Mother's Day Cocktail Recipes

Mother’s Day is here again, and if you are anything like us, you’re probably wondering what on earth to do for your mom this year. If you can get away with another routine flower delivery order, good for you! But for some moms, a boozy concoction would make a welcome gift. (Sure, partly for the booze, but mostly because it requires your time and interaction with her.) Gift her what she really wants this year: your time….and some booze! 

We’ve put together a list of some cocktails you can make for mom the year, and we’ve broken these into three categories. We bet at least one of them suits your mom’s palate.

  • Light and summery drinks
  • Fresh and fruity drinks
  • Hearty and heavenly drinks

If your mom is more of a wine lover, consider bringing over an ice-cold bottle of real French Champagne, Riesling, or Gewurztraminer. If your mom is a beer lover, try a sour from a local craft brewery. You can’t go wrong—these choices are both light and summery. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate!

For all of you wonderful make-shift mixologists, here are some Mother’s Day cocktails!  Remember to celebrate that special being who is, was, and always will be a mother to you. Make it with your heart, and it will most definitely be loved and appreciated. Happy Mother’s Day to all Mommies!

Light and Spring-timey Cocktails for Mom

These three drink selections are all light and spring-time. They don’t skimp on the booze, but they allow other flavors—citrus, tonic, flowers—to come forward at the same time. If your mom plans to have more than one, though, better allow her time for a nap afterward!

Garden Gin and Tonic

You will need:  

  • 1 ½ ounces gin (Beefeater)
  • ½ ounce vermouth (Dolin Blanc)
  • 2 dashes of orange bitters
  • Tonic water, to top

Garnish: grapefruit wheel, lavender sprig, lemon wheel, strawberry
Add the gin, vermouth, and orange bitters to a goblet or wine glass. Fill with ice. Top with tonic water. Garnish with fruit and flowers. Don’t forget to use a coaster!

Elderflower Sour

You will need:

Syrup:

  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • 4 sprigs mint
  • 1 ½ cups water
  • 1 lemon, zested and then cut into slices
  • Cocktail:
  • 2 ounces of simple syrup (see above)
  • 2 ounces gin
  • 2 ounces elderflower liqueur (St. Germain)
  • Club soda

Garnish: lemon slice and mint sprig

First, make the syrup, which you can do up to a week ahead of time. In a small saucepan, mix sugar, mint, lemon zest and lemon slices with the water. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes. Strain the syrup and then refrigerate.  Next, mix up the cocktail! Pour the gin, elderflower liqueur, 2 oz. syrup, and a splash of club soda into a glass packed with ice. Stir to combine. Squeeze a lemon slice over the top, then drop the slice and a sprig of mint into the glass to garnish.

Citrus Mezcal

If your mom prefers tequila, then this is going to be a great choice for her. You will need:

  • 2 ounces mezcal
  • 2 ounces grapefruit soda
  • 1 ounce rosé wine
  • 1-ounce lime juice (freshly squeezed is best)
  • Worm salt (What fork is worm salt?)

Garnish: grapefruit wedges, 2-3 sprigs of thyme

First, cut a lime, then run it on the outside of your cocktail glass. Dip the rim into the worm salt to coat. Next, add the mezcal, rosé, and lime juice into a cocktail shaker. Pack with ice. Shake hard! Strain into your salt-rimmed glass that already has ice packed inside it. Top with grapefruit soda. Garnish with the grapefruit slice and a thyme sprig.

Citrus Mezcal Cocktial Recipes

Fresh and Fruity Cocktails for Mom

Next, we’ve picked out some cocktails that are very fruit-forward. The highlight here is basically a fruit juice but with some booze thrown in. We really like these choices for the flavor combinations and also for the unique fermentation process.

Smoky Watermelon Lemon Margarita

This is just a little spicy! Depending on what mom likes, you can turn the heat up or down by adjusting the jalapeño. You can prepare the blended watermelon ahead of time. You will need:

Cocktail:

  • 2-3 cups cubed watermelon
  • 2 ounces mezcal or silver tequila
  • ½ ounce Cointreau (or orange liqueur)
  • Juice from ½ a lemon
  • Basil or mint leaves
  • 1-2 jalapeño slices
  • ¼ cup sparkling water
  • Chili Lemon Salt
  • ¼ cup flaky sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
  • 1 pinch of granulated sugar
  • Zest from 1 lemon

Smoky Watermelon Cocktail

To make the watermelon juice, blend 2-3 cups of watermelon cubes in a blender. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve into a pitcher. You can store this in the fridge for up to five days. Next, whip up the Chili Lemon Salt. Combine all the ingredients on a shallow plate. Use a lemon or lime slice to wet the rim of the glass, then dip it into the salt mixture. Finally, it’s time to make the cocktail! Using a shaker packed with ice, add ¼ cup of the watermelon juice, mezcal, Cointreau, lemon juice, mint/basil, and jalapeño slices. Shake vigorously for longer than you normally would shake up a drink. The longer you shake it, the spicier it’s going to be. Strain into your prepared glass. Top with sparkling water and garnish with leftover watermelon and herbs.  Don’t forget to use a coaster!

Vanilla Peach Cosmo

If your mom loves Cosmopolitans, then she is going to love this variation!  You will need:

Garnish: fresh peach slices and vanilla beans

Vanilla Peach Cosmo

First, in a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the vodka, nectar, brandy, and lime juice. Shake well! Strain into two martini glasses. Garnish each one with a slice of peach and a vanilla bean. Your mom will be so impressed. Be fancy and get your mom a wine charm!

Peach Shrub

A “shrub” is a fruit puree made from steeping ripe, in-season fruit in sugar and organic vinegar. It adds a refreshing and acidic twist to a cocktail. This batch recipe is great if you’re hosting the whole family on Mother’s Day. You will need to start a week ahead of time. To prepare:

  • 2 pounds of ripe peaches, roughly chopped
  • 1 ½  cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup organic apple cider vinegar

Place the peaches and sugar in a bowl, and toss to completely coat the fruit. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for two days to start to ferment. Swirl the bowl daily so the sugar dissolves.  After two days, add the vinegar and set aside at room temperature for five days. When time is up, transfer the peaches and liquid to a blender and puree. Strain through a fine sieve into a punchbowl.

For the cocktail:

  • Fruit puree
  • 2 cups sweet vermouth
  • 8 cups chilled soda water

Garnish: fennel sprigs

When you’re ready to make your drink, stir the vermouth and soda into the puree.  Garnish with the fennel and serve.

Lavender Honey Cream

Who says a bath is necessary to reap the calming effects of lavender?

Garnish: lavender blossoms

First, prepare the lavender honey syrup ahead of time. Combine ¼ cup lavender honey and ¼ cup boiling water. Stir until the honey dissolves and let cool.

Next, add the botanical spirit, lavender honey syrup, heavy cream, and egg white to a cocktail shaker and dry-shake (without ice) vigorously. Add ice and shake again until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a few lavender blossoms.

Hearty and Heavenly Cocktails for Mom

Finally, we’ve got a hearty cocktail offering for mom and some heavenly cocktails that will wow her after dinner. If your mom likes chocolate (who doesn’t?), then one of these two dessert drinks is going to knock her socks off. You’ll instantly win the “favorite child” award for Mother’s Day this year. Then you can taunt your siblings all year.

Bloody Mary

This recipe pairs wonderfully with a Chicago-style hot dog because of the celery salt. You will need:

  • 1 tablespoon celery salt
  • 2 lemon wedges (¼ lemon cut in two)
  • ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • ¼ teaspoon soy sauce
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper (freshly ground is best)
  • 1 dash of cayenne pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon hot sauce of your choice
  • ½ teaspoon horseradish (freshly grated is best; use 1 teaspoon of prepared horseradish)
  • 4 ounces tomato juice (high quality is best)

Garnish: celery and any other goodies you want to throw in there

First, prepare the glass. Spread the celery salt in a shallow saucer. Rub the rim of your glass with one lemon wedge and then coat the rim with salt. Next, prepare the cocktail. Take a cocktail shaker and add the Worcestershire, soy, black pepper, cayenne pepper, hot sauce, and horseradish to the bottom. Add ice. Then add the vodka, tomato juice, and juice from the remaining wedge of lemon. Shake vigorously. Taste for seasoning and add more if you want. Strain the cocktail into your salty glass (which should already be packed with ice). Garnish with celery and any other veggies you can find in your fridge. Besides, celery, olives, and cooked shrimp make tasty garnishes!

Strawberry Shortcake

Mom will love this pink, delicious dream!  

  • 1-ounce vanilla vodka
  • 1-ounce amaretto
  • 5 strawberries
  • 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream
  • 1 cup crushed ice

Blend all ingredients, with the exception of 1 strawberry, in a blender until smooth.  Pour the mixture into a hurricane glass and garnish with the remaining strawberry.

Strawberry Shortcake

White Chocolate Grasshopper

This is minty and chocolatey—perfect for after dinner!  You will need:

  • 1 ounce white crème de menthe
  • 1-ounce white chocolate liqueur
  • ¼ ounce heavy cream
  • Ice

Garnish: chocolate shavings

In a cocktail shaker that is packed with ice, add the crème de menthe, chocolate liqueur, and heavy cream. Shake it a little longer than you normally would to make sure it’s good and cold. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with chocolate shavings on the top.

Conclusion

Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate your mother’s journey “to the valley of death and back” giving birth to you! What better way to celebrate than to reminisce about the good birthing memories by boozing her up? As you serve up a cocktail to impress her this year, you can throw out some Mother’s Day facts for her. The earliest Mother’s Day celebration was in ancient Greece. It was a springtime festival to honor Rhea, “the mother of the gods.” There were temples for her all over Greece, but the biggest was in Crete. (The Roman celebration in honor of Hilaria came many centuries later.) 

The modern celebration of Mother’s Day began as an American holiday. A peacemaker named Ann Jarvis created a “Mother’s Friendship Day” in 1868, during the Civil War. Mothers who watched their sons fight each other could reach out to one another. When Ann Jarvis died, her daughter wanted to honor her own mother, and she created the first official Mother’s Day in 1908. (Hallmark didn’t jump on the bandwagon until the early 1920s.)