3 premium quality cocktails to make at home this St. Patrick’s Day

Made with Irish spirits and wines, these are just the tipples for our national holiday

If you are looking for an occasion to dazzle your friends and family with your cocktail skills, St. Patrick's Day is a brilliant time to do so. The long weekend means you'll have plenty of time to perfect your signature drink so that by the time your friends and family call around to watch the parade, you'll be proud to serve them a refreshing cocktail of your creation.

Given the occasion of our national holiday, we've teamed up with ALDI, the Drinks Retailer of the Year at the Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards 2023, to bring you three simple, easy to follow cocktail recipes that feature premium Irish spirits. Stir up a Spritz, made with the Waterford-produced Boyle's Gin (€24.99) from the Blackwater Distillery, which took home the Bronze award at the Irish Quality Food and Drinks Awards 2022. Or, if you have a penchant for whiskey cocktails, treat your guests to a Mint Julep made with Ardfallen Whiskey, (€22.09) produced by West Cork Distillers. We also have a mouth-watering alcohol-free cocktail – a Monaghan Mule, if you will – that uses Saoirse Alcohol-Free Gin (€9.99) from Old Carrick Mill Distillery in Co. Monaghan, which won Bronze at the Irish Quality Food and Drinks Awards 2023. If you're looking to fill glasses with bubbly this St. Patrick's Day, nab a bottle of Zerozecco Sparkling White Alcohol-Free, (€3.29) the winner of the Gold award at the Irish Quality Food and Drinks Awards 2023.

Prosecco and Gin Spritz

Ingredients

• 50ml of Boyle's Gin
• 125ml of Castellore Organic Prosecco
• 50ml of tonic water
• Half a cucumber
• A lime wedge
• Handful of ice cubes
• A sprig of mint leaves

Method

1. Pop your ice cubes in a fishbowl glass.

2. With a vegetable peeler, peel the cucumber into large strips. Take a strip and then fold it into an accordion shape before skewering it in place with a toothpick.

3. Combine your gin and tonic water in the glass and then fill it to the top with the Prosecco.

4. Garnish your glass with your cucumber strips, mint leaves and a wedge of lime.

Mint Julep

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• One handful of mint leaves
• 1 teaspoon of water
• 30ml of Ardfallen Whiskey
• One glass of crushed ice
• A squeeze of lime

Method

1. Dissolve the sugar in the water to make a simple syrup, and then muddle it in a glass full of crushed ice with the mint leaves.

2. Add the Ardfallen Whiskey and stir well. Once the glass is frosted on the outside, stop stirring.

3. Squeeze some lime juice on top and then garnish with additional mint leaves.

"Monaghan" Mule

Ingredients

• 50ml of Saoirse Alcohol-Free Gin
• 125ml non-alcoholic ginger ale
• Half a lime
• Handful of Ice

Method

1. Combine the alcohol-free gin and ginger beer in a glass with ice and then squeeze in the juice of half a lime.

2. Top it up with the ginger beer and garnish with a lime wedge.

When it comes to sourcing ingredients for your St. Patrick's Day cocktail party, look no further than ALDI. With an exceptional range of wines, beers and spirits plus some incredible deals, it's no wonder that ALDI was the Drinks Retailer of the Year at the Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards. You can explore more right here.

ALDI stores will be open as normal on Saturday 16th March, with stores open between 9am-9pm on Sunday 17th and Monday 18th March. However, Sunday and Monday opening times vary slightly at certain stores, so customers should ensure that they check details on ALDI’s website before their trip. The following stores will operate different hours on Sunday 17th and Monday 18th March:

•          Swords - 10.00am - 9.00pm
•          Mulhuddart - 10.00am - 7.00pm
•          Laytown - 11.00am - 7.00pm
•          Blanchardstown - 10.00am - 9.00pm
•          Dunshaughlin - 10.00am - 9.00pm

Feature images: Unsplash