Welcome Drinks for Wedding in Summer: Summer is here, which means it’s Wedding Season! We just celebrated our first anniversary, and it got me thinking about some things we made for our wedding that I haven’t shared yet.
Last month, I posted the recipe for the first tier of our cake (yes, I made it myself!). Besides that, I haven’t shared much about the wedding—until now! I’m excited to share three easy recipes for summer welcome drinks—big batch cocktails perfect for weddings, christenings, or even a relaxed Saturday!
Table of Contents
- The top 3 summer wedding welcome drinks:
- Tips for: Welcome drinks for wedding in summer
- Recipe of Welcome drinks for wedding in summer
The top 3 summer wedding welcome drinks:
1-Pimm’s
So, first up, we’ve got the most quintessentially British summer wedding drink – Pimm’s. I’m not sure if this is a ‘thing’ in the rest of the world, but in Britain a summer party isn’t an actual party without a jug of Pimm’s. It’s basically a spicy liqueur that’s almost always mixed with lemonade (not the cloudy kind, but the clear type like Sprite). Adding some chopped fruit, cucumber, and a bit of mint is pretty much compulsory. After all, it’s tradition!
To make a jug of Pimm’s, simply pour Pimm’s No. 1 until it fills about a quarter of the jug, and then topping up with clear lemonade, some orange wedges, strawberries, cucumber slices, and mint. And ice too, of course. I’ll give you the proper measurements in the recipe below, but to be honest, if you’e anything like me then you’ve probably made it dozens of times before.
Plus, it tells you on the back of the bottle.
Love Pimm’s a bit too much? Then you’re also going to love the Pimm’s Cupcakes I shared last month.
2-Sea Breeze
This one’s a bit of a weird one, because somehow combining three things that I don’t really care for manages to create a delicious cocktail. It’s mixology magic. See also: Long Island Iced Tea.
We have grapefruit juice, cranberry juice, and vodka. And that’s it. I like to add some wedges of fresh lime in there too, because it creates the best colour combination in cocktail history. I get such heart-eyes for pale pink and green in a glass:
As you will see above, our wedding guests were treated to four different drinks when they arrived for our reception – three of which I will be sharing the recipe for today. The fourth? Cloudy lemonade, which we didn’t make ourselves. Although, if you’re looking for a recipe for something equally yummy and alcohol-free, check out my mint limeade and peach lemonade recipes. You won’t regret it!
3-Moscow Mule
I don’t know why, but every time I say the name of this cocktail in my head, I pronounce it Mos-COW, rather than Mosc-OH. All those American TV binges are finally affecting my brain.
This is one of my wife’s favourite cocktails, because of all the ginger beer. It’s a sort of gingery Mojito, but with vodka instead of rum, and no sugar. Okay, so not much like a Mojito at all. But if you are a Mojito fan (and who isn’t) then chances are you’re going to love this drink just as much (and these Mojito cupcakes, obvs).
Plus, the fact that more often than not, a Moscow Mule comes served in a cute little copper mug is a plus.
Yeah, I had to buy some for this blog post. What a hardship.
At our wedding they were served in a tall glass, just like the other drinks, because the budget didn’t stretch to a hundred copper mugs, as sad as that is. But, served with ice, a slice of lime, a sprig of mint, and a cute straw or stirrer, they will definitely prove to be a hit.
Don’t want to splash out on a load of copper mugs? Then, I am all about copper straws at the moment. You can get paper ones or metal ones, perfect for whatever budget.
Tips for: Welcome drinks for wedding in summer
How Much Do We Need?
As you’ll see from the photo at the very top of this post, we served these cocktails in big drinks dispensers. In fact, at the time of writing this you can still get the same ones as us, from John Lewis. They hold about 12 litres each, meaning we had about 48 litres of drink on tap for the hour and a half our guests were milling about drinking cocktails and eating ice cream.
Bearing in mind that we had about 75 day guests, this worked out at just over half a litre each (or two glasses), and was pretty much spot on. It was a warm day, but if it had been hotter than I expect, this wouldn’t have been quite enough to keep people happy.
Big Batch Cocktails
If you’re going to be making your own summer wedding welcome drinks like we did, it’s definitely best to keep things as simple as possible. Choose cocktails that have three or fewer ingredients, and can easily be thrown together into a pitcher or drink dispenser and mixed together. You don’t want anything that requires effort. Therefore, however much you want them, please avoid Mojitos.
Welcome Drinks for Wedding in Summer: Easy Non-Alcoholic
Make sure you have something non-alcoholic available too. We went for some cloudy lemonade, which was perfect for the summer wedding vibe. Don’t make your own lemonade – the store bought stuff is great, especially when jazzed up with some lemon wedges, ice, and a fancy straw. You could also try making mocktails instead (both a Sea Breeze and Moscow Mule would be just as great without the vodka).
Pre-chop any fruit you’re going to be adding to the mix either the night before (and keep in the fridge) or get someone else to do it on the wedding morning. Instead of adding ice to the drink dispensers, we placed it directly into the glasses. This meant that the drinks didn’t get watered down before being served, and also meant that the guests actually had the ice in their glasses whilst drinking it.
Speaking of beverages, if you’ve ever wondered how to make a toasted white chocolate mocha, you’re not alone—it’s one of those comforting flavours that’s perfect all year round, even if it’s not exactly a wedding drink.
Recipe of Welcome drinks for wedding in summer
Welcome drinks for wedding in summer
Ingredients
PIMM'S
- 250ml 1 cup Pimm's No. 1
- 600ml 2½ cups Clear lemonade (approx.)
- 6 Halved Strawberries
- 1 Chopped into wedges Orange
- ¼ sliced Cucumber
- Fresh mint sprigs
- Ice
SEA BREEZE
- 200ml ¾ cup Vodka
- 475ml 2 cups Grapefruit juice
- 250ml 1 cup Cranberry juice
- 2 chopped into wedges Limes
- Ice
MOSCOW MULE
- 250ml 1 cup Vodka
- 125ml ½ cup Lime juice
- 500ml 2 cups Ginger beer
- 2 Chopped into wedges Limes
- Ice
- Fresh mint sprigs
Instructions
PIMM'S
- Start by pouring Pimm’s No. 1 into a 1-litre jug or pitcher. Add the chopped fruit, cucumber slices, and ice, then top it off with around 600ml of lemonade. Stir well, and serve in tall glasses, garnished with a sprig of mint and a straw.
SEA BREEZE
- Combine the vodka, grapefruit juice, and cranberry juice in a 1-litre jug or pitcher. Stir the mixture thoroughly, then add lime wedges and ice. Serve in tall glasses with fun straws.
MOSCOW MULE
- In a 1-litre jug or pitcher, mix together the vodka, lime juice, and ginger beer. Stir well, then toss in lime wedges and ice. Pour into copper mugs or tall glasses and garnish with mint sprigs before serving
