20 Spring Cocktails to Enjoy the Season

Sip on sunshine with these refreshing spring cocktails! These drinks are bursting with seasonal flavors like citrus, herbs, and floral notes.

Once the days start getting longer and the sunshine returns, it’s time to embrace the energy of the season! As two certified mixologists and home cocktail experts, we love celebrating each season with new food and drinks. So out with the cozy, spiced winter drinks: here is our top list of spring cocktails!

These spring drinks make the most of seasonal flavors with a focus on ingredients like citrus, herbs, and flowers including lemon, mint, lavender, elderflower and strawberry. They feature spirits like gin, vodka, and mixers like bubbly Prosecco, versus winter and fall spirits like bourbon and dark rum. It’s an explosion of flavor, life and color with these drinks: and we can’t wait for you to try them all!

And now, 20 spring cocktails to try!

Strawberry Sangria

If you love berries and you love sangria...then you must drop everything and make this now. Presenting...the perfect Strawberry Sangria! Many American-style sangria recipes are just glorified fruit juice. But this one is Spanish style, full of nuance and character. The berries sing and the dry rosé notes peak through just enough.

Bee's Knees

Here's a fun spring cocktail to celebrate the return of pollinators: the Bee’s Knees! It’s got a cute 1920’s name and a smooth flavor to match. The sweetener here is honey syrup, and making simple syrup with honey instead of refined sugar adds a rich depth. Combine it with lemon and gin, and you’ve got a refreshing cocktail that goes down easy.

Gin Gin Mule

This spring cocktail features an early herb of the season: mint! The refreshing Gin Gin Mule is a modern classic cocktail, it’s a mashup of the Moscow mule and minty Mojito. You’ve got the bubbly ginger beer and lime of a mule, balanced by the muddled mint and sweetness of a mojito.

Lavender Collins

Here’s an herbal, sweet tart cocktail that’s a new favorite around here: the Lavender Collins! It’s a spin on the classic Tom Collins starring this fresh herb. And wow, is it full of flavor! It’s sweet tart, zing and bubbly, with a subtle floral finish to each sip. It’s got just the right essence of lavender that leaves you wanting more.

St. Germain Spritz

Spring makes us think of flowers, which is where this elderflower liqueur-based drink comes in! The St. Germain Spritz is floral and bubbly, full of lightly sweet flavor and effervescence. There are lots of classic spritz cocktails, from the renowned Aperol Spritz to the bitter Campari Spritz. This one is a fun spin on the classic that's delightfully springy.

Paloma

The light pink color of this drink makes it feel perfect for spring! Cousin of the margarita, the Paloma is a classic Mexican cocktail that features tequila with grapefruit instead of lime. Switching up the citrus makes for a simple sour that’s sweet tart and refreshing.

Hugo

This cocktail might be the literal definition of refreshing. If you love bubbly spritzes, run don’t walk to try the Hugo cocktail! This Italian cocktail is a spin-off on the Aperol spritz and even better, in our opinion. It’s made with delicate floral St Germain elderflower liqueur and bubbly Prosecco, which compliment each other perfectly.

Southside

Here's another minty cocktail pairing the herb with bright citrus: try the Southside! It’s minty, fresh, and botanical, made with lemon, lime, and gin. It’s sweetened just enough: crisp, cool and refreshing. It’s perfect for sipping on a cocktail night with friends, or an afternoon cocktail on the patio.

Floradora

Here’s a light, bubbly classic cocktail that’s flown under the radar for too long: the Floradora! This beautifully pink drink was inspired by a Broadway show by the same name and dates back to the early 1900’s. It’s a total gem of a drink: raspberry syrup pairs beautifully with lime, gin, and the spicy kick of ginger beer! The pastel color is perfect for spring.

Lemon Drop Martini

This zingy martini is perfectly balanced and refreshingly tart, served with a sugar rim and a lemon twist. It looks so festive that it’s great for celebrations of all kinds. Whatever the spring occasion: this drink delivers! When we first tried it, we were surprised by its cool, clean flavor and the sophisticated vibe.

Tom Collins

This tall classic highball drink is perfect for spring with its zingy lemon flavor, a sweet and sour drink made with gin. A cousin of the Gin Fizz, it’s refreshing and bubbly, loaded with ice in a highball glass. Top with a cocktail cherry and it’s one of the most sought-after cocktails out there.

Strawberry Mojito

Strawberries are seasonal in spring, and what better way to celebrate the flavors than a Mojito? We’re huge fans of the classic rum drink: in fact, it ranks in our top greatest cocktails of all time. Adding the sweet tart flavor of ripe strawberries only improves this classic.

Rose Sangria

This sangria made with rosé wine is so light and refreshing, so filled with fruity, delicate flavor, that it’s jumped to the top of our favorites list. It’s perfect for spring entertaining, be it a lazy afternoon or a dinner party drink. This one has a delicate, nuanced flavor that’s just sweet enough and will leave you wanting more.

Gin Fizz Cocktail

The gin fizz is a hit in any season, and since its zingy, bright, and lemony, we think it's especially perfect for spring! This classic cocktail from the 1870’s is perfectly balanced, both sweet and tart with a pop of lemon and a botanical finish. Add to that a frothy egg white foam topping, which adds a creamy texture to each sip.

Vodka Spritzer

Try this bubbly and fruity Vodka Spritzer in spring! It’s just sweet enough with a subtle berry flavor: tangy, refreshing and sparkling all at once. That’s cranberry juice that makes the brilliant red color, but it’s 100% juice so it’s tart and crisp instead of saccharine.

Gin and Tonic

What’s more refreshing and carefree for spring than a gin and tonic? Its crisp, botanical flavor is straightforward but at the same time intriguing: a feat using only 2 ingredients! It’s no wonder that this is one of the world’s popular cocktails.

Strawberry Margarita

Try this tasty and refreshing spin on the classic margarita for spring: a Strawberry Margarita! This one is frosty and fruity, full of berry flavor but perfectly complimented with tangy lime and the bite of tequila. It's got a bright color and zingy flavor to match.

French Martini

The delicate pink of this French martini makes it a perfect spring cocktail! The flavor is fruity and balanced, featuring a fancy French black raspberry liqueur and pineapple juice. Each sip is so intriguing and nuanced, it’s hard to put the glass down!

Ranch Water

Here’s a simple cocktail that’s bubbly, zingy and perfect for spring: Ranch Water! This tequila highball is made with lime juice and sparkling Topo Chico. It’s like a bubbly, lighter spin on the classic margarita, with all the tangy citrus but less sweetness and booze.

New York Sour

Last up in our spring cocktail recipes, try the New York Sour! This colorful spin on the whiskey sour takes the classic up a notch. First you have the whiskey sour layer: lemony tart and balanced. Float a layer of red wine over the top and it adds complexity and a fruity acidity, not to mention a stunning vibrant color contrast.

More spring drinks

Want more spring drinks? I was reminded by Difford’s Guide that spring is the perfect time to use creme de violette if you have it onhand for the classic Aviation! There are also non-alcoholic ideas like lemonades, and it’s fun to whip up a bubbly spritz or two. Here are a few more fun ideas to try:

Opt for a fun lemonade like Mint Lemonade, Strawberry Lemonade or Blueberry Lemonade: and spike it with vodka if you like!
Go for purple Lavender Lemonade
Mix up a Limoncello Spritz or floral Lillet Spritz