Create the most beautifully-refreshing cocktails using herbs from your garden! Invite your friends over and follow these three simple recipes for an evening (or afternoon) of fun! 

I don’t know about you, but I’m always looking for new ways to use those fresh herbs from my garden. I’m no bartender, but I love entertaining and mixing up delicious drinks for my friends. I know many of us are already focused on fall, but it’s still summer, baby! I’m all about embracing that: more days on the patio, going to the beach, and throwing backyard bbq parties. Often, September can be the forgotten month of summer where we live in Edmonton, Canada. Even with the kids back in school and everyone back into a routine, the days are often still hot enough to justify a deck day with delicious drinks. Here are three refreshing cocktails I created using fresh herbs and premium spirits from Bacardi Rum and Grey Goose vodka. I hope you enjoy!

 

Lavender Spritz

First, make your lavender simple syrup.

You’ll Need:

• Four or five sprigs of fresh lavender
• Two cups of water
• Two cups of organic sugar
• Two organic blueberries (optional for added colour)

Directions:

• Put all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil while stirring to dissolve the sugar.

• Simmer for about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool for about an hour. Then, strain the blueberries and lavender. Pour into a glass bottle with a stopper. (I got mine at HomeSense but these are similar.)

Now that you’ve made your lavender simple syrup, it’s time to create your cocktail!

You’ll Need:

• Two ounces of Grey Goose vodka
• Fresh lavender sprigs
• One lemon
• Sparkling water
• Ice
• One ounce of lavender simple syrup
• Big wine glass

Directions:

• Fill your wine glass with ice.
• Add vodka and simple syrup.
• Top with sparkling water, and garnish with a lavender sprig weaved into a lemon slice. Drop right into the glass. On especially hot days, I would use a cocktail shaker to make this drink extra-chilled.

 

Basil Mojito

 

You’ll Need:

• Two ounces Bacardi Superior White Rum
• Four or five basil leaves (including one for garnish)
• Three teaspoons of brown sugar (more if you want it sweeter)
• Ice (lots)
• Sparkling water
• One lime (juiced)
• Tall cocktail glass
• Smart chopper

Directions:

• Combine juice from one lime, brown sugar, and basil leaves into your smart chopper. Chop and then shake in smart chopper to combine ingredients.
• Pour basil mixture over packed ice into your cocktail glass (Collins glass or something similar).
• Add two ounces of Bacardi Superior White Rum
• Top off with sparkling water
• Garnish with a lime wedge and basil leaf.

Orange Rosemary Refresh

First, make your rosemary simple syrup.

You’ll Need:

• One cup of water
• One cup of organic sugar
• One tbsp of agave nectar or honey
• Five springs of rosemary

Directions:

• Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook off until the sugar dissolves (about three minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the agave nectar.

• Then, add the rosemary and let it steep for two hours.

• Remove the rosemary sprig and bottle your syrup. You can add a fresh sprig of rosemary to the bottle before putting it in the fridge, just for show. I love opening my fridge to see this pretty bottle. Store it in the fridge. (It’s usually good for a couple of weeks.)

Now that you’ve made your rosemary simple syrup, you’re ready to create your cocktail!

You’ll Need:

• 1.5 ounces of Grey Goose L’Orange Vodka
• Two ounces of rosemary simple syrup
• Ice
• Sparkling water
• Orange slices (garnish)
• One rosemary sprig (garnish)
• Flute-style glass

Directions:

• Add ice to your flute-style glass.
• Add two ounces of Grey Goose L’Orange Vodka and two ounces of rosemary simple syrup. Top up with sparkling water. Garnish with a rosemary sprig and an orange slice.

 

Don’t forget to ‘Pin’ this for later!

 

Watch my Herb Garden Cocktails segment on CTV Edmonton here.

 

Thank you to Thiel’s Greenhouses for providing the beautiful herbs for this post and the segment on CTV Edmonton!

This blog post was sponsored by Bacardi and Grey Goose, but as always, thoughts and opinions are my own

 

xx