These 25 citrus cocktail recipes are just what you need to keep cool and refreshed on a hot summer’s day—patio not included!
When the weather is sweltering and you feel like you’re wilting away to nothing, a bright, refreshing citrus cocktail is just the ticket. To inspire your summer happy hours (and brunches and lunches and dinner parties!), I’ve collected over 25 citrus cocktail recipes that will keep you happily sipping all summer long.
Citrus flavors are perfect for summer: they’re bright and a tad zingy with just the right amount of tartness to stop anything from being overly sweet (which can be a bit much on a hot day).
This citrus cocktail recipe collection has a little bit of everything. You’ll find cocktails that use lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruits. (Important note: If you’re serving guests, be aware that there are some very common medications that interact with grapefruit or grapefruit juice.)
In this citrus cocktail list, you will find classic hot weather drinks like margaritas, mojitos, Aperol spritzes, and Moscow mules. But you’ll also find twists on old favorites and some creative new cocktails to enjoy!
Don’t forget to make the most of summer’s bounty when it comes to garnishing your drinks. Raid your garden for fresh mint, basil, or rosemary for a really fresh take on these delicious citrus cocktails!
Now all you need is a patio, a big sun umbrella, and maybe a few mini umbrellas to pop in these citrus cocktail recipes!
Pimm’s Lemon Crush cocktail pairs the botanical flavor of Pimm’s with bourbon and sweet-tart citrus syrup. Substitute maple syrup for citrus if you prefer!
The Penicillin is a Scotch Whiskey cocktail made with lemon, honey, and ginger. Find out how to make it and what earned the drink its intriguing name!
Celebrate summer cocktail season with a refreshing Amaretto Sour – a sweet, almondy citrus cocktail recipe. It takes 5 minutes to make with no odd ingredients. You’ll be sipping it poolside in no time!
The Paper Plane Cocktail is one of the easiest cocktails to make at home: no fussy syrups, no hard-to-find bitters, no fancy garnishes. Find out where it comes from and how to make it!
This sparkling limoncello cocktail is perfect for warm sunny days. It’s sharp, juicy, so refreshing and made with only 3 simple ingredients and garnished with mint leaves and freshly cut lemon slices.
Try a delicious Italian lemon sgroppino — a cold, slushy prosecco citrus cocktail recipe made with fresh lemon and vodka.
This simple, Meyer lemon old fashioned recipe is a bright and refreshing spin on the classic old fashioned cocktail with rye, bourbon, or whiskey.
The Moscow Mule is always one of summer’s hottest cocktails, year after year! Learn the classic 3-ingredient recipe that is so easy to make at home.
This Classic Margarita Recipe is light and refreshing and made right at home with just a few simple ingredients. No need for premade mixes or artificial ingredients, all it takes to make the very best margarita is fresh lime juice, agave, tequila, and orange liqueur.
A Tequila Sour is a cold and super-refreshing tequila cocktail with a creamy froth on top has just the right amount of sweet and sour. Shake it up with fresh lime juice, tequila, simple syrup and egg white!
The Mojito, a classic Cuban citrus cocktail recipe, is a refreshing mix of rum, simple syrup (or sugar), fresh lime juice, mint leaves, and bubbly club soda. Learn how to make a Mojito and enjoy this simple and delicious 5-minute cocktail all year long.
This refreshing Fresh Strawberry Mojito cocktail is bright, tangy, and delightfully sweet. You can easily double or triple the recipe to serve a crowd!
This basil gin cocktail is a great makeover of the classic Spring Feeling–a popular Green Chartreuse cocktail. This version is zesty, herbaceous, colorful, and downright delicious.
Important note: If you’re serving guests, be aware that there are some very common medications that interact with grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Make sure your guests are aware of this before you serve them these grapefruit cocktails!
This easy maple paloma cocktail combines freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, maple syrup, and aromatic tequila to create a fabulously refreshing drink!
This easy-to-make Grapefruit Champagne Cocktail is the perfect citrus cocktail recipe for every celebration. The combination of zesty grapefruit, fresh thyme, and a little bubbly is a winner!
This grapefruit mojito is easy to make, delicious, and perfect for entertaining. Serve it up as a signature cocktail at your next party! Grapefruit, fresh mint, and lime combine to make the most refreshing grapefruit mojito cocktail.
The Rosemary Brown Derby is a smooth and refreshing bourbon and grapefruit cocktail made with bourbon, honey, fresh grapefruit juice, and fresh rosemary.
Pink Grapefruit Margaritas are perfect for summer parties! You are going to love the unique sweet and spicy combination of flavors of grapefruit and spicy sriracha salt in this refreshing pink grapefruit margarita recipe.
This simple Pink Grapefruit Gin Cocktail is full of bright flavors from fresh grapefruit and rosewater. This easy with rose water is destined to be your new favorite summer drink!
This grapefruit crush vodka cocktail is a tasty and refreshing summer drink made with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, lemon, and lime juices. This aromatic citrus cocktail recipe is balanced out with sweet thyme, simple syrup, and a dash of triple sec. This tart grapefruit drink is an easy crowd pleaser that everyone will love!
The Aperol Spritz has become a ubiquitous option on cocktail menus around the world and for good reason. This bright and refreshing citrus cocktail recipe is the ultimate thirst-quencher during the sweltering summer months. Cin cin!
This orange creamsicle cocktail is an adults-only version of a classic frozen treat. It’s easy to make with freshly squeezed orange juice, gin (or vodka), and a splash of vanilla almond milk.
This delicious Turmeric Orange Spritzer was an inspired popular lunch spot in Los Angeles. In essence, this orange spritzer is a delicious, easy spritzer with the addition of a homemade turmeric syrup, which—no worries!—is super easy and can be made in advance.
Reminiscent of a creamsicle, these small batch Orange Vanilla Margaritas are made with fresh orange juice, lime juice, and vanilla bean. The recipe makes two drinks, ideal for cozy nights on the terrace. You can easily make several batches to serve a group!
If you’re looking for an easy rum drink, this orange mojito cocktail is a must-try! This fruity mojito is a sweeter twist on a classic. As a bonus, this citrus cocktail recipe comes together in minutes and is extremely refreshing!
They not only come in the form of lemon, lime, orange, and grapefruit juices, but also as citrus-flavored liquors (e.g., triple sec, Aperol, and Campari) and syrups like sour mix.
Try a delicious Italian lemon sgroppino — a cold, slushy prosecco citrus cocktail recipe made with fresh lemon and vodka.
This refreshing Fresh Strawberry Mojito cocktail is bright, tangy, and delightfully sweet. You can easily double or triple the recipe to serve a crowd!
Pink Grapefruit Margaritas are perfect for summer parties! You are going to love the unique sweet and spicy combination of flavors of grapefruit and spicy sriracha salt in this refreshing pink grapefruit margarita recipe.
This grapefruit crush vodka cocktail is a tasty and refreshing summer drink made with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, lemon, and lime juices. This aromatic citrus cocktail recipe is balanced out with sweet thyme, simple syrup, and a dash of triple sec. This tart grapefruit drink is an easy crowd pleaser that everyone will love!
This delicious Turmeric Orange Spritzer was an inspired popular lunch spot in Los Angeles. In essence, this orange spritzer is a delicious, easy spritzer with the addition of a homemade turmeric syrup, which—no worries!—is super easy and can be made in advance.
Citrus fruits are super fruits — lemons, limes, oranges, mandarins, and grapefruits, to name a few — are packed full of antioxidants, bursting with vitamins (especially vitamin C), low in calories, and high in fiber. They also work rather well with a large range of spirits, whether by using citrus juice in cocktails, adding a flavor pop with the fruits zest, or simply garnishing drinks with a slice of sunshiney goodness. The acidity in citrus fruits can work to temper any “burn” you might experience from the ethanol in the alcohol. From simple three-ingredient mixes you can make in minutes to more complex creations that you can tweak to suit your taste, we have a fab, fruity selection of the best citrus cocktails that we hope youll find a-peel-ing.
If youre partial to lemon-flavored cocktails, a lemon drop martini is a must-have in your mixology recipe book. A lemon drop martini brings a double hit of citrusy goodness, combining fresh lemon juice with orange liqueur, vodka, and simple syrup to combat the tartness of the lemon. Created by shaking the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, a lemon drop martini should be served in an elegant martini glass rimmed with sugar.
The brown derby is a sophisticated cocktail that mixes rich bourbon, tart grapefruit juice, and sweet, earthy honey. Because of the interesting mix of flavors, its a drink that needs to be well-balanced, so practice makes perfect when nailing the ideal brown derby mix. There are notable exceptions to the brown derby mix — it is possible to make the drink with whiskey if bourbon isnt to your taste.
The gimlet has an interesting historical provenance; its thought to be the invention of British sailors. In the 18th century, sailors would spend months at sea which put them at risk of scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C found in fresh fruit and vegetables which were not readily available aboard ships. Sailors were issued doses of lime juice to keep scurvy at bay, to make this more palatable they mixed the juice with gin, creating what we now call the gimlet.
Alternatively, if youre looking for more of an alcohol hit, consider adding a dash of an orange spirit such as Gran Marnier, Cointreau, or Triple Sec. The kind of wine you opt for is down to your taste — and budget. Champagne is the top-drawer choice, but a more affordable cava is perfectly doable.
How to Get 8x as Much Juice From One Citrus?
FAQ
What is citrus drink?
What soft drinks contain citric acid?
What does citrus mean in a cocktail?
What is citric in a cocktail?
What is a citrus cocktail?
They not only come in the form of lemon, lime, orange, and grapefruit juices, but also as citrus-flavored liquors (e.g., triple sec, Aperol, and Campari) and syrups like sour mix. Citrus cocktails can be sweet, but the fruits’ tart taste is often used to balance out drinks that use sweeteners or to accent the flavors of liquors.
Is cranberry juice a citrus juice?
Natural cranberry juice is not citrus juice, cranberries are not citrus fruits. However, like citrus fruits, cranberries are also excellent sources of antioxidants that provide many health benefits.
What is considered a citrus fruit?
Fruit is considered to be a citrus fruit if it is produced from a flowering plant in the citrus family, Rutaceae. There are many different types of citrus fruit. To be considered a citrus fruit, the fruit must have certain characteristic features, including pulpy flesh that is surrounded by a segmented, leathery rind.
What are the different types of citrus?
Oranges are one of the most well-known types of citrus, and are prized for their juicy flesh and sweet-tart flavor. There are many different varieties of oranges, including navel, Valencia, and blood oranges. Lemons are tart, acidic fruits that are often used for their juice in cooking and baking, and are also often used in drinks and cocktails.