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!
the best summertime drink memories has to be at the friends annual cabin getaway. we hang out all weekend long, sipping drinks and floating in the lake. My drink of choice one year was a simple lime Margarita. Now I usually don’t drink much, usually a drink and a water but that day was hot and humid and let’s just say i over enjoyed the tequila and i ended up laying on the couch very emotional as my friends told me how much they love me. They truly do. my friend was there to hold back my hair and giving me loads of water to help me feel better for the next day of doing the same thing.
This recipe looks fantastic! wish I had it for this years cabin getaway! for sure have to have it next year! or this labor day weekend…
Looks good! This summer I discovered a delicious cocktail at a new bar that opened near my apartment in Arlington, VA. The drink was called the Poloma Radler. It was made with grapefruit beer and tequila, plus a smattering of several other things including an orange garnish. It was soooo good. Very refreshing. I went back about a week later and ordered it again. This time the bartender gave me the drink, but with a shot of tequila on the side. She said that due to a new law, she couldn’t mix beer and liquor in one drink. Who knew? I promptly spilled half the tequila shot trying to get it into the glass. I need to work on my pour…
one of my favorite summer drink experiences occured this past weekend. I invited a bunch of newly married friends over as the husbands had mentioned they wanted to learn how to brew beer. I figured if the wives could hang out, we could do a bbq and everyone would enjoy. I shared some of the beers I had just picked up on pilgrimage to vermont, and we hit our brewing numbers perfectly. I would love to use the Bonne O to carbonate small amounts of fermented beer to allow me to test small flavor additions without adding anything to the entire batch.
These look delicious :)
My favorite summertime drinks memory is my dad making the best homemade sangria for dinner parties, with lots of oranges, lemon, apples and other fruits. My other favorite drinks memory isn’t from summer (or alcoholic), but when we were living in Jordan, my dad would make freshly pressed pomegranate juice from the pomegranates in our garden. It’s the most delicious drink I’ve ever had.
My favorite summertime drinks memory is my dad making homemade sangria for dinner parties with lots of fresh fruit–oranges, lemons, apples…my other favorite drinks memory isn’t from summer (it’s not alcoholic either), but when we were living in Jordan, my dad would make freshly squeezed juice from the pomegranates that grew in abundance in our garden. That pure, sweet juice is still the best drink I’ve ever had.
My favourite summertime cocktail memory actually involved bourbon as well, much like your fantastic twist on an old-fashioned (can’t wait to try it). It was a hazy hot summer evening, perfect weather to sit on the deck with some friends, with a pitcher of bourbon-spiked lemonade (made with bourbon, lemonade, tonic water for a bit of fizziness, all infused with some mint from my rooftop garden). Summer at it’s best!
The past two summers, shrubs have been my go to summer drink. I have made them wtih blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, cherries, watermelon, and peaches. If available, I throw in whatever fresh herbs are in the house. Most often a near 1 to 1 to 1 ratio of mashed fruit, sugar and apple cider vinegar, they are refreshing mixed with sparkling water and occationally some gin or bourbon.
Favourite Summer memory: Having a ‘sangria showdown’ and a bunch of friends would whip up their best sangrias where its brought to the bbq get together. Of course in the end, everyone wins.
I’ve had some pretty darn wonderful drinks in my time (the mead we had at a solstice party this year was divine), the best memories may go with the good ol’ “bug juice” at camp!
This summer, I had a pretty great time cooling down with drinking vinegar and whiskey drinks!