10 Perfect Poolside Cocktails

On June 30 at 8 p.m. EDT, an extra second will be added to the clock to account for a discrepancy between Earth’s rotation and the atomic clock. We’ll take every additional second of summer that we can get, right?

To help toast this extra second of summer, here are 10 tropical concoctions from top mixologists — perfect for summer cookouts, pool days and beach trips.

1. Cantaloupe Martini

Eddie Garcia, jade bar at Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain – Paradise Valley, Ariz.

Ingredients

1.5 oz. Skyy Citron Vodka

2 oz. watermelon liqueur

Splash orange juice

Splash fresh lime juice

Cantaloupe balls for garnish

Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Shake and strain into chilled martini cocktail glass. Garnish with cantaloupe balls.

2. Umstead Mai-Tai

The Umstead Hotel and Spa – Cary, N.C.

Ingredients

1 oz. Pineapple juice

1 oz. Orgeat cream

1 oz. Malibu rum

1 oz. 10 Cane

.5 oz. Cointreau

.5 oz. Lime juice

Small batch grenadine floater

Fill cocktail shaker with ice and add pineapple juice, orgeat cream, Cointreau, lime juice and rum. Cover and shake until very cold. Short shake and pour into rocks glass. Float grenadine in corner of glass and top with ice.  Garnish with pineapple wedge, orange slice, pineapple wedges, lemongrass, and cherry.

3. The Perfect Mojito

David Conley, Palm Beach Marriott Singer Island Beach Resort & Spa

Ingredients

1.5 oz. White Rum

.5 oz. simple syrup

Juice of 1/2 lime

6 mint leaves with a sprig for garnish

Splash of soda water

Slap the mint, and add all ingredients except for the soda water into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Only shake a couple of times. Instead of floating the club soda, pour the drink into the glass on top of the soda water, allowing it to evenly filter throughout the drink.

4. Planter’s Punch

The Newes from America Pub at Kelley House – Martha’s Vineyard, MA.

Ingredients

1.5 oz. light rum

1 oz. dark rum

1 oz. pineapple juice

1 oz. orange juice

.5 oz. grenadine

Dark rum floater

Shake all the ingredients together (minus the dark rum floater) with ice. Strain into a large glass with fresh ice and top with a dark rum floater, a cherry, and an orange slice.

5. Lighthouse Lemonade

Greg Fournier, Harbor View Hotel – Martha’s Vineyard, Mass.

Ingredients

1.5 oz. Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka

.5 oz. St. Germain Elderflower Liquor

.5 oz. house-made sour mix

Club soda

Mix together the vodka, elderflower liquor, and sour mix. Serve over ice and top with club soda and garnish with mint and lemon slice.

6. Farmer’s Market

Zachary Blair, Whiteface Lodge – Lake Placid, N.Y.

Ingredients

2.5 ounces of 44 nectarine potato vodka

2 ounces of homemade watermelon basil juice

.5 ounce of Cynar artichoke bitters

Shake in a cocktail shaker with ice and serve straight up. Garnish with salted lemon and watermelon rind.

7. Summer on the Rocks

Travis London, celebrity chef and founder of Healthy Chic Eats:

Ingredients

2 oz. Seagrams Escapes Classic Lime Margarita

1 oz. Grapefruit-infused Tequila

.5 oz. simple syrup

Handful of Blueberries

Juice of 1/2 a lime

Club Soda

Lime slice for garnish

Muddle berries with lime margarita, tequila, lime juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker. Add ice, and shake and strain into glass. Top with club soda. Garnish with lime slice.

8. Glad Rags

Taylor Hall, Fort Lauderdale Marriott Pompano Beach Resort & Spa

Ingredients

1.5 oz. Titos vodka

.5 oz. freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

.5 oz. freshly squeezed lime juice

.5 oz. St. Germaine liquor

1 rosemary sprig

Muddle rosemary with juices in a shaker glass, and then add vodka and top with ice. Shake and double strain over fresh ice in a highball glass. Top with a rosemary sprig.

9. 1000 Islands Iced Tea

Sabrina Starr, 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel – Clayton, N.Y.

Ingredients

.5 oz. Clayton Distillery Vodka

.5 oz. Clayton Distillery Gin

.5 oz. Clayton Distillery Bourbon

.5 oz. Clayton Distillery Peach Whiskey

.5 oz. Clayton Distillery Lemonade Moonshine

4 oz. Raspberry iced tea

Splash pink lemonade

Add liquor and iced tea to cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and pour. Top with a splash of pink lemonade.

10. Red’s Good Time

Owen Joseph, Sea Crest Beach Hotel – Falmouth, Mass.

Ingredients

1.5 oz. Absolut Citron

.75 oz. guava puree

Splash of Sprite

Splash of club soda

Mint, to taste

Pour ingredients over ice in a 10-oz. highball glass. Stir and top off with Sprite and club soda. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

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