11 Delicious Cocktails to Try on Memorial Day Weekend

Make a big batch of this Sangria to enjoy all afternoon. Five kinds of booze—absinthe, cachaça, Spanish brandy, orange liqueur and red wine—add a punch to fresh seasonal fruit. Try it out with different fruits to find your favorite combination to mix all summer.

Get the recipe.

This cocktail is like a boozy, grown-up version of your favorite childhood slushies. Frozen cherries, mint and homemade lime simple syrup are blended with ice and rum until smooth, then garnished with fresh cherries and lime slices. You can even leave out the rum in one batch so the kiddos have something to drink too.

Get the recipe.

This summery take on a traditional Pisco Sour has all the flavors you know and love in the cocktail (pisco, lime juice and egg white) and mixes in a strawberry-rose syrup for a fruity, beautiful pink cocktail that’s just begging to be served at summer parties.

Get the recipe.

Why have just one cocktail when you can have two at the same time? This recipe combines frozen Margaritas with frozen Sangria for one irresistibly frosty treat. Double (or even triple!) the recipe so you can be sure you have enough for all of your guests.

Get the recipe.

Beat the heat and rehydrate while getting your booze on with this spiked lemonade. VEEV spirit, ginger, lemon juice and agave get a thirst-quenching lift from coconut water, and it’s all shaken and served over ice for a refreshing cocktail that will work on the beach or in the backyard.

Get the recipe.

A bubbly punch is always a good choice for Memorial Day, and this one is especially perfect because it is light and refreshing and puts bountiful summer produce to good use. Mix frozen raspberries, peach nectar and prosecco in a large pitcher, and let your guests go to town.

Get the recipe.

This pretty little lady, a variation on the White Lady, packs a powerful punch. It combines gin, crème de violette, blue curaçao, fresh lemon juice and orange flower water for a coupe that’s beautiful as is and even more gorgeous when topped with an edible flower.

Get the recipe.

Save some watermelon from your picnic spread to work into this Fizz. Gin, fresh watermelon juice and lime are deliciously sweet on their own, but when topped with a few ounces of ginger ale, the whole cocktail takes on a bubbly and invigorating taste. Garnish with fresh mint or basil, and get ready to say “ahhh.”

Get the recipe.

A fresh celery and sugar snap pea syrup—don’t worry, it’s easy to make at home—serves as the brightening element in this tequila Highball. Sherry and lemon juice add additional layers of flavor and enhance the refreshment factor, while a glug of club soda adds bubbles and lightens everything up.

Get the recipe.

This classic cocktail is super refreshing and simple to make, so it’s ideal for summer parties. Mix vodka or gin with grapefruit juice, then serve in salt-rimmed glasses. To really ease your party-planning anxiety, set up a DIY station with bottles of vodka and gin, grapefruit juice, salt and glasses so guests can make their own.

Get the recipe.