Aldi Spring Summer Cocktails...

Aldi has created a lovely range of Spring/Summer cocktails and kindly got in touch to see If I would like to have a go at making some. Yummy, how nice!

Spring is the air and it is time to start planning some tasty cocktails for the lighter evenings on the garden with friends and BBQ weather.

I love cocktails. Especially tasty ones that have alcohol and fruit inside them.

I like the sound of all of them and The Bellucci Job sounded like it would be my favourite one.

Vodka, Amaretto, strawberries, cranberry juice and juice lemons. How yummy!? 

The Bellucci Job

Ingredients:

• 25ml Tamova Vodka
• 25ml Bellucci Amaretto
• 3 strawberries
• 1 teaspoon of white sugar
• 75ml cranberry juice
• 2 lemon wedges
• Soda water to top

Methodology :

1. Cut the strawberries into quarters, add to the cocktail shaker and sprinkle with white sugar.
2. Using the back of a wooden spoon muddle or press down on the strawberries.
3. Add the remaining ingredients (except the soda water) and shake hard over ice.
4. Using a tea strainer fine strain the liquid into a tall ice-filled glass.
5.  Top with soda water.

Decoration / to serve:

• Garnish with a large slice of lemon and place half a strawberry on the glass rim to decorate. 
• Serve with two straws.

Tasting notes:

• Aldi’s Bellucci Amaretto provides an appetising sweet undertone of exotic marzipan to The Bellucci Job, giving balance to the sweetness of the strawberries and the tartness from the cranberry juice. 
•  The mix of sweet and sour flavours allows this drink to cater to all palates.

And here is the rest of the new recipes if you fancy having ago at making some?

Prosecco Thyme

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle Valdobbiadene Prosecco Spumante DOCG
• 2 large ripe plums
• ½ cup of white sugar
• ½ cup hot water
• 4 springs of fresh thyme
• 25ml fresh lemon juice

Methodology :

1. Cut the plums into quarters and discard the stones.
2. Muddle the plums in a cocktail shaker.
3. To make thyme syrup add dissolve the white sugar in the hot water. Once dissolved add the thyme sprigs. Allow the mix to cool, and then strain before storing in the fridge until needed.
4. Add 25ml of thyme syrup and ice to the cocktail shaker.
5. Add the remaining lemon juice and shake hard.
6. Strain into a rocks glass filled with cubed ice and top with Prosecco

Decoration / to serve:

• Cut a fresh plum into wedges and place this into the glass. Strip a few leaves of fresh thyme and scatter over the drink.

Tasting notes:

• Prosecco Thyme is the perfect cocktail for a celebration, whether you’re toasting the Queen’s 90th birthday or just celebrating the first signs of spring. The cocktail is full of fresh seasonal flavours and zing.

Blackberry Smash

Ingredients:

• 50 ml Oliver Cromwell London Dry Gin
• ½ a cup of white sugar
• ½ a cup hot water
• 10-12 blackberries
• 25ml fresh lemon juice
• 6 mint leaves
• Sparkling water to top

Methodology :

1. Fill a tall glass and a cocktail shaker with cubed ice.
2. To make blackberry syrup dissolve the white sugar in the hot water. Once dissolved add in 10/12 blackberries and allow to cool down to room temperature before straining and chilling in the fridge.
3. Add 25ml of blackberry syrup and all ingredients (except the sparkling water) to the cocktail shaker.
4. Shake hard for ten seconds and then strain through a tea strainer into the ice-filled tall glass.
5. Slowly top with sparkling water

Decoration / to serve:

• Garnish with a lemon wedge, blackberry and large mint sprig. Finely dust with castor sugar to give a frosted look.

Tasting notes:
Delicious fresh berries and fresh lemon juice combine with the crisp taste of gin to make this cocktail the perfect drink for a summer afternoon. With its uplifting citrus and berry notes, Blackberry Smash is an excellent drink to pair with a summer picnic or a cocktail you can enjoy in the garden.

White Sangria

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle of The Exquisite Collection Limestone Coast Chardonnay
• Philippe Michel Crémant du Jura to top
• 1 green apple
• 1 red apple
• 15 red grapes
• 1 stone fruit destoned and quartered
• 3 strawberries halved
• 1 punnet of raspberries
• Soda water to top

Methodology:

1. Add all the fruit to a large jug or pitcher and lightly muddle using the back of a wooden spoon.
2. Pour over The Exquisite Collection Limestone Coast Chardonnay and stir to combine with the fruit. Refrigerate for 1 hour or ideally overnight.
3. Take the cold mixture from the fridge pour into a wine glass and add cubed ice.
4. Top with Philippe Michel Crémant du Jura or soda water for a lighter drink

Decoration / to serve:

• Garnish with fresh mint springs or fresh basil leaves for a more Mediterranean feel.

Tasting notes:

• This simple yet tasty cocktail can be made well ahead of time and served on the day. With Aldi’s White Sangria you can use a range of fruit, allowing you to have fun coming up with different taste combinations, and can easily scale it up to share with large parties.

Grilled Peach Julep

Ingredients:

• 50 ml Highland Black 8 Year Old Whisky
• 6-8 mint leaves
• 15ml honey
• 1 peach
• 10ml fresh lemon juice

Methodology:

1. Add the mint to the cocktail shaker and cover with the Highland Black 8 Year Old Whisky. Lightly muddle using a wooden spoon.
2. Add the honey to the cocktail shaker and stir until dissolved.
3. To make peach puree cut 1 peach in half and de-stone. Lightly grill the two halves until they begin to caramelise. Add to a blender until smooth and place in the fried to chill.
4. Add 25ml of peach puree and all the remaining ingredients and stir to ensure all the flavours are combined.
5. Pour into an ice-filled tall glass

Decoration / to serve:

• Serve with a large mint sprig.

Tasting notes

• The Grilled Peach Julep is a great drink to have after a Sunday roast lamb. The caramelised homemade peach puree adds another depth of flavour to the smoky Whisky notes. The mint cuts through with a crisp and light refreshing finish.

I was sent some sample to make up one of the recipes. All thoughts are my own. I was not paid for this post. Thanks for supporting the brands that I work with.