summer sips series: part 3

You’re Invited:

Simple, yet Stately Spa Party

Date: Any Sunday

Time: Noon

Location: Somewhere with natural light

When the weather gets warmer and the sun stays up longer, I feel like my tastes for a good drink change. From fall whiskey and deep red winter wines to something a bit lighter, brighter and bubbly. I’m sure some of you experience the same cravings across the spectrum of flavors and seasons!

I wanted to share one of my favorite summer drinks that I think balances just the right amount of herbal flavor with a sweet spritzy base. This cocktail uses gin as the spirit of choice, which I think is irreplaceable in this drink due to its natural ability to pair well with herbal flavors. A few years ago, I would never even try gin…until (unknowingly) I had a sip of this drink and loved it!  

This past weekend I teamed up with Raquel (of @Lynette_healinghands) to host a lovely afternoon skincare brunch party with hors d’ oeuvres. As I always say, inspiration can come from anywhere, but you should always put your own spin on it! So, I did some mixing and measuring and lightened this cocktail recipe to something more palatable for a daytime brunch. It was the perfect setting to feature simple summer decor and this light bubbly drink for the ladies!

About “Summer Sips Series” — I always refer back to my golden party rules when considering which topics to cover, and this seasonal drink series definitely falls under rule #2 - start the party. While I’m certainly no bartender, I like to think I can mix up a pretty good drink. I enjoy researching flavor profiles and cocktail recipes, and in the summer, I love to experiment with various herbs (like rosemary) and flavored bitters (like orange). So, needless to say, I had a lot of fun in the test kitchen (aka my kitchen) mixing up these drinks, adding something new to the tried-and-true recipes, and tasting the fresh cocktails. Give one of these a try, and let me know what you think! Stay tuned for more this summer.