August 09

DRINK – Heart London Magazine’s Sexy Summer Cocktails – 2017

Posted by Editor on August 9, 2017 in Drink, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

As we all know, cocktails are a must a soon summer comes around. And again this year we couldn’t leave our readers hanging so we tested the most popular cocktails of 2017!

Lets start off with the ‘it girl’ drink of 2017, the Gin and Tonic;

Classic Gin and Tonic with a Twist:

Marylebone Dry Gin and London Essence Tonic water (Grapefruit and Rosemary or Bitter Orange and Elderflower).

Gin and tonics have been becoming more of a staple over the past years and whilst it’s agreat staple to order at the pub, a Gin and Tonic is an easy but fancy drink to make at home.

And to spice up this classic for our Sexy Summer Special we used the LondonEssence Tonics to add a summery twist. These Tonics come in two different summery flavours: Grapefruit and Rosemary and Bitter Orange and Elderflower. We paired these delicious tonics with the Marylebone Dry Gin. Marylebone London Dry Gin is made in London by the Pleasure Gardens Distilling Co., using a

combination of botanicals including juniper, lime flower, lemon balm, clove, liquorice, chamomile and grapefruit.

Fill a glass with ice and add 45ml of the Marylebone Dry Gin. Then, to your taste, add one of the London Essence tonics. Depending on your choice, garnish with a slice of grapefruit and a twig of rosemary or with a slice of orange.

Marylebone Dry Gin – £43,50 and London Essence Tonic Water– £1,25

Funkin Premade Cocktails: Passion Fruit Martini, Skinny Moijto, Strawberry Daiquiri

Really easy to make, just add vodka and ice and you’re done. You can easily make it as strong as you like. The juice in the mixer tastes really fruity and punchy, like natural fruit juice. If you like sweet and fruity drinks, this is for you!

Just add some Vodka or Rum, ice, give it a good shake and go.

Funkin Cocktail Mixer – £ 4,00

Elderflower Collins: Belvoir Elderflower Pressé and Cotswolds’ Dry Gin

An Elderflower Collins is a great twist on a normal Collins and a nice way to spice up your summer evening.

We used the Cotswolds’ dry Gin which is hand crafted in small batches and is a smooth London Gin with a Cotswolds’ twist, great for mixing or just on its own. For the amazing floral twist in this drink, we used the Belvoir Elderflower Presse. This delicious Elderflower lemonade is made with fresh picked elderflower, real pressed lemon juice and lightly bubbling spring water. It has a delicate, refreshing taste and was perfect for this summer drink!

Using a highball glass filled with Ice, pour over 1 part Cotswolds Dry Gin, then 200 ml of the Belvoir Elderflower Pressé. Garnish with a slice of lemon.

Cotswolds’ Dry Gin – £ 34,95 Belvoir Elderflower Pressé – £ 2,50

Clifford: Belvoir Cox Apple Juice, Belvoir Ginger Beer, Irish Whiskey.

This is a simple cocktail for the lovers of Ginger Beer! We used some of Belvoir’s delicious Cox Apple Juice and paired it with the Belvoir Ginger Beer, which is a uniquely made from their traditional recipe! This cocktail tastes amazing due to the fresh Belvoir juice, single malt Irish whiskey and a splash of Lemon juice, which gives it a summery taste.

Get a tall glass with some ice; add 1 oz of the apple juice, 1oz Ginger beer, 1oz Irish whiskey and a splash of lime juice.

Belvoir Ginger Beer – £ 2,50 Belvoir Cox Apple Juice – £ 2,50

Black and Tan: Non Alcoholic, Belvoir Ginger beer and London Essence Ginger ale.

If you loved the idea of our previous Ginger Cocktail but you don’t feel like drinking alcohol on a hot summer’s day (weird but still possible ;)) try out this ‘Black and Tan’. Just pour some of that fresh Ginger Beer together with the amazing London Essence Ginger ale. This creates a fresh ‘mock-tail’ to enjoy on a hot summer’s day! Add a slice of lime and you’re ready to bask in the sun.

Pour into a pilsner glass with ice, garnish with lime and do not stir!

Belvoir Ginger Beer – £ 2,50 London Essence Ginger Ale – £ 1,25

Gin Martini: 50ml Hayman’s Dry Gin, 15ml Dry Vermouth and Zest of Lemon

When you want to venture away from a classic Gin and Tonic, this Gin Martini is the right cocktail for you! We used the award winning Hayman’s Dry Gin for this drink – this classic English Gin is distilled from 100% grain spirit, and the perfect spirit to mix into this Gin Martini. Just add some dry vermouth and zest of lemon to finish off this refreshing drink.

Pour gin and dry vermouth into cocktail shaker with ice. Stir well, then strain into chilled Martini glass. Zest the lemon peel and garnish by twisting it into a perfect spiral.

Hayman’s Dry Gin – £ 23,50

Spiked Lemonade: Belvoir Lemonade and 50oz Tequila

As soon as you sip this drink you will feel like you’re on a beach in Mexico!

You can defiantly tell this lemonade is spiked! The Belvoir’s Lemonade goes perfectly with the Cazcabel tequila; it gives for a smooth summer kick! Great for an easy, quick fix of summer.

Pour 50oz of the Cazcabel Tequila on ice and top up with the Belvoir Lemonade. Garnish with a slice of lemon and you’re good to go.

Belvoir Freshly Squeezed Lemonade – £ 2,50 Cazcabel Tequila – £23,89

The Gin-Thomas and Evans with Damhile Botanical Gin or the Thomas and Evans No.1 (ALCOHOL FREE)

Build this cocktail over ice in a highball glass, top with T&E No. 1, garnish with a thin slice of green apple and a sprig of rosemary. The Damhile botanical gin goes great with the fruity tones of this sparkly drink.

Or for the Alcohol free versions just leave the gin out for a refreshingly tantalising burst of botanical aromas including apple, elderflower, and dried citrus peels followed by a woody finish.

4 cubes of ice, 25ml of the Damhile Botanical Gin, 175ml T&E No.1, slice of green apple, sprig of rosemary.

Thomas & Evans – £ 2,45 Damhile Botanical Gin – £29,95

Low Calorie Cocktails – Sparkling ICE: Sailor’s Delight and Black Raspberry

Of course drinking cocktails is a great pastime but when you’re watching the pounds it might not be the smartest choice. But luckily, Sparkling ICE created several delicious cocktail recipes with their low calorie soft drinks. Our favourites were the Sailor’s Delight and the Black Raspberry Hurricane with their amazing Black Raspberry Sparking ICE and the Orange Mango Sparkling ICE. It’s a great treat, even if you’re not on a diet!

Sailor’s Delight
1 oz. Mango Rum,
1 oz. Pineapple rum
Splash of Pineapple juice
Splash of Orange Mango Sparkling ICE
Topped with 1oz of Grand Marnier

Combine your rums, pineapple juice and mango sparkling ice in a shaker. Shake and strain into a tall glass filled with ice. Top off with Grand Marnier . Garnish with Orange peel.

Black Raspberry Hurricane

1oz. Light rum
1 teaspoon Sugar
Splash of Orange Juice
Splash of Pineapple Juice
Top off with Black Raspberry Sparkling ICE

Build your drink in a tall glass and garnish with an orange peel.

Sparkling ICE – £ 1,93

Blushing lady: Pomegranate Liqueur (FAIR), Lakes distillery Vodka, Grapefruit juice, lemon and mint for garnish.

The Blushing Lady is a sophisticated red coloured cocktail made with pomegranate liqueur, vodka, pink grapefruit juice, mint and lemon, and served in a chilled sugar-rimmed cocktail glass. We used the FAIR Pomegranate Liqueur, which tastes rich and delicious, and amazingly sweet. To add we used the Lakes Distillery Vodka. This handcrafted vodka is smooth, and full of character. Add the juice, ice, give a little shake and there you go – the perfect pink drink for your girls night in the summer sun.

Pour 1 oz Pomegranate Liqueur (FAIR), 2 oz Lakes distillery Vodka, 1 oz Grapefruit Juice – pink, in a cocktail glass. 1 wedge Lemon – to rim the glass, Sugar – to rim the glass, and some Mint – for garnish

FAIR pomegranate liqueur – £ 24,50 Lakes Distillery Vodka – £29,95

The Fancy Gin and Tonic: Cucumber Gin and Classic London Essence Tonic.

The most popular Gin and Tonic on the town right now is one with cucumber fancily sliced and added to the glass. But since we’re not all too keen on fancily spiralling cucumbers, the English Drinks Company’s Cucumber Gin will help you create this new classic in a whip. Just add the gin to some London Essence Classic Tonic, throw in some ice and if you’re really feeling fancy, add a slice of that cucumber to garnish ;).

Use a nice lemonade glass, add some ice, pour over 50ml of the cucumber gin and top up with the London Essence classic tonic. Garnish with cucumber slices to taste.

English Drinks Cucumber Gin – £35,00 Classic London Essence Tonic – £1,25

Espresso Martini: Tia Maria, Vodka and Espresso.

This one is for the coffee lovers out there. There is nothing better than this caffeinated classic. The Tia Maria goes great with the smooth Lakes Distillery Vodka, and don’t forget to add those tasty coffee beans to garnish for that perfect coffee crunch.

25ml Tia Maria, 25ml Lakes Distillery Vodka, a double or single shot of espresso and sugar syrup to taste. Add coffee beans to garnish.

Tia Maria – £ 16,45 Lakes Distillery Vodka – £29,95

“Bob Dylan”: 12 oz Citrus Soda and 4 oz herbal liqueur and ice

For our ‘Bob Dylan’ we used the Belvoir Hand Made Lemonade and Jagermeister Spice. The Lemonade goes great with the delightful blend of cinnamon and vanilla. The drink on its own is great for cozy winter months, but for the summer, having it added to the Belvoir lemonade turns it into a nice summer kicker.

Add 12 oz Citrus Soda and 4 oz herbal liqueur in a long drink glass, add ice.

Jagermeister Spice – £ 24,95 Belvoir Freshly Squeezed Lemonade – £2,50

Pink Fizzy: Echofalls White Zinfandel, Belvoir Pink Lemonade and Lemon Lime sode (Punch)

This Pink Fizzy drink is going to be the ultimate banger on the next barbecue you throw. You can easily change it up to a punch for a bigger crowd. Tip: To even out the wine-to-lemonade ratio, use a 1.5L bottle or 2 750ml bottles of White Zinfandel.

750ml bottle of Echofalls White Zinfandel,. 12 oz. cans of pink lemonade and12 oz. cans of lemon-lime soda. Combine all ingredients in a large punch bowl. Serve in stemless wine glasses with lemon and lime wheels as garnishes.

Echofalls – £4,25 Belvoir Raspberry Lemonade – £2,50

CHAMBORD VODKA LEMONADE:

Take a long glass filled with ice. Pour in Chambord, vodka and top with lemonade, and add the lime wedge. And voila, a sparkling, tasty summer drink! The colour of the drink is vibrant and playful and the drink is great for a summer night out.

Add 25ml Chambord, 25ml vodka some Lemonade, a Lime wedge a garnish and of course to finish.

Chambord – £ 24,00

Gin French Martini:

The Pinkster Pink Gin is an amazing choice for this drink. The sizzling pink gin mixed with the Chambord, creates a gorgeous pink drink perfect to sweeten up a nice summer afternoon.