5 scalable sparkling drinks, perfect for your end of Summer BBQ…
This post is a bit pre-emptive. It’s not the end of summer just yet, but with the slightly cooler weather we are getting, it’s only ever around the corner. With these concoctions you can hang on to what remains of this weather for as long as you feasibly can. There is even a non-alcoholic one at the bottom…
Without further ado I present to you the 5 pitcher drinks you simply cannot be doing without this autumn!
1) Vodka Knockout
1L Vodka
175ml Lime Juice
500ml Triple Sec
1L Cranberry Juice
1L Bitter Lemon(ade)
1L Classic Lemonade
Method:
Mix all of the still ingredients into a bowl/jug and stir well. Add your choice of slice/chopped fruit then cover and place in the fridge for 2-12 hours. Then top up with the carbonated ingredients and serve. If preparing without the 2-12 hours’ notice use large blocks of ice to keep the drink chilled.
2) Rum Juggler
700ml Rum
500ml Southern Comfort
50ml Sugar Syrup
150ml Lime Juice
1L Apple Juice
1L Ginger Ale
Method:
Mix together the alcohol, lime juice and syrup. Then add your selection of prepared fruit. Cover and leave to chill for around 4-5 hours, then add the apple juice, cover and chill for up to a further 8hrs.
Serve straight from the fridge, and top up with the ginger ale. If prepared at short notice, again use large lumps of ice to chill the mixture, stirring in the ice to begin with.
3) Gin Garden
700ml Gin
350ml Passoa
250ml Cointreau
150ml Lemon Juice
1L Tropical/Passionfruit Juice
1L Soda Water
Method:
Mix together the alcoholic ingredients and lemon juice in your serving bowl/jug. Cover and chill for up to 5 hours. Then mix in the chosen fruit juice. Cover and chill for up to a further 7 hours. Serve straight from the fridge, topping up the drink with soda water, but only when it’s in their glass. DO NOT put the soda in the bow as, it will go flat extremely quickly.
4) Orchard Liqueur Especial
250ml Licor 43
250ml St. Germain Liqueur
350ml Plum Liqueur
100ml Chambord
500ml Apple Schnapps
350ml Cranberry Juice
1L Apple & Pear Juice
1L Ginger Ale
Method:
Pour all of the ingredients into a large serving bowl. Then stir in your selection of chopped/slice fruits and stir well. Cover and leave in the fridge to cool for 2+hrs. Then remove and add the fruit juice and stir again. Leave for another 2hrs and then serve, topping up with Ginger ale at the last moment.
If you have less time on your hands, put all the ingredients (except the ginger ale) in the bowl with large ice cubes. Then stir in the fruit, and add the fruit juice and stir again. Top up with the Ginger ale just before serving.
This mixture is perfect as it is, but should you like to tweak it try and stick to Orchard/Forest fruits. A selection of apples, pears, plums, peaches and various soft berries work wonders chopped up and served in the mixture.
5) Mocktail Monster
100ml grenadine
700ml POM pomegranate juice
350ml cranberry juice
350ml Apple Juice
150ml Lime Juice
1L Bitter Lemon
1L Lemonade
Method:
Mix all the ingredients up and serve with ice. The bigger the ice cubes the better, as they will melt slower. Serve with various sliced/chopped fruit and plenty of lemonade to top.
This recipe works well as a non-alcoholic alternative but can easily be made alcoholic if you wish; Vodka or rum make good bases, with liqueurs like SoCo and Cointreau working equally well. For a special little kick why not try adding 500-700ml of Tequila?
Or you can go for a more elegant touch and swap the lemonade out for Sparkling Wine/Champagne. It’s all up to you!
I’ve tried to make these recipes as crowd friendly as possible, you’ll notive that I’ve refrained from the use of Orange and Pineapple Juices, this is because I’ve found more people than you may think are allergic to them. That’s not to say you cannot add them in at all, just find out who’s allergic beforehand! – we want everyone to get the most enjoyment out of your drinks after alll!
These recipes are easy to prepare in bulk, and show clear volumes of each ingredient so you can scale them up (or down) to order.
All recipes are my own creation, so please ask me if you would like to use them on your own websites/blogs. Otherwise feel free to use them at your events , and even play with the ingredients to suit your tastes. The ingredients used are such that there is a certain amount of tweaking allowed before they taste unbalanced. Hopefully you enjoy them as much as we do here at the Fervent Shaker Co. Your BBQ’s will never be the same…
The Fervent Shaker 