I think most folks reading this blog actually enjoy making cocktails. (Myself included, of course!) But I’ll admit – sometimes I wish I could just have the cocktail ready-made for me after a long day at work.

I was thinking recently about limoncello, a delicious lemon liqueur that’s traditionally enjoyed straight out of the freezer. This got me thinking – what if you could pre-make cocktails and store them in a pitcher in the freezer, ready to drink at a moment’s notice?

 

Let’s see if it works!

 

How’d it go?

These two cocktails might look familiar… we used the Daiquiri and the Oude and Sloe (a distant take on a Manhattan). We made both about three weeks ago and they have been stored in the freezer in sealed containers ever since. We deliberately chose a citrus-focused cocktail and a spirit-focused cocktail to see if one would fare better than the other. My suspicion was the spirit-focused cocktail would taste better after the wait, as citrus has been known to lose its luster if you wait a while between squeezing and consuming.

 

 

P1 - Freezing Cocktails

 

The Taste Test

The Oude & Sloe:

Not bad! I felt this cocktail definitely lacks the depth of flavor that the original cocktail had – but it’s possible that’s because it’s just very, very cold.

 

The Daiquiri:

This cocktail tasted a bit like a “slushy machine” margarita. Again, this could be because it was right out of the freezer – but also means that it wouldn’t be a good “go to” freezer cocktail.

 

 

 

P2 - Freezing Cocktails

 

Conclusion:

In my opinion, I think that freezing a spirit-driven cocktail might just work. You will need to wait a bit and add a dash or two of bitters to kick up the flavor (or maybe start with more bitters at the beginning?)  I’d say it’s about a 9 out of 10.

The Daiquiri, on the other hand, is probably closer to a 7 or 8. It tasted fine, but it’s definitely not the best daiquiri I’ve ever had. I could see adding a bit of citrus juice or spritzing with lime oil to kick up the flavor a notch – but again, that defeats the purpose of making “freezer ready” cocktails to start with!

 

 

What’s in your Freezer?

Have you tried freezing cocktails in your bar or at home? Have you had similar results? Better yet – got any tips for making these cocktails even better, right out of the freezer? Let me know in the comments!

Can You Freeze Cocktails? is a post from: A Bar Above Mixology