4 after-dinner drinks for every summer get-together

Summer is in full swing and autumn is slowly creeping towards us, but it’s not quite time to say goodbye to warm weather barbecues and dinner parties just yet. Few things can beat get-togethers with family and friends in the sun, though there are quite a few things to think about as a host, from what food to cook to which tunes make your party playlist. 

Another consideration is what booze to serve, including the all-important after-dinner drink. Instead of opting for a boring bottle of white, however, try serving your guests one of these after-dinner cocktails to truly cleanse their palate and help you see out summer in style.

1. Sgroppino

Italy isn’t as renowned for its cocktails as its food and wine, but perhaps it should be, particularly if its digestivos (after-dinner drinks) are anything to go by.

King of the digestivos is the Sgroppino — as experts in all things Italian cuisine Pasta Evangelists note: “When it comes to after-dinner drinks, Italians often reach for a sgroppino — a palate-cleansing combination of lemon sorbet, vodka and prosecco.” The cocktail literally translates to “untie”, meaning to untie your stomach after food, making it the perfect post-food pick-up.

Ingredients

• 2 tsp lemon sorbet
• 1 tsp vodka
• Prosecco

Method

Step 1: Put the lemon sorbet into a champagne glass.

Step 2: Pour over the vodka, before topping with prosecco and serving.

2. After Supper 

The aptly named After Supper is another three-ingredient cocktail, this time featuring apricot brandy mixed with orange liqueur and fresh lemon juice. The result? A light, fruity cocktail that’s ideal for sipping as the sun sets.  

The earliest records of the cocktail can be found in Harry Craddock’s legendary ‘The Savoy Cocktail Book’ which was first published in 1930. The fact it was included in the book is a testament to the cocktail’s legend and endurance, so why not see what all the hype is about yourself?

Ingredients

• 30ml orange liqueur 
• 30ml apricot brandy
• 15ml lemon juice

Method

Step 1: Shake all the ingredients with ice.

Step 2: Fine strain them into a chilled glass and enjoy.

3. Grasshopper

Another classic after-dinner cocktail is the Grasshopper, a sweet, dessert-like mint-flavoured tipple. Named because of its green colour (thanks to being partly made up of green crème de menthe), the drink is believed to have been created in the early 1900s by Tujague’s, a Creole restaurant in New Orleans. 

After the end of the Prohibition in 1933, the Grasshopper quickly became popular across the Southern US, and is now enjoyed the world over.

Ingredients

• 30ml green crème de menthe
• 30ml white crème de cacao
• 60ml heavy cream

Method

Step 1: Mix the green crème de menthe, white crème de cacao and heavy cream together into a shaker with ice, before shaking vigorously until chilled.

Step 2: Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and serve.

4. Gin Basil Smash

Last but not least is the brilliantly named Gin Basil Smash. Consisting of gin, basil leaves, simple syrup and lemon juice, the cocktail was invented by Joerg Meyer, the founder and owner of the Le Lion bar in Hamburg. 

It is a twist on Dale DeGroff’s Whiskey Smash, a mix of bourbon, simple syrup, lemon juice and muddled mint. Gin Basil Smash makes for a refreshing, simple-to-make tipple that’s perfect for summer. 

Ingredients

• 60ml gin
• 20ml fresh lemon juice
• 20ml simple syrup
• 10-12 basil leaves

Method

Step 1: Mix the basil leaves with the lemon juice in a cocktail shaker

Step 2: Add the gin and simple syrup, then fill three-quarters of the cocktail shaker with ice.

Step 3: Shake until chilled, before fine straining the liquid into a rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with basil leaves and enjoy.