer. Part Sangria, part Mulled Wine, this recipe works great in both the heat of summer and the cold months of winter. It’s a batched red wine recipe that you can either serve at a low ABV. Or like Sangria, you can stiffen it up with a measure of your preferred brown spirit. Served straight into your glass along with the batch. It even means that if you want, you can give your guests a choice of what spirit they mix with.
This recipe is also designed to be prepared well in advance. So, you get to enjoy the time with your guests rather than constantly fixing drinks for them.
05. French Spritz
Fresh, light and easy to drink, this is a Spritz recipe that steps away from the traditional formulae of the Spritz.
The bright red / orange bitter aperitivo of a traditional Spritz is replaced in this recipe with a splash of elderflower liqueur and fortified wine. This brings a lighter, floral and botanical note with less bitterness. Fresh ribbons of cucumber bring a deliciously fresh melon note that brings the whole recipe together as they soak into the ingredients in the glass.
06. Tinto de Verano
Red Wine, lemon soda or sparkling water, ice, a slice of lemon and orange. Yup, that’s it. However, it’s one of those drinks that has to be tasted to be believed. If you’ve been lucky enough to be in the south of Spain in the scorching heat, you will understand just how delicious this drink is and how lifesaving it can feel as it cools you down. It’s also where the name comes from, which translates as ‘Red Wine of Summer’.
It’s low alcohol strength makes it perfect for enjoying in the hotter months of the year, and it could hardly be simpler to make.
07. Rebujito
Another wine cocktail from the south of Spain, most famously from the drinking tents of the early summer festivals. Recipes vary, and at their most common and simple you will be given a combination of Fino Sherry, Sprite or 7Up and maybe a slice of lemon served over lots of ice. In other areas you might have and there might even be a sprig or two of mint. Simple and delicious!
This is a version that takes just a tiny bit more effort, replacing the commercial lemon lime sodas with something made from scratch that we think is…worth exploring when making it at home!
It must be noted that Sherries are fortified wines, so they have a higher alcohol content and will pack a bigger punch than the Tinto de Verano…consider yourself warned!
As always, don’t forget to show us what you made by tagging us!
@Candra_Drinks #MakeBetterDrinks #CandraDrinks
