Do you love it when it rains in the summer? I love the respite from the heat, the sound of the rain beating down on the windows, and that little bit of coziness in an otherwise decidedly un-cozy season. I like to curl up in an armchair with a good drink in hand and just dream away the afternoon.
These little summer session old fashioneds are the perfect drink to curl up with. First off, they’re a session (a riff off of session beers; lower alcohol beers), which in theory, allow you to drink more while getting less drunk. In that sense, they’re not technically old fashioneds, but they have a couple of similarities: bourbon, simple syrup, and bitters.
That’s where the similarities end. I added in some thyme for herbaceousness, as well as some citrus fruit for a bit of a summer punch. Then I threw everything into Bonne O’s Home Carbonation system to bubble it all up. Bubbles make all drinks better and this is extra fun because all of the items go straight into the bottle for the ultimate infusion of flavor.
I know summer is winding down, but I hope you guys are getting your drink on anyway!
GIVEAWAY: I paired up with Bonne O to give away a Home Carbonation System so you can get creative and make your own fizzy drinks at home.
ENTER: To enter, leave a comment below with your best summertime drinks memory. I want to hear ALL the details! I’ll randomly choose a winner and contact them by email. Open to Canadian and US Residents only. (Sorry international friends.) Contest ends September 7th at 12AM PST. Good Luck!
Update: Congrats Katelyn, you’ve won yourself a Bonne O! Check your inbox for the details!
Thyme Simple Syrup Recipe
makes about 1/2 cup of syrup
prep time: 5 minutes
active time: 15 minutes
total time: 20 minutes
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4-5 springs fresh thyme
Add the water and sugar to a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat then remove from the heat. Add the thyme springs and let steep for 15 minutes. The longer you let it steep, the more intense it will be.
Summer Session Old Fashioned Recipe
serves 3-4
prep time: 5 minutes
active time: 5 minutes
total time: 10 minutes
- 1 orange
- 1 grapefruit
- 1/2 cup bourbon
- 6-7 dashes angostura bitters
- 1 batch thyme simple syrup (see above recipe)
- water, or sparkling water to top
- orange twists, to garnish
- thyme springs, to garnish
Section the orange and grapefruit and cut into bite-sized chunks.
For Bonne O Home Carbonation System: Place the fruit and bourbon in the bottle. Shake in the bitters and top to the rim with ice-cold water. Place the thyme syrup in the flavor chamber and activate the machine to carbonate. Pour over ice and enjoy with orange twists and thyme!
In a pitcher: combine the fruit, bourbon, bitters, and thyme simple syrup. Top with 1 1/2 – 2 cups sparkling water. Pour over ice and enjoy with orange twists and thyme!
My favorite memory would be drinking Moscow Mules with infused vodka at my BF’s birthday party. I grilled pizza and made drinks and there were totally peeps swimming with food floaties (donut! ice cream sandwich!)
I keep thinking back at the presecco I had in Vinci, Italy a few years ago. Paired with pizza and a stunning sunset…
Many of my summertime drink memories are a bit hazy for obvious reasons but one that stands out would be from when I was in college. We were super poor (like you do when you’re in college) and so we started a tradition of “liquor in a bucket” one summer. This is exactly what it sounds like – all the little bits of liquor you have lying around into one bucket – Mad dog, Hawkeye vodka, Natty ice, really whatever – the bucket was all inclusive.
A bunch of us friends would get together, drink out of the bucket and debauchery would ensue. The now totally responsible adult me cringes at the thought of downing such a weird mix of cheap liquor but the young and wild me wouldn’t let a hangover from hell stop me from enjoying a summer evening with my friends. Obviously if I were to be randomly selected to win the giveaway I would use it only for good – classing up already amazing cocktails but it in recalling this story I would have to smile each time I reach for it remembering my liquor in a bucket days. Cheers!
My favorite drink memory is the first family vacation on Ocean Isle I could drink at — cool vodka, seltzer, and lime while looking out over the ocean? Love it.
Sangria on the patio with friends!
This looks yummy! My favorite summertime drink memory is back in my hometown of Chicago. Moody’s Pub has the absolute best atmosphere for summertime drinking with a large outdoor patio fitted with picnic tables, strings of lights, and lots of luscious trees forming a canopy over everyone. And they have the best summertime drink – pitchers of perfect sangria, full of floating fresh fruit and earthy red wine, ready to be poured into glasses all around the table. Nothing reminds me of summer more than pitchers of chilled red wine sangria!
When my boyfriend and I had just gotten together, we sat out on his deck one night, with a beautiful view of downtown Vancouver, drinking bourbon sours and listening to albums we both loved. He’d pick one, then I would. And we sat up talking til the sun came up.
Sounds overly romantic and pretty cheesy, but it was a beautiful start to a pretty fantastic journey that we’re on.
My best summertime drink stems for summer vacations at Grandma’s. She would make the best mint watermelon spritzer with the classic sliced lemon on the rim. We’d sit out on the porch admiring the freshly gardened hydrangeas and visiting with neighbors. I definately plan on recreating this drink…just as soon as she gives up the recipe.
Finding a random jazz bar in Chicago on a super hot day and drinking a bunch of mojitos to cool off! Mojitos always remind me of jazz and sweaty summer days!
The best summertime drink was probably the frozen watermelon slushie my dad made (non-alcoholic since I was 8). He let the kiddos loose on a watermelon patch and we chose the LARGEST watermelon there. In my 8 year old mind that watermelon was an absolute beast of epic proportions – it even got it’s own car seat! We took that sucker home and froze it for a potluck. The next day my dad cut a hole out, stuck a bent wire on a power drill, and went to town. The best moment was when he poured out the liquid juice inside and it sloshed out like the guts of a bug. I was a weird kiddo, but my dad adds a splash of gin into my watermelon slushies now.