Every summer about this time I start to feel just a little bit of melancholy. A little bit of the summertime blues. Don’t get me wrong. I love summer, but as I lounge by the pool sipping something light and fruity I can’t help but feel like I’m missing something. Some important part of my life that’s either been misplaced or somehow forgotten. But what could that something be I wonder as I lazily swirl the pisco in my punch or rumble the rocks in my rum-filled tumbler. That’s when it finally hits me. I miss bourbon! Summer bourbon cocktails – is that an oxymoron?

Well I intend to find out.

Bourbon is not the first spirit I reach for when I’m craving a lazy poolside cocktail. For some reason, I associate dark spirits like bourbon with cooler weather. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, the Mint Julep is an icy bit of bourbon perfection served in a silver chalice. In many parts of the South, it’s a summertime cocktail dream come true. So I think I’ll update my own wish list to include a summer bourbon cocktail of my own design. I’ll toss in some mint as a nod to the season, but I’ll save the silver chalice for those infamous Derby Days.

So where do I start? How about sangria? The sweet-tart combination of sangria’s berries and citrus is something we all associate with summer. That, however, is where the association ends. Wine is nice, but I want a summer bourbon cocktail – and bourbon loves berries. So I’ll pull out my muddle and add a little honey syrup to the mint and berries. I’ll build the summer bourbon cocktail I’m craving.

Now all my summer bourbon cocktail needs is a name. Hey… how about Summer Bourbon Cocktail?

For the recipe, please visit Summer Bourbon is that an Oxymoron? on SippitySup.