Summer…is almost over? You know it’s sadly true when Labor Day creeps up around the corner. Labor Day closes out the season, but gathers in friends and family. Here are our top Labor Day cocktails that will keep you rejoicing all the way through the end of the year.
Rusty Nail
I know there are Scotch drinkers out there. I know you guys, creepin’ round fireplaces, wearing your cable knit sweaters, reading your … books. I get it. I’m on to you. I see you in your banks and offices, playing your golf. Well, have I got a cocktail for you. Stay with me, it’s a scotch liqueur nestled inside of … scotch. Stand up and be counted, there are a million of you out there. Have a scotch cocktail and try something besides all that scotch. Just kidding. You’ll love this classic.
Here we go –
- 1 ½ oz Scotch
- ¾ oz Drambuie
Pour over rocks in an old-fashioned glass.
I wanted one of these ever since I saw Michael and Fredo Corleone knocking them back in Havana in The Godfather, part II. I look at this one as a fun drink with cinematic history. It’s a pretty little Cuban cocktail that you can’t drink many of, the sweet will back up on you, but, with a buddy or another couple, in a shady spot on a summer’s day, why the hell not?
Here we go –
- 2 oz Light or White Rum
- ½ oz Banana liquor
- ½ oz lime juice
- ½ small banana, cut into pieces
- ½ cup crushed ice
Blend it all up in a blender ‘til its smooth, serve in champagne or cocktail glass then take your brother out fishing in the lake behind your house.
Santa Cruz Rum Daisy
You can make a Daisy with almost any liquor. This is a pretty basic & simple cocktail to make, yet with the addition of summer fruit, she sings. A tall glass and lots of ice add up to a great chugger.
Here we go –
- Crushed ice
- ½ oz simple syrup
- ½ oz Curacao
- ½ to ¾ oz lemon juice
- 3 oz Rum
Shake above ingredients with ice in shaker till ice cold. Pour everything, including ice, into a tall glass or hurricane. Float summer fruit – melon balls, peach slices or blueberries – in the glass and top with club soda.
Papa Doble
Without a doubt, this Hemingway favorite jumped right to the top of this summer’s drink list. I had my first at a great little bar on a hot June day, went home and whipped up a few more. I don’t know if it’s the grapefruit or the maraschino, but something in this drink refreshes in a great and unique way. I prefer this one on the rocks but plenty like it as an ice-blended drink more.
Here we go –
- 2 oz Silver or White Rum
- 1 oz lime juice
- ½ oz grapefruit juice
- ¼ to 1/3 oz (to taste) Maraschino liqueur
Mix ingredients with ice and pour it all into a tall glass or blend in a blender with ½ cup of ice and pour into a medium glass. Lime wheel as garnish for either.