The classic Vodka Smash is our favourite cocktail recipe to make in the summer, muddled with sweet seasonal berries like raspberries and blackberries.
Our homemade Berry Vodka Cocktail recipe is a fun and refreshing summer drink featuring premium vodka, fresh berries, lime juice, simple syrup, fresh mint and sparkling soda water.
Serve the thirst quenching vodka cocktail in a rocks glass garnished with a fresh mint sprig.
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What Is A Vodka Smash?
A smash is an old school cocktail, dating at least as far back as Jerry Thomas’ 1862 How to Mix Drinks. It is a type of julep, a concoction of spirits, sugar, and mint. Extra fruit, either in the form of juice or garnish, makes it a proper smash.
We love making a Vodka Smash in the hot summer months as there are plenty of seasonal fruits that can be muddled into a chilled ice-filled cocktail glass.
This Berry Vodka Cocktail is a quick & easy smash recipe featuring sweet summer berries like raspberries and blackberries, garnished with a mint sprig plucked from the backyard herb garden.
Berry Vodka Smash Cocktail Recipe Ingredients
This homemade Vodka Smash Cocktail recipe is made with fresh and quality ingredients:
- Vodka: we suggest using Smirnoff, Absolut or Grey Goose.
- Berries: use your favourite seasonal berries like strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries.
- Lime Juice: only use freshly squeezed lime juice. You can taste the difference when someone incorrectly muddles cocktails with store bought citrus juice.
- Syrup: sweeten the drink with homemade simple syrup.
- Mint Leaves: you can purchase mint or harvest your own in an indoor edible garden.
- Soda: you can top the drink with Club Soda, sparkling water like Perrier or SodaStream.
- Garnish: finesse the drink with a fresh mint sprig and/or cocktail pick skewered with berries.
Berry Vodka Cocktail Recipe Tips
This Berry Vodka Cocktail recipe is easy to make at home, ready to serve in under 10 minutes.
We love serving the refreshing vodka muddled drink on hot days in the summer during berry season at family barbecues, cottage happy hour and on a sun-soaked patio.
Our Berry Vodka Smash recipe below is listed for one person. If you’re hosting a large gathering feel free to multiply the ingredients by the number of guests and muddle the drink in a punch bowl or jug rather than a cocktail shaker.
Before your guests arrive store the vodka bottle in your freezer so it is will chilled when ready to shake up drinks.
Serve the drink in a rocks glass with whole ice cubes or crushed ice.
Best Selling Vodka
In the 90’s vodka was all the rage, as martini bars sprung up in cocktail-loving North American cities like Toronto and New York.
Vodka is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impurities and flavourings. Traditionally, it is made by distilling liquid from fermented cereal grains.
Here are some of the world’s best selling vodka brands and our local small batch favourites:
- Grey Goose: the world’s top selling premium vodka has been produced in France since the 1990s.
- Belvedere: is a close second for world’s favourite premium vodka brand. The Polish rye vodka is named after Belweder, the Polish presidential palace in Warsaw.
- Stolichnaya: also known as Stoli, is produced in Riga, Latvia. The brand produces a wide variety of flavoured vodkas, perfect for seasonal cocktail parties.
- Titos: began as a small-batch vodka brand distilled in Texas. Today, it’s recognized as the best selling vodka in America. Titos is made from corn, making it a gluten-free friendly spirit.
- Ketel One: is a Dutch premium vodka brand with a flavour palette offering hints of honey and citrus.
- Absolut: is an iconic Swedish distiller and was the top selling vodka brand globally for decades. The brand offers a colourful collection of flavoured vodka bottles.
- Smirnoff: this Russian brand was founded in Moscow and today sells 39 different vodka flavours.
- Iceberg Vodka: the top selling vodka in Canada is made from icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland.
- Dillon’s Distillery: This Beamsville, Ontario producer makes 2 small batch vodkas near Niagara.
You May Also Enjoy These Vodka Cocktail Recipes…
- Orange Dreamsicle Cocktail
- Pineapple Screwdriver Cocktail
- Bocce Ball Cocktail
- Vodka Madras Cocktail
- Japanese Sake Vodka Sushi Cocktail
- Negroski Vodka Negroni Cocktail
- Pineapple Vodka Martini Cocktail
- Chocolate Kahlua Espresso Martini Cocktail
- Lemon Drop Martini Limoncello Cocktail
- Smirnoff Vodka Pink Lemonade Cocktail
- White Russian Amarula Cocktail
- Vodka Blood Orange Cocktail
- Vodka Mojito Cocktail
- Mint Chocolate After Eight Cocktail
- Smirnoff Rocket Recipe
Best Bartender Tools & Cocktail Equipment
Before hosting a swanky Vodka Smash soiree you’ll need to ensure you have the best bartender tools and cocktail equipment.
- Cocktail Kit: cocktail kits are the perfect gift for newbie mixology fans as they include basic bartender tools like a jigger, shaker and spoon.
- Cocktail Shaker: a bartender’s best friend. Purchase a premium cocktail shaker to muddle or shake up your favourite pink gin cocktails.
- Cocktail Glassware: make sure your bar is stocked with a selection of unique glassware to show off your favourite cocktail creations.
- Hawthorne Strainer: this unique strainer features tightly wound coils and perforated holes. It keeps ice and other large ingredients like lime wedges in your cocktail shaker rather than in the glass.
- Bar Spoons: slender and long bar spoons are a must-have when stirring drinks.
- Bottle Opener: easily open bottles of beer or cider with the flick of your wrist or purchase a corkscrew for fine wine.
- Pouring Spout: once you’ve opened a new bottle of gin insert these affordable pourers to make cocktail assembly a breeze.
- Cutting Board: purchase a petite cutting board for your bar to slice garnishes or citrus wedges like lime, orange, lemon or grapefruit.
- Ice Bucket: chill bottles of gin quickly in an ice bucket or keep by the bar when muddling gin mixers into cool creations.
- Ice Crusher: fans of the Mint Julep love an ice crusher.
- Ice Cube Kit: we suggest purchasing a selection of ice cube trays. Silicone styles are our favourite as they’re easy to clean and are available in various shapes and sizes.
- Jigger: use a jigger to accurately measure spirits, juices, syrups and shrubs.
- Juicer: invest in an electronic juicer or buy an affordable hand-held to easily juice fresh citrus like lemons and limes.
- Muddler: fans of the Mojito love a sturdy muddler to mix mint and lime. Muddler’s are handy for any cocktail featuring ingredients that need a pounding like fresh herbs or citrus wedges.
- Citrus Peeler & Zester: adorn your craft cocktails with a thick citrus peel or finer ribbons of lime or lemon zest.
- Rimmer: Bloody Mary and Caesar lovers should outfit their bar with a handy rimmer for salting and sugaring glassware.
How To Make A Berry Vodka Smash Cocktail
Berry Vodka Smash Cocktail
Equipment
- Jigger
- Cocktail Shaker
- Muddler
- Cocktail Glass
Ingredients
- 2 oz Vodka
- 1 tbsp Fresh Raspberries
- 1 tbsp Fresh Blackberries
- 0.5 oz Lime Juice
- 0.5 oz Simple Syrup
- 4 Mint Leaves
- 2 oz Soda Water
- Mint Sprig garnish
Instructions
- In a cocktail shaker, muddle the raspberries and blackberries until fruit is pulverized into a smooth pulp.
- Add vodka, lime juice, simple syrup, mint leaves and ice cubes. Shake vigorously for 30-45 seconds until cold.
- Pour into a rocks glass and garnish with a mint sprig. Top with sparkling soda water and serve.
Nutrition
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