19 Best Summer Pitcher Cocktails

19 Big Batch Cocktails for Summer 

When we want a refreshing cocktail, the classic mojito never lets us down. Luckily, making a big batch of mojitos for a crowd is a breeze. To get the best results, make a mint simple syrup before you need to make the cocktail. Giving the syrup time to cool completely creates a better flavor.

Once the syrup has cooled, you can add it to a pitcher with white rum, muddled mint, and freshly squeezed lime juice. Store the pitcher in the fridge and stir occasionally. It can be stored for up to 3 days. When you’re ready to serve mojitos, add club soda to the pitcher, and you’re ready to pour! Set aside fresh mint leaves for a quick garnish in each glass.

There’s nothing better than fresh lemonade on a hot summer day. Except, of course, spiked lemonade infused with strawberry flavor! Spiked strawberry lemonade is easy to prepare and fits any occasion, from a classy brunch to a casual pool day with friends.

The first step in making a great strawberry lemonade is to make a fresh strawberry puree with strawberries, water, and sugar. If you want to save time, premade strawberry purees also work fine! The puree is combined with vodka, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and more water.

If you’re anything like us, some recipes just aren’t strong enough! You can easily swap some of the water in this recipe for more vodka to match your preferences. We like to slice lemon wedges for an easy garnish that adds some color contrast.

If you memorize one cocktail pitcher recipe for this summer, it should be a classic margarita. Margaritas are a crowd-pleasing option with ingredients you likely already have on hand. The best part? There are no extra steps! Just throw everything in a pitcher, stir, and add ice when you’re ready to serve.

You’ll need orange liqueur, fresh lime juice, Reposado tequila, and agave syrup. Store your margarita pitcher in the fridge until it’s time to serve. Add extra visual appeal by rimming margarita glasses with lime and salt before pouring the drink,

This blueberry margarita recipe is one of our new favorite big-batch cocktails for summer. The pitcher drink comes together in minutes and has just the right balance of blueberry and tequila flavors. The recipe can be made with fresh blueberries or premade blueberry puree.

Tequila, lime juice, orange liquor, and simple syrup are combined with blueberries or blueberry puree to make a strong, tart, sweet margarita.

The fruity flavors of blackberries and blueberries pair beautifully with white wine in this punch that’s perfect for a summer party. You can use sauvignon blanc, but we prefer pinot grigio. Lemons, sweet and sour mix,  water, lemonade, and citrus-flavored vodka make up the rest of the punch. 

The final ingredients to make a blackberry puree are fresh blackberries and blueberries with granulated sugar. Don’t forget to save some berries to garnish the pitcher with! 

This easy white wine sangria is the perfect big-batch cocktail for your next summer party or brunch. You can alter the recipe to use whatever in-season fruit you have on hand too! The original recipe calls for oranges, limes, strawberries, and peaches.

Apricot brandy, peach schnapps, and white wine are combined with the fruit and then refrigerated for up to 4 hours. When you’re ready to serve, top the pitcher off with club soda, ginger ale, or prosecco. 

Many sangria pitcher drinks use regular wine and get their bubbles from club soda or sparkling water. This recipe is a lot more fun with no regular wine and a whole lot of sparkling wine! Brandy, orange liqueur, and sugar are combined in the pitcher first.

Next, add fresh raspberries, an orange, a lime, and a lemon. Finally, pour in two bottles of sparkling wine for a bubbly sangria that looks good enough to be a centerpiece.

Big-batch summer cocktails that you can dump all the ingredients in a pitcher and serve immediately are always good in a pinch. Pineapple margaritas are not only easy to make, but they also taste tangy, sweet, and perfectly refreshing.

Combine pineapple juice, orange juice, lime juice, tequila, and triple sec in a pitcher. We recommend making two pitchers because everyone is sure to be asking for refills!

If you’re a lover of rosé wine, you aren’t alone! We always keep rosé wine stocked in the home bar. It’s just sweet enough, light, and goes perfectly with all our favorite summer meals. This sangria is made with your favorite rosé wine, orange liqueur, fresh orange juice, strawberry syrup, and fresh strawberries. 

You can make your own strawberry syrup or use premade syrup, but we prefer the fresh flavor of homemade syrup. Like most sangria pitcher drinks, you should give the mixture at least an hour to chill in the fridge before serving. This allows the flavors to mingle for a more consistent flavor in every glass.  

The porcupine is one of the best big-batch cocktails if you want a strong pineapple flavor. Pineapple juice, sparkling wine, and pale ale beer are combined with fresh pineapple wedges and rosemary sprigs. 

We like to use a dry white wine, like prosecco, but any sparkling white wine will do the trick.

What’s better than a cold glass of sweet tea on a hot summer day? Sweet tea with bourbon, of course! Freshly squeezed lemon juice, unsweetened iced tea, simple syrup, and fresh strawberries make the perfect addition to your favorite bourbon.

If you want more strawberry flavor, try swapping regular simple syrup for strawberry-infused syrup.

A lemon drop is a classic shot and cocktail that’s quick to prepare and surprisingly easy to turn into a big-batch cocktail for your next summer party. The original recipe ingredients of vodka, lemon juice, and simple syrup are elevated with the addition of fresh basil leaves.

Be sure to muddle the basil leaves in the bottom of the pitcher before adding the other ingredients.

Fresh peach is one of our favorite summer flavors. Peach bellinis are a must for a summer brunch or cocktail hour! Instead of making the entire cocktail in a pitcher, you make the non-alcoholic part in a pitcher and set chilled prosecco out with it when it’s served.

This allows guests to decide how strong to make their bellini and keeps your sparkling wine as bubbly as possible! The bellini mixture is made with fresh peaches, water, sugar, or an alternative sweetener.

An Aperol spritz is an Italian drink recipe that quickly spread around the world. The most important ingredient is, of course, Aperol liqueur. The refreshing, bitter orange aperitif has bold citrus flavors that come through beautifully in this gin punch. Beware: it’s a strong punch! 

Yellow Chartreuse liqueur, orange juice, lime juice, grapefruit juice, orange bitters, and sparkling wine are mixed with Aperol and garnished with fresh orange slices. If you want a little added sweetness, try using grapefruit soda instead of grapefruit juice!

It’s been years since we ordered a vodka cranberry at a bar. Sometimes, you want to reminisce on those fun college days, though! This sparkling cranberry vodka punch is super easy to make and has mild flavors that everyone can enjoy.

To make it, you’ll need cranberry juice, vodka, lemonade, and ginger ale. We garnished our punch with fresh cranberries and mint leaves, but any summer fruit will make the punch look better. 

If you want a stronger fresh ginger flavor, you can use ginger beer instead of ginger ale. As an added bonus, it increases the alcohol content!

St. Germain is a French elderflower liqueur with notes of grapefruit, pear, lemon, and jasmine. This spritzer has simple ingredients that won’t overpower the liqueur. It’s light, bubbly, and perfect for day drinking.

Lemon juice, sparkling white wine, and club soda are added to a pitcher with the liqueur. We like to add fresh lemon wheels to garnish, but it’s not required.

This twist on a regular red sangria has a more complex flavor, the blend of sweetness and tartness we’ve been dreaming of. No, really, it’s that good! Fresh oranges, apples, and pomegranate seeds are added to the sangria made of red wine, pomegranate juice, orange liqueur, brandy, sugar, and lemon juice.

We’ve tried this recipe with cognac, too, and loved it! When you’re choosing a red wine, stick to Spanish wines like Garnacha or Tempranillo. 

Prosecco and fresh watermelon juice make a delicious spritzer that’s just begging to be sipped poolside. You only need two other ingredients to add some lemonade flavor, fresh lemons and lemon liqueur. 

If you’re feeling inspired, you can even make your own lemon liqueur from scratch.

This Sunday Funday punch is a great drink when you want something tangy, fruity, and bubbly enough to dance across your taste buds one glass after the next. Orange juice, lemon-lime soda, pineapple juice, vodka, and prosecco are mixed with freshly sliced oranges and strawberries.

We recommend adding extra vodka to top your glass for an added kick.