Why not greet your guests this Christmas Day with one of these delicious and refreshing cocktails? Or wait until they’ve all left and make yourself one?
1. French Martini
If the strength or bitterness of a regular martini is too much for a stifling hot December day, then pretend you’re in the Sorbonne, and sip one of the tastiest cocktails known to man or woman. It is truly an androgenous drink despite being a fruity cocktail, but its sweet taste and lovely texture will appeal to every palate. It is without a doubt the perfect summer cocktail.
Ingredients
45ml Vodka
30ml Chambord
60ml Pineapple Juice
Method
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, and mix ingredients in the shaker. Shake well, and when frothy, pour into a chilled martini glass. Add a zest of lemon or lime, a chunk of pineapple or a skewer of raspberry to garnish. When drinks are poured, add a small amount of vodka and a small amount of pineapple juice to the remaining ice in the shaker for the ‘crème’ on top of the martini, purely for presentation.
2. Iceberg Martini 
A thirst-quenching and appetising drink, which manages to be both light on the palate and leave your mouth with that ‘just brushed’ feeling. Tasty, refreshing and cures halitosis … truly a wonder drink.
Ingredients
60 ml gin
Dash white creme de menthe
Mint
Method
Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with fresh mint.
3. Blue Lagoon
Another fantastic drink which can be enjoyed during the day by the pool (or lagoon) or long into the night!
Ingredients
45ml Vodka
30ml Malibu
15ml Blue Curacao
Lemonade
(* If it’s late in the evening, also mix in some red bull for an interesting taste and an energy boost!)
Method
Simply fill a tall glass with ice, and pour in the ingredients (starting with your drink’s anchor, vodka, and moving down the list). Mix with a long straw and enjoy.
4. Gin Watermelon Cocktail 
This is where it starts to get a little bit complicated, but as anyone will tell you, for a little hard work you can get a lot of reward. The Gin Watermelon Cocktail is a delicious drink absolutely ideal for the sweltering Australian summer, and would make a welcome addition to any party.
Ingredients
Five to six cups seedless watermelon, cubed
Two limes, one juiced, one wedged
Two tablespoons sugar
One bottle of gin
Tonic water
Crushed ice
Method:
First place four tall glasses in the freezer to chill for about 30 to 60 minutes before serving (rinse glasses in water just before putting in for better chill).
Next, place watermelon in a blender and blend on high until fruit appears smooth or juice-like.
Strain two cups of the watermelon juice into a pitcher. Add lime juice and sugar and stir thoroughly until mixed.
Place in fridge for 30 minutes to chill.
Add one full cup of gin to watermelon juice to make your cocktail, stirring until mixed.
Pour into a chilled glass filled with crushed ice, three-quarters of the way full. Fill the rest of the glass with tonic water and garnish with a lime wedge for presentation.
5. Woo Woo
The Woo Woo is a simple, yet deliciously effective cocktail. This cocktail combines all the basic elements of the simplest cocktail to pack a fruity, summery punch which is perfect morning, afternoon or evening.
Ingredients
45 ml vodka
30 ml peach schnapps
Lime wedge
Cranberry juice
Ice cubes
Method
Half fill a cocktail shaker with the vodka and schnapps. Shake, and then strain into an old-fashioned glass half filled with ice. Add the squeezed lime wedge and top up with cranberry juice.
