Does the phrase “Let’s go outside” make you break into a sweat? Do you dread sticky seats and sunburned shoulders—but still crave the taste of summer? Don’t worry, we’ve got the perfect solution: frozen cocktails that bring the patio vibes straight to your kitchen.
We tapped a few of Pittsburgh’s most beloved bartenders to share their go-to frozen drink recipes—no fancy equipment or mixology degree required. These icy creations are designed to cool you down and turn any ordinary afternoon into an instant vacation. Think slushy Aperol Spritzes, beach-ready Painkillers, nostalgic daiquiris, and fruit-packed Tangerinis that just might make you forget how humid it is outside.
Now break out your blender and let’s get this frozen cocktail party started.
Frozen Cocktail Recipes
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Frozen Aperol Spritz
- Yield: 1 Cocktail 1x
Description
Bitter, bright, and highly Instagrammable. Serve it in a frosty wineglass with striped paper straw and a big orange slice for the full effect.
Ingredients
- 2 oz Aperol
- 3 oz Prosecco
- 1 oz orange juice
- ½ oz simple syrup (dissolve equal parts sugar in hot water)
- 2 cups ice
Instructions
- Add ingredients into a blender. Blend on high until smooth. Pour into a frozen wine glass. Garnish with an orange slice.
Notes
Lehman tells us this is what he’d blend up at home while entertaining friends. It’s fun, casual and laid-back—exactly what a summer party should be.
Fernet & Caffeine
- Yield: 1 Cocktail 1x
Description
Equal parts brunch beverage and nightcap material, it’s bitter and sweet, with cold-brew coffee, Coca-Cola, and fernet.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz Fernet Branca
- 1 oz cold brew coffee
- ½ oz simple syrup
- 1 ½ cups of frozen Coca-Cola ice cubes
Instructions
- Add ingredients to a blender. Blend on high until smooth. Serve in frozen rocks glass.
Notes
This recipe is inspired by one of Lehman’s best friends and regulars, who would always ask for a fernet and cold brew cocktail at the bar. Lehman added soda for sweetness and a new drink was born.
Frozen Painkiller
- Yield: 2 Cocktails 1x
Description
Instructions for enjoying this classic tiki cocktail: Find a beach. Apply SPF, hat, and sunglasses. Commence chill mode.
Ingredients
- 4 oz gold rum
- 2 oz spiced rum
- 4 ½ oz pineapple juice
- 8 ½ oz fresh-squeezed orange juice
- 2 oz coconut cream
- Ice cubes
- Ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Add ingredients to a blender. Add ice until it reaches the top of the liquid and blend until smooth. Garnish with nutmeg.
Notes
Aside from a few tweaks, Ashley stayed true to the traditional flavor of this beachy blend. An important piece of advice: “Garnish with LOTS of freshly ground nutmeg—more than you think!”
Frozen Tangerini
- Yield: 2 Cocktails 1x
Description
This cutie is a crowd-pleaser. Fresh and fruit-forward, sweet but never cloying, and oh-so easy to drink.
Ingredients
- 2 oz vodka
- 5 oz peach vodka
- 3 ½ oz triple sec
- 1 ½ oz lemon juice
- 3 ½ oz tangerine juice, if available; can substitute fresh-squeezed orange juice if necessary
- ½ oz grenadine
- 1 oz passion fruit puree
- 1 tbsp sugar
- Ice cubes
Instructions
- Add ingredients to a blender. Add ice until it reaches the top of the liquid and blend until smooth. Garnish with a tangerine slice.
Notes
This is one Ashley’s most popular summer drinks. Of course, nothing could top the Frozen Cosmo, but the Tangerini is a close second.
Friesling
- Yield: 1 Cocktail 1x
Description
Move over Frosé. With German Riesling as its base, the drink sings with floral and stone fruit notes. It’s been on the menu at Lorelei since day one.
Ingredients
- ½ oz fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- ½ oz apricot liqueur
- ¼ oz elderflower liqueur
- ¼ oz raw agave syrup
- 2 oz decent Riesling
- 2 dashes orange bitters
- ¾ cup ice cubes
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a blender pitcher. Blend until smooth. Pour into a coupe or other stemmed glass. Garnish with a wildflower or whatever you see fit, and sip.
Notes
This recipe first appeared on Lorelei’s opening menu in the summer of 2018. Here’s atip from the Lorelei team: “If you don’t have apricot or elderflower liqueur—or even if you do!—try substituting other floral and fruit liqueurs.”
Derby Daiquiri
- Yield: 1 Cocktail 1x
Description
A classic daiquiri meets the nostalgic flavor of Orange Julius. Try to sip slowly. The Hidden Harbor team tells us this blend “goes down easily—perhaps too easily.”
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ oz light Puerto Rican rum
- ¼ oz dark Jamaican rum
- ¾ oz fresh-squeezed lime juice
- 1 oz fresh-squeezed orange juice
- 1 oz honey syrup (1:1 mix of honey and water)
- ¼ oz. orange liqueur
- 3 drops real vanilla extract
- 1 cup ice cubes
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a blender pitcher. Blend until smooth. Pour into a stemmed goblet. Garnish with a mint sprig and orange slice, or whatever tropical garnish you have on hand, and sip through a wide straw.
Notes
The team at Hidden Harbor shares the story of this tropical beauty: “Legendary Mai-Kai barman Mariano Licudine created this orange-y Daiquiri riff for the Florida Derby horse race in 1959, and then used it to win a major cocktail competition sponsored by the Rums of Puerto Rico. We tweaked his original recipe in several ways, which together give it a bit of an Orange Julius kiss. Beware: goes down easily—perhaps too easily.”
Story by Nicole Barley
Photography by Laura Petrilla
Styling by Justin Matase and Keith Recker
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