Not sure how to keep your drinks cool? Explore our guide to reusable ice cubes, and then explore our best cocktail accessories for tips and tricks when mixing up your drinks.

9 picnic drinks recipes

Contessa cocktail bottles

Pre-made cocktails are as practical as they are delicious, and ideal for picnic season. Think of the contessa as a summery version of a negroni. The citrussy Aperol and dry vermouth help lighten things up, and these handy bottles are great for sharing.

Classic sangria

Make a pitcher of sangria from scratch and bottle a taste of the summer to enjoy on your next picnic. Mix with fresh fruit then fill a flask. If you're making traditional sangria, opt for a light, dry red.

Sangria in a jug with three glasses of sangria beside it

Hibiscus, pomegranate and rose shrub

For your next picnic, bottle fresh, summery ingredients in this sparkling rose shrub, which is like a sweetly acidic grown-up cordial.

A glass of bright red liquid with ice and a slice of orange on a white stone coaster

Olive summer cup

This is our homemade version of Pimm's, and it's the perfect drink for summer sipping. Plus, you probably already have the ingredients lurking in your cupboard. Mix gin, vermouth and Cointreau and bring a bottle of lemonade to top up the base when you're ready for a summer serve.

Raspberry and elderflower mocktail bottles

Make a batch of these summery portable mocktails in just 10 minutes and pop them in your picnic hamper. The mix of floral elderflower, citrus and mint makes this a refreshing non-boozy beverage.

Easy summer cordials

Make a bottle of homemade cordial in your favourite fruity flavour, and transport to your favourite picnic spot. They're a simple way to jazz up your soft drinks and spritzes – just pair with fresh fruit and aromatic herbs. Try a fresh basil and peach cordial, or citrussy, sweet strawberries with cardamom.

White wine sangria

Do something different if you're entertaining alfresco this summer – mix up a jug of our simple white sangria with delicate elderflower and seasonal fruity flavours.

Jug cocktails

Get ready for an extravagant picnic feast with these fab boozy batch cocktails, from mezcal and kombucha cooler to spicy margaritas, raspberry frosé and Jamaican rum punch. Cater for a crowd in a flash with these moreish jug cocktails.

English garden cocktail

Gin, elderflower and cucumber: quintessentially British ingredients that are perfect for creating a refreshing summer picnic cocktail. English garden is really easy to make and could be made up then decanted into individual bottles to take to your picnic.