DIY COCKTAIL BAR

a couple of Saturdays ago i attended a summer evening soirée with Cointreau that was both beautiful and fun! they served all different types of cocktails and food based off of different destinations – Tulum, Croatia, Marrakesh (remember this photo?), etc. one of the stations was a DIY cocktail bar (featuring Cointreau Rickeys) that i wanted to re-create for you to show how you can bring artful twist on entertaining at your own soirées with delicious cocktails. it’s a super simple recipe of fresh lime juice, club soda and Cointreau and can be personalized by guests with fresh fruits and herbs. i also love that the set up can double as decor because of all the pretty produce!

what you’ll need for the cocktail portion:
• Cointreau
• limes
• club soda

for the DIY bar:
• herbs (basil, mint, rosemary)
• strawberries
• dragon fruit
• blackberries
• mango
• apricot
• cucumber
• jalapeño
• limes

creating the bar:
• wash and cut all of your produce. arrange all of the items in different sized bowls and platters. set out a jigger, muddler, bucket of ice, glasses and a bottle of Cointreau. you can either have guests juice their own limes or you can do that before hand but make sure it’s fresh lime juice, that part makes a big difference. the only liquor you need is the Cointreau as it’s 80 proof and can stand alone for a balanced and refreshing cocktail.

• to assemble have guests select their desired ingredients and place them in the bottom of their glass, muddle everything together and top with 1 ounce fresh lime juice, 2 ounces Cointreau, add ice and top with club soda.

• we went all out on the produce selections because it’s summer and there are so many beautiful things in season (especially the berries)! feel free to scale it back to whatever you have on hand. a few combinations we loved – blackberry + mint, cucumber +mango + jalapeño and dragon fruit + basil + strawberry.