Fresh Summer Cocktails Inspired by Italian Summers and La Dolce Vita
If the idea of bright colors, citrus fruits and a lingering dinner al fresco as the summer sun sinks into a sky of burnt orange makes you feel like living La Dolce Vita, you aren’t alone. There is just something about an Italian summer that makes us want to put on a big hat, eat good food, and most importantly, not rush through a meal. Europeans embrace the idea that the meal is the event. It isn’t uncommon to sit at a table in a piazza, with an apertivo, and no sign of the primo for hours, and unlike at dinner elsewhere, no sign of frustration for the slow service.
While “La Dolce Vita” directly translated means, the sweet life, it has come to represent a much broader sentiment. Where meals are meant to be communal - with a goal of savoring time, conversations, and connections. Where friends will gather, and often even rove from table to table, sitting a spell to catch up. The food is brought out in an order designed primarily for enjoyment and time is never a factor. Where there is an emphasis on fresh local ingredients, and easy to share meals that promise shockingly layered flavor for the utter simplicity of ingredients.
La Dolce Vita is characterized by living an Italian lifestyle that embraces leisure, socializing, and enjoying the simple pleasures of life. This sentiment bears a striking similarity to our embrace of effortless entertaining and elevated everyday moments, when we are encouraged to slow down and enjoy the simple joys of everyday life.
It’s why people often describe their ideal summer as one that embraces this European style sensibility. We have spent all of our summers in Michigan, where we share a similar sentiment. They are intentionally slow. There are no time frames for meals, in fact they often melt into the background or the leisure of a summer day progresses in such a way that we quietly slip from one mealtime into another.
The lack of formality and rules doesn’t mean meals aren’t enjoyed, quite the opposite. Food simply needs to be simple, but delicious, in order to be fully enjoyed in this fashion. It’s just there is nothing particularly complicated or fancy, because it turns out you can get sophisticated flavor without fussy ingredients or techniques, and the real secret behind living “la dolce vita,” is that everything simply tastes better when enjoyed together, with intention.
Of course, a Van Winkle family summer in Michigan, Kentucky or Sun Valley, isn’t exactly quiet, it does take on a surprisingly relaxed pace, given the sheer number of people, kids and dogs that are present. An unspoken, and shared, desire to slow down and allow the day to unfold naturally and spontaneously, is our way of life in the summer.
Meals are served whenever there is a group large enough gathered in the kitchen to assemble them. Potluck is the name of the game and an opportunity for socializing is never farther than a bike ride or an open porch door away. So a typical summer supper menu consists mostly of fresh salads and veggies plucked straight from the garden, simple appetizers meant to share, fresh lake trout grilled to perfection, and of course, summer cocktails bursting with the big, vibrant and juicy flavor of seasonal ingredients.
Classic Summer Cocktails Inspired by La Dolce Vita
Enjoy our line-up of refreshing and easy summer cocktails crafted and inspired by La Dolce Vita. Embrace a slow and intentional summer with fresh summer cocktails bursting with juicy, seasonal flavor and the natural sweetness of Pappy Van Bourbon Barrel-Aged infused flavor.
Classic summer cocktails are classic for a reason. The ones we reach for are the ones that seem destined to be shared on a porch, as the summer heat dips into a cooler evening breeze, and the wisps of the setting sun create a halo effect of cinematic light. Where fireflies and friends gather in groupings that heed no formal invitation other than the simple act of togetherness.
Of course our favorite summer cocktail recipes incorporate our signature Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon barrel-aged flavors. The sweet heat of our Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Barrel-Aged ghost peppers in our Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Barrel-Aged Spicy Syrup add a subtly sweet spice to a summer favorite Spicy Margarita. While our OG Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Barrel-Aged Pure Maple Syrup adds a depth of sweetness with hints of caramel, charred oak and vanilla as an ideal summer cocktail sweetener.
Naturally, no summer southern bar would be complete without some foolproof mixers.
Our Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Barrel Smokey Kentucky Sour Mixer really shines in the summer. With its versatile friendliness, it pairs with all spirits, whipping up a whiskey sour, a tequila sour, or splashed with rum for a sweet and smoky summer sipper.
If you’ve ever gathered on the porch for a Van Winkle Pappy Hour, you’ve surely seen us with a batch of our go-to-summer cocktail, a classic margarita.
Enjoy our line-up of classic summer cocktails, and the glassware designed to enjoy them, and recipes that will hopefully encourage you to join us as we slow down and savor the summer. Cheers!
