Gin is a delightfully refreshing spirit, and this summer I decided I wanted to find some new favorite gin cocktail recipes. While I love a Ramos Gin Fizz in the summer, they’re incredibly involved (think a minimum of a minute and a half of just shaking … and shaking … and shaking a tin) and they require fresh ingredients like egg white and heavy cream that I don’t usually have on-hand. (I hardly have butter anymore since I travel so often!)

That said, the recipes I’ve now fallen in love with are not only simple to shake up, but don’t require any super perishable ingredients. Shake these goodies up this summer with some Seersucker Southern Style Gin (because it’s a delicious citrus-forward gin with adorable branding) and let me know how they come out!

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This simple cocktail uses whole cherries, which brings back amazing memories of summers when I was young when we’d pick and eat cherries right from the tree. This one requires a blender to create a cherry syrup, but you can use frozen cherries if you’d like a shortcut!

Cherry-Lime Gin Rickey
½ cup Seersucker Southern Style Gin
12 dashes of Angostura Bitters
2-3 tablespoons simple syrup
1 cup pitted sweet cherries, fresh or frozen, pitted
⅓ cup lime juice
2 cups soda

In a blender, puree cherries and lime juice. Then add the soda, gin, and bitters, followed by the simple syrup to taste. Blend lightly to combine, then pour into a fresh glass, garnish with a lime wheel and a cherry. (Makes four cocktails.)

This is a delightful summer brunch cocktail. With light and bright ingredients, it is simple and tastes absolutely amazing.

Drunken Tulip
2 oz Seersucker Southern Style Gin
2 oz pomegranate juice
½ oz elderflower cordial
Squeeze of lemon juice

Shake all ingredients with ice, then strain into a glass over fresh ice. Add a splash of sparkling wine on top, then garnish the drink with a couple pomegranate seeds (if you have them) and a slice of lemon.

Another of my usual summer go-to cocktails is a simple Italian classic, the Negroni. I thought changing it up a bit would be just the ticket, so I infused my gin with watermelon, changed to dry vermouth (to combat the sweetness of the watermelon and lime), and added just a bit of lime to brighten it up. Watch the video I did with Dinner Reinvented for further commentary!

Watermelon Negroni
1 oz watermelon-infused Seersucker Southern Gin
1 oz Campari
1 oz dry vermouth (a Negroni traditionally uses sweet vermouth)
Splash lime juice

Cut up a small watermelon and add flesh to 750mL of gin in an airtight container. Leave in the refrigerator for 4-6 days, tasting along the way.

Combine ingredients with ice in a mixing glass, stir, then strain into a fresh glass. Garnish with a watermelon spear.