Planning a summer wedding and need some fab recipes for cocktails & mocktails to keep your guests refreshed? We put together 20 of our favorite drink options for the bar at your wedding in the post below. But first, the whats & whys of hosting a summer wedding!
Reasons to have a summer wedding!
We love summer weddings! Of course, each season brings its own unique set of reasons to host your wedding. Here are a few of our favorite reasons to host your wedding in the summer.
The weather is gorgeous during the day, and crisp at night, depending on your area of course.
Summer is the perfect time to host a completely al fresco wedding, with a ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception, all outdoors!
Fireworks! Need we say more? If you plan your wedding close enough to a summer holiday you might just be able to piggyback off the fireworks display in your town. If not, you can hire your own fireworks display, or plan for a sparkler exit to end the night.
Your guest’s schedules may allow for more time off! Especially important if you are planning a summer destination wedding.
Attire! Summer provides for so many wedding day dress codes outside of your usual black tie or semi-formal attire.
During the summer, the day is long and the sun stays out to play through the evening hours. Perfect if you are dreaming of wedding day portraits during golden hour.
With a summer wedding, you’ll have your pick of gorgeous in-season florals.
Fun-themed gifts for your guests! We love this idea of creating escort cards for your guests out of sunglasses. Your guests will have a fun favor with their name on it to shield their eyes from the sun during the day, and a fun prop for the dance floor at nightfall.
Summer is one of the best seasons to incorporate fresh ingredients into your wedding day menu. And that includes the menu at your bar. Seriously, don’t miss the opportunity to craft a bar menu or signature drink for your summer wedding from delicious and ripe in-season fruits!
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20 Summer Wedding Cocktails & Mocktails Your Guests Will Love
Looking for a list of summer wedding cocktails & mocktails and signature drinks that your guests will love? You’re covered! We round up 20 of our favorite cocktails, mocktails, and yes, even canned drinks that are summer wedding ready.
We looked at recipes that included fresh summer fruit as an ingredient AND a garnish. Some of the drinks below include summer fruits like cherry, grapefruit, lime, pineapple, and of course coconut. There are drink selections that won’t leave you & your guests with that major feeling of yuck that comes along with drinking in the heat. And fun alcohol-free options for the kiddos too!
Here are 20 of the most refreshing summer wedding cocktails to serve at your wedding!
1) Frosé
A classic summer cocktail for anyone that loves a tasty & smooth frozen drink!
Ingredients: Rosé or Pinot Noir, sweetener of choice, Strawberries, ice, fresh lemon or lime juice
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Just Say Frose”
2) Margarita
Uplevel this classic margarita recipe for a summer wedding cocktail with the addition of top-shelf tequila or a fruity spin!
Ingredients: Tequila, fresh lime juice, Agave syrup, Cointreau, a wedge of fresh lime for your guests to squeeze, and, salt for the rim
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Married af Margarita”
3) Spiked Tea
Iced tea always has a fab “relaxing by the pool” vibe to it. Spike your tea and add sparkling water to it for fizzy carbonated delight!
Ingredients: Tea, freshly squeezed lemon, Bacardi, sugar, lemon slices, or fresh mint to garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Celebration Spiked Tea”
4) Negroni Sbagliato
Emma D’arcy gave this drink its viral moment, and we love them for it!
Ingredients: Campari, Sweet Vermouth, Prosecco, orange peel for garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Dragons Blood”
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5) Paloma
Grapefruit is a little outside the box when it comes to summer wedding cocktails, but we love the sweet meets bitter taste of grapefruit in this drink for a refreshing cocktail to pair with your small bites!
Ingredients: Grapefruit soda, grapefruit juice, fresh lime juice, tequila, and sugar for the rim
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Love Potion Paloma”
6) Watermelon Daiquiri
Tasty, refreshing, and super easy to sub as a mocktail, diced muddled watermelon AND watermelon garnish brings this fab drink together for your bar menu.
Ingredients: Diced watermelon, white rum, fresh lime juice, agave, salt, and watermelon wedges to garnish!
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Blushing Bride or Blushing Groom”
7) Tom Collins
One of the easiest recipes on this list, by FAR! A few simple ingredients makes this tasty cocktail a go-to for the menu at your summer wedding bar
Ingredients: Gin, lemon juice, sugar, and carbonated water
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Love at First Sip”
8) Mojito
One of those drinks that looks super pretty in a glass and tastes divine, your guests will love the infusion of muddled fresh mint with rum and club soda.
Ingredients: White rum, club soda, white sugar, mint leaves
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Mint To Be”
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9) Strawberry Peach Sangria
Up-level a sangria recipe with the addition of fresh summer-ripened strawberries and peaches. We love freezing the fruit chunks to use as “ice” in your drinks
Ingredients: Sparkling white wine or champagne, white sugar, white wine, run, fresh sliced strawberries, and peaches for the bottom of the glass & garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Say I do Sangria”
10) Tequila Sunrise Punch
This recipe can go so many different ways! Talk to your caterer or mixologist about adding in orange juice, pineapple juice, and cherries to bring the flavor profile up to your liking.
Ingredients: Silver or gold tequila, citrus-flavored club soda, freshly squeezed lime, orange, and grapefruit slices to garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Punch Drunk Love”
11) Strawberry Champagne Punch
Who needs a champagne toast when you can turn your champagne into a summer-friendly, fruity punch!
Ingredients: Brandy, champagne, white wine, fresh strawberries, club soda, white sugar
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Berry Good Together”
12) Pineapple Princess
You know we had to include a summer wedding cocktail that fresh pineapple made an appearance! Pineapple, lime, and Aperol mix this drink to invigorating delight!
Ingredients: Fresh diced pineapple, fresh lime juice, tequila, orange liquor, Aperol, lime for garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “ Pineapple Of My Eye”
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13) Cherry Vodka Sour
If cherries aren’t one of the best summer fruits, we don’t know what is! Your mixologist will be thrilled to bring this signature summer cocktail to life!
Ingredients: Vodka, Grenadine, fresh Cherries, fresh lemon juice, sparkling lemon water
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Pucker Up & Kiss Me”
14) Ciroc Watermelon Kiwi Spritzers
This fab canned cocktail pairs two amazing summer fruits together for a drink that is delightfully quenching!
15) Bollicini Prosecco
This has got to be the pretties canned drink, ever! The pretty “Tiffany Blue” color is perfect for a summer wedding refreshment & it’s just as tasty as it looks!
16) White Claw
Yes, you can serve White Claw at your summer wedding. No, it’s not “uncouth”. In fact, we love White Claws at a cocktail hour that has lawn games and fun entertainment where your guests kick back, relax, and get ready for the party at your reception. Make it your own by ordering custom labels on Etsy!
17) Fizzy Watermelon Lemonade [Mocktail]
Not everyone drinks, not everyone drinks past one cocktail, and some guests just aren’t drinking age. So we are big fans of including mocktails on the menu at the bar of your wedding!
Ingredients: Fresh watermelons, lemon juice, caster sugar, soda water, lime slices, and mint for garnish
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Wedding Party Watermelon”
18) Swimming Pool [Mocktail]
Not having a poolside wedding? No probs! You can still serve up this fanciful frosty blue mocktail inspired by Fynes Designs!
Ingredients: Pina Colada Mix [non-alcoholic], blue Gatorade, lemonade
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: We love the name already, but if you want to go with something more wedding theme, we love “Something Blue”
19) Pineapple & Lime Mocktail
A fun alcohol alternative to number 12, we love the addition of edible gold glitter in this mocktail to enchant your guests!
Ingredients: Clear honey, edible gold glitter, a small bunch of cilantro leaves, fresh lime juice, pineapple juice, soda water
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Here Comes The Lime”
20) Sparkling Grapefruit Mocktail
Ok, grapefruit is kind of having its moment on this list and we are so not going to apologize for it until you realize how fab it is!
Ingredients: Soda Water, freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, sugar, sparkling water, mint leaves, fresh lime; quartered
Making it your Signature cocktail? Name it: “Cute As A Grapefruit In A Suit”
Putting Your Drink Together at Your Tasting
When you plan for your tasting with your caterer ask them (in advance!) if you’ll be tasting your signature drink. Signature cocktails with fruit and other sweet ingredients can go sideways fast, and it’s important to refine the recipe to your liking.
Make it Yours
We included a few fun ideas on this list for naming your signature, but you can totally make it more personal. If you’re stuck on where to start couples usually pull inspiration from:
- First name
- New last name
- Hometown or location of wedding
- Theme of wedding
- Pet name(s)
Beyond naming your signature drink something unique, enhance the overall experience at your wedding with a fun custom sign! You can have your bar sign printed or custom-made by one of your favorite artists. They are great conversation starters at your wedding and they look super cute hanging in the kitchen of your newlywed home!
