5 Frozen Cocktails To Celebrate The End Of Summer

The end of August is always a little bittersweet—the unofficial end of summer, of Summer Fridays, of spontaneous weekend trips to explore new cities or float on a lake. Frozen cocktails are one of the most refreshing ways to stay cool in the summer heat, so I invite you to toast to the end of summer with these blended drinks curated by beverage pros.

Ananas Della Passione

Recipe by Morgan Mallory, beverage manager at Four Seasons Resort Maui

This tropical riff on a Mai Tai replaces orgeat with more tropical flavors like pineapple and passion fruit. “This has been a staple of the pool menu for many years,” Mallory said. “We core about 30 pineapples a day.” At the resort, it’s served in a hollowed out pineapple, but at home you can use a pilsner glass or a beer mug.

Recipe for Ananas Della Passione

Yields 1 drink

Ingredients:

2 oz dark rum

1/2 oz passion fruit nectar

1/2 oz pineapple juice

1/2 oz orange juice

1/2 oz lemon juice

1/2 oz lime juice

1/2 oz simple syrup

Directions:

Blend all of the ingredients together in a blender with 8 ounces of ice.

Pour into a hollowed out pineapple or another large vessel.

Hammock Cafe

Recipe by Will Krepop, beverage director at Wiggle Room

If you can’t make it to the buzzy East Village bar in New York City, you can enjoy this tropical twist on Wiggle Room’s house espresso martini on tap at home. Lounging on a hammock while you’re drinking it is optional, but highly recommended. This recipe can also be scaled up for a late summer party.

Recipe for Hammock Cafe

Yields 1 drink

Ingredients:

1 oz Copalli Cacao Rum (can substitute with another white rum or vodka)

1 oz Mr Black Coffee Liqueur

1/2 oz cold brew concentrate

1/2 oz sweetened coconut cream (like Coco Lopez)

1/2 oz oat milk

Pinch of Salt

Shredded coconut, for garnish

Directions:

Blend all ingredients with about a cup of ice. If the mixture is too thin, add more ice until you achieve the consistency of a slushie.

Pour into a tall glass, then sprinkle shredded coconut on top.

French 75 Slushie

Recipe by Mike di Tota, beverage manager of The Smith

This frozen take on the bubbly classic cocktail is a fan favorite at The Smith restaurants in NYC, Chicago and DC. You can make it at home with just a few ingredients.

Recipe for French 75 Slushie

Yields 1 drink

Ingredients:

1 oz gin

3 oz Prosecco

1 oz simple syrup

1 oz lemon juice

2 c ice

Lemon peel, for garnish

Directions:

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.

Pour into serving glass (cocktail coupe recommended) and garnish with a lemon peel.

Frozen Strawberry Margarita

Recipe by Sebastian Hamilton-Mudge, bartender, beverage consultant and co-founder of Candra Drinks

Sweet strawberries in the peak of their season are ideal for this particular recipe, but you can feel free to swap it out with whatever is in season when you’re making it: raspberries, blackberries, peaches and mangoes also work. “You’ll get the best results from fruit that’s in season,” Hamilton-Mudge said. “If you can’t get fruit in season, then you are usually better off buying a good quality frozen purée than fruit that’s out of season, sour and flavorless.”

Recipe for Frozen Strawberry Margarita

Yields 1 drink

Ingredients:

2 oz fresh strawberries, mashed

1 oz tequila or mezcal

1/2 oz triple sec

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

6 oz ice

Lime wheel, for garnish

Directions:

Add all of the ingredients (minus the lime wheel) to a blender. Start with a low speed, then turn up the speed of the blender and blend all ingredients and ice until smooth.

Taste to check the balance of the drink and adjust if necessary.

Pour into a glass, garnish with a lime wheel and serve.

Siestas and Sunsets

Recipe by Courtney Stagg of The Citizen

“I wanted to create a frozen cocktail that has the complexity of an Aperol Spritz in a frozen form,” Stagg said. “The multiple layers of grapefruit throughout the cocktail really help the flavors to pop. The color is gorgeous, just like the sunsets in Alys Beach!”

Recipe for Siestas and Sunsets

For the grapefruit cordial

1 oz grapefruit juice

1 oz sugar

1/2 oz lemon juice

Grapefruit peel

In a saucepan, heat the grapefruit juice, sugar and lemon juice. Stir and heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Remove pan from the heat. Add minced grapefruit peels and let sit for 24 hours.

Strain, then use to make the cocktail.

For the grapefruit infused Aperol

Grapefruit peel

1 L bottle Aperol

Chop the peel of one grapefruit into very small pieces. Add the minced peels and 1-liter bottle of Aperol into a blender and blend for 15 seconds or until it is pulp like.

Place in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

Strain through a fine mesh strainer, then use to make the cocktail.

For the cocktail

2.5 oz grapefruit cordial

2 oz grapefruit infused Aperol

1 oz orange juice

Orange wheel and grapefruit peel, for garnish

Add all ingredients into a blender and fill with ice to just above the liquid line.

Blend until it’s a smooth consistency.

Pour and garnish with orange wheel and manicured grapefruit peel.