JULY 4 GIN PUNCH RECIPE

It's Punch + Pitcher week on The Drop.
Every day, we'll share a recipe for a drink to make for a crowd this July 4 weekend.

This is a no-fail punch — a delicious crowd-pleaser that's incredible easy to make today and all summer long. Happy 4th! And don't forget that all bottles are $17.76 each through the end of the day at Cardinal Spirits. 

JULY 4 GIN PUNCH

1 part Cardinal Spirits Standard Dry Gin
1 part soda water
1 part cranberry-raspberry juice
Raspberries, for garnish

Chill all ingredients before serving. Pour Standard Dry Gin, tonic water and berry juice into a punch bowl or pitcher. Float raspberries in bowl or use as garnish. 

rosé can you see punch recipe

It's Punch + Pitcher week on The Drop.
Every day, we'll share a recipe for a drink to make for a crowd this July 4 weekend.

This little beauty pairs rosé with our American Gin, which has floral and citrus notes. Those two are delicious on their own, but then you add a little blackberry jam, and, whoa. This is the kind of thing you could sip all day long. 

Using jam in cocktails is a sneaky way to mimic simple syrup without any of the work. 

As far as rosé goes, you can use either still or sparkling. Can we make a suggestion? Right now, we're loving Chambourcin Rosé from Olivery Winery in Bloomington. Adjust the soda water depending on the type of rosé — if you're using still, add soda water, and if you're using sparkling, you can go easy on the soda water or omit all together.

rosé, can you see

Serves 6

3 tablespoons blackberry jam
3 ounces Cardinal Spirits American Gin
24 ounces rosé, chilled (3 cups)
Soda water, optional
Blackberries, for garnish

1. Combine jam and gin in a pitcher, and stir until jam dissolves. Strain off seeds if desired.
2. Add chilled rosé; stir.
3. Add soda water, if desired, and garnish with blackberries.
    

BLOOD ORANGE PUNCH RECIPE

It's Punch + Pitcher week on The Drop.
Every day, we'll share a recipe for a drink to make for a crowd this July 4 weekend.

Today's cocktail for a crowd comes from Cardinal bartender Chris Resnick, who combines vodka with blood orange and lemon juices for an immensely refreshing punch that goes a long way. A splash of vanilla extract is a surprising twist that rounds everything out — don't skip it! — and soda water keeps things light and bubbly.

Fresh-squeezed juices are so worth it, but if you can't find blood oranges for this recipe, substitute bottled blood orange juice or soda. Keep in mind that blood orange soda is carbonated and sweetened. If you're using it, omit the simple syrup and go lighter on the soda water. Fresh grapefruit juice would also work in place of the blood oranges.

BLOOD ORANGE PUNCH

Serves 10-20

1 bottle Cardinal Spirits vodka
18 ounces fresh blood orange juice (about 9 oranges)
13.5 ounces fresh lemon juice (about 9 lemons)
9 ounces simple syrup
1/4 ounce vanilla extract
1 bottle soda water, more or less to taste
Citrus wheels, for garnish

1. Combine vodka, citrus juices, simply syrup and vanilla in a punch bowl and stir. 
2. Add ice and soda water to taste.

Summer of Love punch recipe

It's Punch + Pitcher week on The Drop.
Every day, we'll share a recipe for a drink to make for a crowd this July 4 weekend.

Our first recipe for Punch + Pitcher Week comes from Cardinal bartender Andrew Wind, who created an incredible punch around Flora, our newest liqueur. Flora is part of our Songbird series of low-proof spirits that are made with botanicals — Flora has hibiscus, elderflower, jasmine and fresh raspberries.

Andrew's punch combines Flora with fresh citrus juices and a little fizz for the perfect daytime drink. We'll timestamp this one at about 1:15pm Saturday. And, can we talk about how pretty it is? A beautiful blush hue, dressed up with some nasturtiums from the garden.  

SUMMER OF LOVE PUNCH

Serves 4

9 ounces Cardinal Spirits Flora liqueur
6 ounces fresh orange juice (about 2.5 oranges)
3 ounces fresh grapefruit juice (about 1/2 of a grapefruit)
6 dashes Angostura bitters
4 ounces club soda
Leftover citrus, for garnish
Edible flowers like nasturtium or orchids, for garnish

1. Combine Flora, orange juice, grapefruit juice and bitters in a pitcher with ice. Stir for 15 seconds.
2. Strain off ice, then top with 4 ounces club soda.
3. Garnish with citrus and edible flowers.