Your family’s Memorial Day party doesn’t have to be a mere rehearsal for the 4th of July!
Deck the patio with patriotic decorations, fire up the grill, build a star-spangled playlist, and you’re ready to try our Top 5 Favorite Drink Recipes for Memorial Day!
The best part about these drink recipes? All 5 have kid-friendly and adult (liquor) versions so you can keep everyone happy and entertained, all the while doing less work!
Isn’t that what it’s all about?
Dark & Stormy
- Root Beer Floats—Two Ways
This timeless American classic has two versions. Make a round for the little ones using the classic recipe—2 scoops of vanilla bean ice cream and 1 ½ cups ice cold root beer. For the adult variation, skip the ice cream, instead combining root beer with heavy cream, orange bitters, and bourbon. Cheers!
- Festive and Fancy Watermelon Lemonade
Lemonade is the quintessential porch drink, and this recipe for Watermelon Lemonade creates an instant vibrant twist on an old favorite.
The original recipe is kid-friendly and non-alcoholic, and includes a dashing mint sprig for garnish. Add your favorite vodka or tequila to up the ante.
- Ginger Beer, then Dark and Stormy
Ginger beer is a delicious, unique alternative to root beer, and also has a great way of settling the stomach after a round of burgers and dogs, too! Grab a six pack at your local grocery store, pass around a few for the kids, and then make the grown-ups a Dark and Stormy by adding your favorite dark rum and lime.
- Red, White & Blue Frozen Ritas & Slushes
This Uncle Sam inspired concoction includes tequila and triple sec for adults—all you need to do is omit the liquor and add orange juice or limeade for the children’s table.
- Lemon Mint Sparklers
And finally, for the over-achievers: A bonus-point lemon mint cocktail where you make the syrup ahead of time and keep cold. The day of, chill the club soda and mix the two ingredients right before serve time to ensure the cocktail is nice and fizzy.
For the grownup recipe, omit the lemon juice and reduce the lemon-mint syrup to 1/3 cup. Then, stir in 1 ½ cups bourbon to complete the treat.
Follow our Instagram page to see the cocktails in action on Memorial Day! And for more summer party ideas, check out our Savor Summer! page on Pinterest!
