Ten cocktail recipes for 4 July

Happy 4 July! This Independence Day is all about fireworks, barbecues, celebrations and, of course, cocktails.

Whether you’re looking to serve up a punch bowl for your nearest and dearest or need something to cool you down – and keep you calm – while you man the grill, we’ve got the perfect patriotic recipe for you.

Here are our top 10 Independence Day cocktails.

Mozart Red, White & Boozy Shake

The only thing more patriotic than raising the flag is drinking it. This cocktail, created by Gluten Free and More Magazine for Mozart liqueurs, is a tricoloured tribute to the USA.

Ingredients – serves 2
6 scoops vanilla ice cream
30ml blue curaçao
90ml Mozart White Chocolate Liqueur
3 scoops raspberry sorbet
Red food colouring (optional)
Whipped cream
Red, white and blue sprinkles

Method
In a blender, combine three scoops of vanilla ice cream with the curaçao and blend until smooth. Divide among two tall glasses and freeze until firm. Combine the remaining vanilla ice cream with 60ml of Mozart White Chocolate in a blender and blend until smooth. Carefully divide among the glasses on top of the blue layer. Freeze until firm. Combine the raspberry sorbet with the remaining liqueur in a blender and blend until smooth. Add a few drops of food colouring and quickly blend (optional). Divide evenly on top of the white layer and freeze until firm. Top with whipped cream and garnish with sprinkles.

Fourth of July Firecracker

Fireworks are a key part of 4 July celebrations – but Irish whiskey brand Teeling is representing the concept metaphorically through this flavour explosion of a cocktail.

Ingredients
45ml Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey
30ml fresh grapefruit juice
15ml Martini Riserva
15ml simple syrup
1 dash of orange bitters

Method
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker. Shake until chilled and fine strain in a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with a grapefruit slice.

Equiano Summer Fruit Punch

Hosting a party or barbecue for 4 July? While we love showing off and shaking up cocktails for guests, it can become a little cumbersome with a crowd. This recipe is perfect for dumping in a bowl and letting guests serve themselves – though don’t expect the bowl to remain full for long.

Ingredients
750ml Equiano Light Rum
1 litre freshly squeezed orange juice
500ml pineapple juice
500ml grapefruit juice
200ml grenadine
50ml fresh lime juice

Method
Pour all the ingredients into a large jug or bowl and stir with plenty of ice.

Honeymoon Punch Bowl

Another great punch bowl cocktail, this recipe was created by New York’s The Standard Grill – it’ll make you feel like you’re in a fancy establishment, even if you’re just in your own backyard.

Ingredients
90ml simple syrup
130ml fresh lemon juice
45ml cantaloupe melon liqueur (made with fresh cantaloupe juice, sugar, vodka and ascorbic acid)
340ml honeydew-infused vodka
450ml club soda

Method
Prepare an XL punch bowl and fill it with ice. Combine all ingredients into the punch bowl and stir. Garnish with melon balls and mint. Add a few straws (optional).

Rosita Grande

Want all the excitement of a punch bowl cocktail but not so keen on sharing? This extra-large serve from Mijenta is sure to keep you calm while the family are kicking off. (Drink responsibly.)

Ingredients
180ml Mijenta Blanco Tequila
90ml Cointreau
90ml Agave
120ml watermelon juice
120ml lime juice

Method
Shake all ingredients in a large shaker tin, then strain over ice. Serve in large glass.

Midnight Rye Pineapple Sage Punch

Is there anything more all-American than American whiskey? Made in Templeton, Iowa, Templeton Midnight Rye is a small-town, family-owned brand that became famous during the Prohibition era. This cocktail works great as an individual serve or could be enjoyed in a punch bowl.

Ingredients
60ml Templeton Midnight Rye
30ml pineapple juice
15ml sage syrup
15nl lemon juice
Pineapple slice
Sage leaves

Method
Combine Templeton Midnight Rye, pineapple juice, sage syrup and lemon juice in a shaker with ice. Garnish with a pineapple slice and sage leaves.

Grill Master’s Apron

If you’re going to be spending today at the helm of the grill, make sure you have this peach and Tequila cocktail from Matthew McConaughey’s brand Pantalones to hand.

Ingredients
45ml Pantalones Organic Reposado Tequila
45ml grilled peach syrup
30ml lime juice
15ml orange liqueur
Mint (for garnish)
Smoked salt and Tajin (for rim)

Method
Cut one fresh peach in half, remove the pit, and grill with the skin facing up for 2-3 minutes. Remove the skin, muddle, and strain the juice into your shaker. In your shaker, add Pantalones Organic Reposado Tequila, lime juice, orange liqueur, and ice. Shake. Take your cocktail glass and run a lime across the rim. Dip the edge of your glass into the smoked salt and Tajin, fill the glass with ice, and pour the serve over ice. Top with mint.

21Seeds Frozen Paloma

What’s even cooler than a punch bowl? A pitcher of a frozen cocktail – in both senses of the word. This recipe from Tequila brand 21Seeds is an icy twist on a Paloma that’s somehow even more refreshing than the original.

Ingredients – serves 4
240ml 21Seeds Grapefruit Hibiscus Infused Tequila
240ml pink grapefruit juice (no pulp)
90ml simple syrup
60ml fresh lime juice
1.5kg ice

Method
Place all in a blender until smooth.

The Hater

You’ll likely be spending 4 July with your family, and this year Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino Tequila is acknowledging that we don’t always get along with our relations. The brand has created a range of cocktail recipes to represent your family members. The Hater is ‘named after the cousin who peaked in high school and can’t be happy that you’re getting married’. Charming!

Ingredients
45ml Gran Coramino Reposado
90ml tonic water
Navel orange half-moon slice, for garnish

Method
Fill a Collins glass with fresh ice. Add Gran Coramino Reposado. Top with tonic water and drop a half-moon orange slice into the glass.

Frozen Bourbon Dreamsicle

Nothing screams ‘USA’ more than popsicles and Bourbon. This cocktail blends the two to create the alcoholic frozen treat of your dreams.

Ingredients
60ml Jeptha Creed Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon
90ml ice cream base
90ml orange juice
2 dashes vanilla extract
Two scoops of ice

Method
Combine all ingredients into a blender over ice, then blend until smooth. Pour into chilled glass and top with whipped cream and an orange slice. Serves one large glass, or two small glass portions. For larger batches, scale up ingredients to the limitations of your blender.