Summer’s Sweet Cocktails: Are Fruity Drinks India’s Coolest Seasonal Picks?
In tropical mixology craft, summer heralds the ripening of lots of different fruits which are available in abundance as the temperatures rise. And Indian climes in summer are all about this warm weather that the season brings. Fruit platters and fruit salads are found across scores of streetside stalls in this weather, as fresh, bright and colourful produce is harvested in this period.
It is absolutely no surprise then that these fruity ingredients have announced themselves at the threshold of mixology craft too, and bartenders and cocktail makers have begun to widely experiment with a number of local summer fruits to introduce their sweet, fresh, citrusy, crispy and fleshy elements into myriad cocktails. From mango mojitos to watermelon spritzers, the list of fruit-forward summer cocktails keeps growing as they become more and more popular in this weather.
Here’s a note on why sweet, fruity cocktails are becoming the top seasonal picks in summers and how local ingredients infuse them with a fresh and flavourful nuance:
Reflect Local Flair
One of the more significant reasons that summer fruits are carving a prominent place for themselves in mixology craft is their local touch. Mixologists are keen to incorporate indigenous flavours of fruits like carambola, alphonso mangoes, watermelons and even local muskmelon varieties which are readily available in summer weather into drinks. Cocktails made out of these fresh, colourful fruits coupled with herbs, masalas and garnishes that reflect local flavours quickly transform the drinks into a regional, seasonal creation.
Fresh Pulps And Infusions
Local, fresh, fruity ingredients are often incorporated into cocktails in the form of fruit juices or infusions. This reduces the need to add syrups or sweeteners in cocktails to in effect introduce seasonal and crisper flavours into blends. With this, cocktails tend to acquire a very fresh tasting note that cuts through the sugary qualities of certain mixes to in fact create drinks with lots of herbal, fruity, colourful nuance. The brightness of different fruit purees and juices that seeps into cocktails as a result of the addition of fresh produce levels-up their presentation by several notches.
Also Read: Seasonal Fruit Trifles Paired With Summer Cocktails
Mindful Mixology
As well, introducing local produce in drinks takes cocktail-makers who prefer to be ecologically conscious one step further towards mindful mixology. Not only do they craft cocktails which are in tune with the summer weather but they also manage to curate mixes which are more about bringing forth multiple flavour combinations in tiny cocktail formats. Fruity drinks then become top picks for many who are keen to dabble in different flavours, moderately proportioned.
Frozen Fruits As Ices
Fruity drinks are also becoming Indian mixologists’ sought after picks because they create a lot of space for creativity. One such cocktail aesthetic that mixologists experiment with is turning fruits into frozen ices. Chunks of seasonal produce such as watermelons and pineapples often added to spritzers and mojitos are placed in ice trays to create frozen fruit cubes that are used for cooling summer cocktails in a more artful fashion. Along with preventing over-dilution, when fruity ices melt, they also gradually infuse drinks with their own flavours, accentuating the fruit-forward personality of these cocktails.
Lighter, Colourful Flavours
And if that’s not enough, one of the more significant reasons that fruity, summer drinks catch the eye of cocktail enthusiasts is their bright hues which add a lot of colour pop to a table. The light yellow of pineapples and the deep orangeish-golden colour of ripe mangoes, the crisp pink of watermelons and the purple stains of pomegranates build brightness into regional, seasonal cocktail picks. These colourful accents that come through fruit chunks, juices, ices and purees build light, summer-like flavours into cocktails, making them top picks in summer weather.
Drink Responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
