Top tipples to sip on this summer
| 7th July 2020
Are you and innie or an outie? VIVA Lifestyle Magazine has your weekend cocktails covered whether you’re ordering at a bar or staying in your garden!
The UK’s cocktail industry is flourishing, with a whopping 75% increase in the number of bars, restaurants and pubs serving cocktails before lockdown…which is no surprise to hear when us Brits are partial to a cocktail or five.
And as things are thankfully starting to look up for the food and drinks industry, but with all kinds of restrictions and limitations in place, we’re still a long way off from normality.
If you’re not quite ready to hit the pubs and bars just yet, or you’ve decided that your garden is actually better than the beer garden, VIVA has scoured high and low for the best summer tipples so that you can create cocktails in the comfort of your own home (and you can order them if you’re ‘out out’).
Disaronno Velvet
We all might be familiar with the sweet almond liqueur, Disaronno, but the Italian drink has taken 2020 by storm with their latest silky-smooth summer edition, Velvet Disaronno. I tried it served over ice, and the new take still has the iconic taste with a light and creamy ‘adult’s milkshake’ feel to it.
It’s the perfect accompaniment for after dinner if you just fancy a little taste of something sweet that isn’t too heavy, or just sip into the early afternoon whilst soaking up the rays in the garden. This is a cocktail in itself!
It’s available at all major retailers across the UK RRP £14.99.
VITA Vodka
VITA vodka is distilled just outside of Barcelona and created with citrus fruits sourced from the Spanish coastline. It’s ‘best served with soda water’, which I was slightly dubious to try as I’ve never thought of pairing vodka simply with water.
What can I say, my opinion changed after trying it! It really brings out the zesty notes when pairing with soda water. It’s refreshing, light and perfect to cool off with on those summer afternoons.
Pop in a cheeky wedge of orange, and all we need now is a swimming pool to dip our toes in and we’d be in Spain! Here’s what you’ll need:
50ml VITA Vodka
150ml Soda Water
Orange or lemon wedge and mint leaves to garnish.
It can be found online at Masters of Malt RRP £26.95
Arlu Rum
Fresh for 2020, the spirit connoisseurs over at Didsbury Gin have taken a walk to the wild rum side, as they release a range of bold, punchy, flavoursome rums.
Offering three new flavours including Passionfruit & Mango and Blood Orange, as well as Original Spiced, these three variations stand full bodied and strong as they stand side by side the other popular rums on the scene.
My favourite was the blood orange, with its citrus tones complementing the dark rum. I paired it with ginger ale, and it was a delicious combination. Just grab the following ingredients:
50ml Arlu Blood Orange Rum
150ml Ginger Ale
Orange to garnish
Arlu Rum RRP £23
Cranes Cranberry & Blood Orange liqueur
Now I’m a sucker for a spritz cocktail of any kind. It’s that perfect balance of fizz with a subtle flavour hint that tickles the taste buds in all the right places. When I heard about Cranes’ Cranberry & Blood Orange liqueur, I had to try it out.
The deep red liquid looks rich and regal, which is unsurprising considering 115 cranberries go into every bottle! With hints of Blood Orange too, if you’re into your Aperol Spritz, you will absolutely love this twist on the classic cocktail. Here’s what you’ll need to do to make it:
Cranes Spritz
Ingredients:
50ml Cranes Liqueur
100ml Prosecco
25ml Soda Water
It can be found online at Masters of Malt RRP £19.95
Aloha 65
Aloha 65 might be a newbie on the spirits scene, but it’s certainly earnt its place in our top summer tipples; it’s MADE for Summer. First things first, we’ve got to mention the bottle design. It’s immediately appetising in a sea blue colour, with a pin up vintage surfer taking the limelight. First crafted in Florida at a beach bar for surfers and sun lovers, it’s made from pineapple, ginger, Scotch-bonnet chillies, and a selection of herbs in neutral grain spirit.
The fantastic thing about Aloha 65 is its versatility to work in almost any cocktail as a substitute for the usual spirit with a tropical twist. I’ve tried it in an Aloha Colada (replacing the rum with Aloha) and an Aloha Matata.
If you want to try it out for yourself, here’s how:
Aloha 65
Dark rum
Cloudy apple juice
Pinch of cinnamon
Mint leaves and lime wedges to garnish
Aloha 65 RRP £26
Discarded Vermouth
I always used to stray away from Vermouth until I tried Discarded. I never knew how to pair it, what complimented the taste and because of that, never gave it a proper shot. However, when I heard about Discarded and their creative cocktails, I was intrigued.
One of their cocktails, the ‘Reclaimed Cobbler’ caught my eye as it uses fruit that’s on its way out or has been left over from other recipes. The trouble with home cocktails is you find yourself on a wild goose chase searching for niche ingredients that you’ll only use just once and then shove to the back of the cupboard for five years. This cocktail eliminates this and was easily thrown together in a couple of minutes; it was delicious too. Just muddle all the ingredients with crushed ice, place into a glass and garnish!
Reclaimed Cobbler
50ml Discarded Vermouth
3 wedges of discarded citrus fruit
3 spoons of discarded berries
Discarded Vermouth can be found at Waitrose RRP £19
Rum Ting
If gin isn’t your thing, the people that brought us Gin Ting have also brought us Rum Ting! Following a similar theme to their original Gin Ting, their rum is bursting with tropical fruity flavours and light creamy notes of Madagascan vanilla.
As recommended, I paired this with Sicilian lemonade, and if you’re a fan of the classic fruit salad sweet this fruity explosion will be dancing across your tongue like there’s no tomorrow.
It’s safe to say that I’m a fan of a flavoured rum after trying this concoction! Just grab:
50ml Rum Ting
150ml Sicilian Lemonade
Wedge of orange to garnish
Rum Ting can be found at Masters of Malt with an RRP £35.95
Passoa
We’re all partial to a classic Pornstar Martini, and with the help of Passoa I’ve been able to make my very own taste of heaven to sip on in the back garden with.
Teaming up with Boroughbox, the passion fruit liqueur brand has made it easier than ever to build your own cocktail without having to seek high and low for all the ingredients comes withing a kit, which includes a Passoa, a bottle of vodka, a mini prosecco and vanilla syrup; think of it like a packet mix cake but for adults!
Just make sure to pick up a lime and some passion fruit on your weekly shop! Here’s the recipe for the perfect cocktail:
40ml Passoã
40ml vodka
10ml vanilla syrup
10ml lime juice
1 passion fruit
You can purchase the kit online from Boroughbox RRP £38.99