Celebrate the Fourth of July With Summer’s Most Festive Cocktails
Whether you’re hosting a barbecue or lounging poolside, whip up one of these delicious drinks for your July 4th festivities.
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No matter how you intend to spend the Fourth of July this year, might we suggest adding a festive summer cocktail to the equation? A batch of celebratory drinks is a sure way to jazz up the festivities, whether you’re planning an elaborate fête, heading to a poolside barbecue with friends and family, or just basking in the glory of a long summer weekend.
From non-alcoholic mocktails to spirits-focused drinks, a whimsical beverage is the final accoutrement to Independence Day BBQ mainstays like burgers, hot dogs and all things red, white and blue. Not to mention, what better way to beat the stifling heat on a hot summer day than with a refreshing aperitif?
Sure, a crisp glass of white wine, rosé or a beer is always nice, but this year, elevate your celebrations with a festive summer drink for the Fourth. Whether you’re looking for a classic cocktail or a delightfully kitschy concoction, we’ve got you covered with the best drink recipes to combat the summer heat on Independence Day—just avoid jello shots at all costs. Below, see the most delicious (and easy to make!) boozy cocktails to serve at any kind of Fourth of July party.
The Best Fourth of July Cocktail Recipes
- Firecracker G + T
- 818 Fourth of July
- Another Bloody Mojito
- Cucumber Blue
- Watermelon Rosé Punch
- Sangria Popsicle
- Fragaria Martini
- The People's Margarita
- Firecracker Sidecar
- Fourth of July Firecracker
- Miami Vice
- Watermelon Negroni Sparkler
- The Zesty One
- 1800 Agua Fresca
- Spicy Watermelon
- Miami Sunset
- Barrilito Sky
- Watermelon Sour
- Don’t Call Me Shirley
- Hibiscus Highball
- Jaja Strawberry Lemonade
- Trans-Fiddich Fusion
- The Blue Wave
- Sparkling Lemon
- Lillet Blanc Spritz
- American G & T
- Le Zoé Spritz
- Ranch Water
- Firework Margarita
- Oaxacan Fireworks
- Independence Rey
Firecracker G + T
Ingredients:
1.5 oz. Nolet’s Silver Gin
1 Bomb Pop (or any other popsicle)
Frozen raspberries and blueberries
4 oz tonic water
Directions:
Fill a balloon glass with ice and the frozen fruit. Add gin, tonic water and popsicle.
818 Fourth of July
Ingredients:
.5 oz 818 Tequila Blanco
.5 oz gin
.5 oz vodka
.5 oz white rum
.5 oz blue Curacao
.75 oz lime juice
Scant bar spoon of rich cinnamon syrup
Grapefruit soda
Directions:
Add all ingredients, except for the soda, into a shaker with a large amount of ice. Pour an ounce of the soda into a highball glass with large ice cubes. Pour the shaken contents over the soda. Top with remaining soda; garnish with Luxardo cherries.
Another Bloody Mojito
Ingredients
2 oz Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz Gin
4/5 oz lemon or lime juice
2/3 oz sugar syrup
8 mint leaves
2 oz soda
Extra mint sprig, for garnish
Directions:
Combine all the ingredients, except for soda, in a tin with ice; shake vigorously. Strain into a highball glass and add soda. Add fresh ice and garnish with mint sprig.
Cucumber Blue
Ingredients:
2 oz Empress 1908 Indigo Gin
Soda water
Cucumber
Mint
Cucumber ribbon and basil, for garnish
Directions:
Muddle cucumber, basil and mint in the bottom of a chilled rocks glass. Add fresh ice and gin. Top with soda water and garnish with cucumber ribbon and basil.
Watermelon Rosé Punch
Ingredients:
1 750 ml bottle Hampton Water Rosé
3 cups watermelon juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup simple syrup
Watermelon slices, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a pitcher; stir. Refrigerate for two hours. When ready to serve, pour into glasses filled with fresh ice and garnish with watermelon slices.
Sangria Popsicle
Ingredients:
3/4 cup Riunite Red Sangria
1 cup ginger beer
3/4 cup orange juice
Sliced strawberries and limes
Orange juice
Popsicle mold
Directions:
Fill each popsicle mold with the sliced fruit. In a small pitcher, combine ginger beer and sangria. Fill each mold 3/4 of the way full and freeze for at least an hour. Top each popsicle with orange juice, then add popsicle sticks and freeze for another eight hours.
Fragaria Martini
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Revivalist Garden Gin
.5 oz strawberry liqueur
.75 oz lemon juice
1 tsp strawberry jam
Strawberry slice, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients into a shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Double strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with strawberry slice.
The People's Margarita
Ingredients:
2 oz Teremana Blanco
.75 oz lime juice
.5 oz agave nectar
1 oz pineapple juice, to taste
Pineapple leaves, lime and sea salt, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Strain into a rocks glass with fresh ice. Garnish with a lime wheel, pineapple leaves and sea salt.
Firecracker Sidecar
Ingredients:
1 oz D'Ussé VSOP
.75 oz Bacardi Mango Chile
.75 oz orange liqueur
.75 oz fresh lemon juice
1 dash Tabasco
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice; shake. Strain into a coupe glass.
Fourth of July Firecracker
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey
1 oz fresh grapefruit juice
.5 oz Martini Fiero
.5 oz simple syrup
1 dash orange bitters
Grapefruit slice, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until chilled; fine strain into a rocks glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with a grapefruit slice.
Miami Vice
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Bacardi Superior or Coconut Rum
1.25 oz coconut cream
1.25 oz pineapple juice
1 cup crushed ice
Directions:
Combine piña colada ingredients in a blender; blend into a slushy consistency. In a separate blender, combine the strawberry daiquiri ingredients and blend into a slushy consistency. Pour both blended cocktails side by side or layered into a single glass.
Watermelon Negroni Sparkler
Ingredients:
40 ml Diplomático Mantuano
20 ml sweet vermouth
20 ml bitter Italian apéritif
10 ml watermelon juice
Ice
Directions:
Add all ingredients into an ice-filled mixing glass. Stir together to combine and chill. Strain into a double old fashioned rocks glass with a large piece of ice. Garnish with your choice of fruit.
The Zesty One
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Belvedere Vodka
2/3 oz fresh lime juice
1/3 oz sugar syrup
Directions:
Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake with cubed ice. Strain into a collins coupe glass; top with lime zest.
1800 Agua Fresca
Ingredients:
1.5 oz 1800 Cristalino
Watermelon cubes
Pineapple cubes
1/2 oz lime juice
1/2 oz mint syrup
1/2 oz filtered water
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a collins glass. Fill the glass with ice and stir. Garnish with fresh fruit and a mint sprig.
Spicy Watermelon
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Tito’s Handmade Vodka
2 oz ginger beer
1 oz watermelon juice
.5 oz lime juice
1 to 2 jalapeño slices
Directions:
Muddle jalapeño slices in a shaker. Add vodka, watermelon juice, lime juice and ice; shake and strain over fresh ice into a glass. Top with ginger beer; garnish with a watermelon and jalapeño slice.
Miami Sunset
Ingredients:
1.5 oz E11EVEN Vodka
1 oz passion fruit liqueur
.5 oz lemon juice
.5 oz Demerara syrup
8 blueberries
Prosecco
Blueberries and rosemary sprig, for garnish
Directions:
Add vodka and blueberries into a shaker; muddle. Add passion fruit liqueur, lemon juice and Demerara syrup into the shaker and fill with ice. Double strain into a double old fashioned glass with one large ice cube. Top with prosecco; gently mix. Garnish rosemary sprig and fresh blueberries.
Barrilito Sky
Ingredients:
2 oz Ron Del Barrilito Two Stars
Pineapple syrup
Blue Curacao liqueur
Lemon juice
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Directions:
Pour all ingredients except for mint leaves into a shaker; shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Pour into a balloon glass; add mint leaves to garnish.
Watermelon Sour
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Bisquit & Dubouché V.S.O.P. Cognac
.5 oz Aperol
1 oz watermelon syrup*
.75 oz lemon juice
Watermelon cube
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a shaker and strain thoroughly. Pour liquid into chilled coupe.
*To make, combine equal parts watermelon juice and granulated white sugar in a blender and blend until sugar is fully incorporated.
Don’t Call Me Shirley
Courtesy of Hendrick’s Ambassador Mattias Horseman
Ingredients:
2 parts Hendrick’s Gin
1/4 part Luxardo maraschino cherry juice or grenadine
1/4 part orange liqueur
Fever-Tree Lemon Tonic
Directions:
Add all ingredients into a highball glass; stir to combine. Garnish with a squeeze of lemon, a fresh cherry and cucumber slices.
Hibiscus Highball
Ingredients:
1 oz Dewar's 12-Year-Old Blended Scotch Whisky
.75 oz St Germain
2 oz lemonade
Unsweetened hibiscus tea
Directions:
Add all ingredients, except for unsweetened tea, into a shaker with ice. Shake quickly; strain into a glass with fresh ice. Top with unsweetened hibiscus tea.
Jaja Strawberry Lemonade
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Jaja Reposado
2 oz iced green tea
Hard strawberry lemonade
Lemon wheel and strawberry slice, for garnish
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a highball glass with ice. Stir to combine. Garnish with a lemon wheel and a strawberry slice.
Trans-Fiddich Fusion
Ingredients:
1.5 parts Glenfiddich 12 Year Old
1 part Passoã
2 parts cranberry juice
1 part fresh lime juice
Ginger ale
Directions:
combine all ingredients, except for ginger ale, into a shaker tin filled with ice; shake for at least 30 seconds. Add a few drops of foamer, if available, and top with ginger ale.
The Blue Wave
Ingredients:
2 oz El Bandido Yankee Blanco Tequila
1/4 oz coconut cream
1/4 oz blue Curacao
Champagne
Directions:
Add all ingredients except for champagne into a shaker with ice. Strain into a glass; top with champagne.
Sparkling Lemon
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Bombay Sapphire
3 oz lemonade
3 oz club soda
Lemon wheel, for garnish
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a glass (a balloon glass or wine glass works well) filled with ice. Stir to combine. Garnish with a lemon wheel.
Lillet Blanc Spritz
Ingredients:
2.5 parts Lillet Blanc
2.5 parts tonic water or club soda
Orange slice, for garnish
Directions:
Add Lillet Blanc and tonic water into a shaker with ice. Strain into a white wine glass filled with ice. Garnish with an orange slice.
American G & T
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Aviation American Gin
3 oz tonic water
Lemon wheel and lime wheel, for garnish
Directions:
Pour Aviation Gin into a glass filled with ice; top with tonic water. Gently stir. Garnish with lemon wheel and lime wheel.
Le Zoé Spritz
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Grey Goose Vodka
1.5 oz rosé wine
1.5 oz sparkling water
3 oz strawberry juice
.5 oz fresh lemon juice
Sliced strawberries, blueberries and one sprig of thyme, for garnish
Directions:
Add vodka, rosé, sparkling water, strawberry juice and lemon juice into a wine glass filled with cubed ice. Stir gently. Garnish with sliced strawberries, blueberries and thyme.
Ranch Water
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Lalo Tequila
1.5 oz fresh lime juice
1.5 oz sparkling water
Lime wedge, for garnish
Directions:
Add ice cubes to a highball glass. Add tequila and lime juice, mix together and then add sparkling water. Garnish with fresh lime wedge.
Firework Margarita
Ingredients:
2 oz Villa One Silver
.75 oz fresh lime juice
.75 oz demerara syrup
.5 oz Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur
Lime and jalapeño, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice. Shake and then strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass with a Tajin rim. Garnish with a lime or slice of jalapeño.
Oaxacan Fireworks
Ingredients:
1.5 oz oz Recuerdo Mezcal Joven
1 oz blue Curacao
.5 oz lime juice
.25 oz simple syrup
1 maraschino cherry, for garnish
Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice. Pour into a martini glass; garnish with a maraschino cherry.
Independence Rey
Ingredients:
0.75 oz pomegranate syrup (or grenadine)
1 oz lime juice
2 oz SelvaRey White Rum
.5 oz blue Curacao
Mint, for garnish
Directions:
Pour pomegranate syrup into a glass, then add ice into the glass. In a separate glass, add lime juice and rum, then shake and strain into the original glass. Pour blue Curacao on top of the lime and rum mixture. Gently stir to combine. Garnish with mint.
