Summer Strawberry Cocktail (with Lemon and Prosecco)
What’s better than an icy cold cocktail on a hot summer day? Basically nothing.
If you are anything like me, summer wakes up your desire for a cocktail on the porch. This past weekend was the unofficial start of summer and we made the most of it by having my family-in-law over for some snacking and sipping.
Admittedly, prosecco isn’t the first thing I grab for when cocktail hour rolls around. I typically consider it a vehicle for a splash of orange juice when I want an excuse to indulge before noon on a Sunday. What? I KNOW it’s not just me.
I typically write more about decorating and such, but I do develop the occasional smoothie recipe or side dish. I thought it would be fun to play around with creating a refreshing summer cocktail recipe. My guests were more than willing to join in for some taste testing 
The Taste Test
We had an organic, extra dry Prosecco and a sparkling rosé to play around with. First up was the Prosecco… yes, we took some silly game show pictures. We like to have fun around here.
Surprisingly — to me at least being a lukewarm prosecco person — the straight organic extra dry was delicious! It had a lot more depth than most proseccos I’ve tried and I loved that it didn’t have any cloying sweetness (hence, extra dry).
Then we tried it with orange juice for the classic mimosa. Again, very good, but I actually preferred it straight. I think the guests were split 50/50 on straight versus mimosa-ed.
Next up was the sparkling rosé. I was very excited for this one. A “rosé all day” gal through and through, I was pretty sure this one would be my jam. And it soooo was. Very crisp, nicely fruity. Perfect summer sipping.
However… I was itching to get a little creative. Strawberry season is short and deliciously sweet so that was a natural place to start. I grabbed local strawberries from a farm down the road (#countrylife) and started chopping.
Creating the Summer Cocktail: Recipe Below
To really amp up the strawberry goodness I doused them in some simple syrup and let them sit for a bit. Next, I rummaged around in my fridge to find a little something to add more life to the cocktail. Sparkling Italian lemonade!
A generous scoop of the sugared strawberries and a glug of the lemonade went into the glass. I topped that with the sparkling rosé and… meh. Just ok. It was missing something. Dimension I guess? I started to worry I shouldn’t have messed with something that was perfect to start with.
Too late to turn back I grabbed a random can of coconut seltzer, added a splash of that and crushed in a sprig of mint. The verdict? DELISH. Slightly sweet, slightly tart, slightly tropical, and super refreshing. So much so that Matt stole my test glass, ha.
All in all, I definitely changed my mind about prosecco. Summer entertaining is here and in gear so I plan to keep a few bottles of this stuff in my fridge for impromptu get-togethers and home movie nights with the husband. I broke down the recipe here for you to try for yourself. Cheers!
Thank you to Mionetto for making such yummy wine and to my brother- and sister-in-law for being such adorable spokesmodels
Strawberry Lemon Rosecco
Ingredients
- 1 scant cup of strawberries
- Simple syrup
- 1 can of sparkling lemonade
- 1 can of coconut flavored seltzer
- 1 750 ml bottle of Mionetto Rosé
- Fresh mint, optional
Instructions
By the glass
- Coarsely chop the strawberries and add 1 tablespoon of simple syrup and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, divide the lemonade and seltzer evenly among 4 glasses.
- Divide the strawberries evenly between the glasses.
- Add ice if desired.
- Top with rosé.
- Taste and add more simple syrup as desired.
- Top with a lightly crushed sprig of mint and enjoy!
By the pitcher
- Dump all the ingredients in the pitcher and move on with your life 🙂
