The weather warms up, and I start thinking about pool-going, beach vacationing, and time to just let the world roll by.
Before that can happen, though, I need to find the perfect beverage for those lazy days. It has to be refreshing, of course, and delicious, but also preferably low-calorie.
It occurred to me that, since there are about a million CBD offerings now available, those offerings would be an excellent place to start.
After all, isn’t relaxation the whole point of summer? This appeared to be a match made in heaven– and I selflessly dedicated myself to test this theory.
I sampled enough drinks to relax a charging moose; I was also a good friend and got some feedback from others generous enough to try them out with me.
And the cherry on top?
Kendra Copeland, Head of Consulting at The Gibson in Washington, D.C., Julia Ebell, Creative Beverage Director of The Gibson, and Jahmal White, Bartender at No Kisses DC also produced some BroBible-exclusive CBD drink recipe ideas (scroll to the bottom) on how to turn these babies into full-on cocktails, if you’re so inclined.
Mixed Drink Recipes With CBD
Cucumber + Mint
- Muddled Mint in Collins Glass
- 1.5oz Pimms
- .5oz London Dry Gin / Tanqueray Gin
- .25oz Lime Juice
- .25oz Simple Syrup (1:1 Water and Sugar)
- Pour all ingredients into Collins Glass
- Ice and Top with Sweet Reasons Cucumber + Mint Sparkling Water
- Garnish with Mint, Cucumber and/or Lime Wheel
Grapefruit + Mint + Basil
- 1.5 Vodka
- .5 Ancho Reyes Chili Verde Liqueur [sub jalapeno simple syrup]
- .25 Lime Juice
- .25 Agave Syrup
- Pour all ingredients into Shaker Tin
- Shake with Ice and Strain into 12oz Glass over crushed ice
- Garnish with Grapefruit Wedge, Mint and Basil
Lavender Spice
- 3oz Rose (or Sparkling Rose)
- 4oz Aurora Lavender Spice Soda
- .25oz Creme de Cassis
- Pour all ingredients into Wine Glass
- Top with Ice
- Garnish with Lemon Twist and Lavender [optional]
Rosemary + Grapefruit
- 1.5oz Smoky Mezcal / VIDA Mezcal
- .5oz Lemon Juice
- Spoonful of Honey
- Pour all ingredients into a shaker tin
- Shake with Ice and strain into Tin Cup [optional]
- Top with Ice and Aurora Rosemary + Grapefruit Soda
- Garnish with Rosemary and Lemon Wheel
Black Cherry
- Muddle Brandied Cherries and Orange Peel in Rocks Glass
- 1.5oz Rye Whiskey
- 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters
- Top with Black Cherry CBD Soda Water
Strawberry Lavender
- Muddle Strawberry in Shaker Tin
- 1oz White Rum
- .5oz St. Germain
- Pour Rum and St. Germain into Shaker Tin
- Strain into Champagne Glass
- 2oz Strawberry Lavender Soda
- Top with Cava or Brut
- Garnish with Lemon Twist
Peach Ginger
- 1.5oz Bourbon / Old Forester Bourbon
- .75oz Amaretto
- .5oz Lemon Juice
- Pour all ingredients into Shaker Tin
- Shake with Ice and Strain into Collins Glass
- Top with Peach-Ginger Soda and Ice
- Garnish with Candied Ginger and/or Brandied Cherry
Blueberry Mint
- Muddle Mint in Pint Glass
- 2oz Black Strap Rum / Gosling’s Rum
- 3oz Blueberry Mint Soda
- Pour all ingredients into Pint Glass
- Add Ice
- Top with Ginger Beer
- Garnish with Blueberries and Mint
Sprig Citrus Soda
- 1.5oz Gin / Citadell Gin
- .5oz Campari
- .5oz Domaine de Canton
- Pour all ingredients into Collins Glass
- Top with Sprig Citrus Soda on Crushed Ice
- Garnish with Citrus Peel
Sprig Melon Soda
- 2oz Blanco Tequila
- .5oz Aperol
- .25oz Lime Juice
- Spoonful Agave Syrup
- Pour all ingredients into Salted Rim Ball Jar
- Fill Ball Jar with Ice
- Top with Sprig Melon Soda
- Garnish with Citrus Peel or Dehydrated Citrus
Sprig Lemon Tea
- 1.5oz Vodka
- .75oz Cointreau
- .5oz Lemon Juice
- 4 Dashes Angostura Bitters
- Pour all ingredients into Shaker Tin
- Strain into Pint Glass
- Fill Pint Glass with Ice
- Top with Sprig Lemon Tea Soda
Blood Orange + Coconut
- 1.5oz Bourbon / Mellow Corn
- .5oz Creme de Cacao
- 1.5 Cloud Water Blood Orange + Coconut Soda
- 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
- Pour all ingredients (including Soda) into Shaker Tin
- Shake with Ice and Strain into Coupe Glass
- Garnish with Blood Orange Wheel [optional]
MY WEEK OF CBD MIXED DRINKS
Day 1
Product was really put to the test: I was juggling four deadlines and felt beyond stressed out.
After just one, though, I was seriously chilled. I did not expect that level of effect– and, for the record, I am not a lightweight.
Lesson learned, however– once you’re feeling it, stop there. I mistakenly assumed more would be better and ended up losing all motivation to do anything (truth: ended up falling asleep by 10 p.m. on a Friday– boo).
The takeaway here — Drinks tend to be strongly flavored (covering up the CBD?), so adding booze might be a good idea.
Tried Bimble (super-grapefruity, tart, refreshing), Recess (beautiful, Insta-ready colors, liked two of the three flavors– found the ginseng too strong in the Blackberry Chai variety), and Vybe (reminded me of a sports drink in a mostly good way).
Day 2
Lower dosage and drinking just one, like a normal person.
Tasted a lot like a tonic (probably why I found myself craving a G&T) and sort of smoothed out the (still deadline-related) edges.
In fairness, was also dealing with the death of my washing machine, so it’s possible that the load was simply more than 15 mg could handle.
Aurora Elixirs– will definitely be sampling again with gin.
Day 3
Work is more in control now, the editor said she’s excited to read my work, and the new washing machine is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.
Can breathe again– trying something in the light end.
Sweet Reason Cucumber Mint really tastes like cucumber.
Now I just want to try it as a Pimm’s Cup (I swear, I didn’t know that Kendra was going to put one of those together– but now that I do, I can’t wait to try it. Check out the recipe below).
Can’t tell if it’s the CBD or just the relief of having shortened my checklist, but feeling pretty good.
Also tried CC’s High Tide Honeydew Melon with a little gin, when I discovered that the ice maker was no longer working either.
WTF? Happy discovery: delicious when cooled with some frozen pineapple chunks (since ice was not available).
Woo, vacation in a glass!
Day 4
Sprig Lemon Tea is the current favorite.
A straight-forward drink that tastes like an Arnold Palmer that’s only 5 calories with 20 mg of CBD.
I may be in love.
Day 5
Liked the Sprig so much, I tried their Citrus flavor.
It’s got cane sugar instead of stevia, therefore 110 calories. No thanks. I’ll stick to the Lemon Tea.
Also didn’t feel as relaxed, but maybe that was because I got slammed with edits for an article due tomorrow.
Sigh.
Possibly a second round was in order, but since I scheduled an a.m. run, decided it might not be a great idea.
Day 6
Already pretty chilled out– edits done and looking forward to a hotel staycation weekend.
Ambitiously tried three different beverages, and somehow, all three were super bitter and unpleasant.
Ugh, way to break a mood.
Ended up adding orange juice to one that was supposed to be orange-vanilla flavored (yet somehow nothing like a Creamsicle), just so I wasn’t tossing another costly bottle.
There are noticeable differences here: how much you can taste the CBD (I prefer not to, thanks), how authentic the flavors are (not sure why so many brands do a lavender version when none taste like lavender), and how balanced the overall drink is.
Day 7
Somehow I’d missed the Cloud Water brand entirely. This was a mistake.
Definitely near the top of my list– not too sweet, perfect chill-out. Sipped this while walking around on a 90-degree day and felt utterly refreshed. Two enthusiastic thumbs up.
To clarify a few points raised by skeptical friends: no, this will not get you high.
Yes, CBD is legal (hemp was reclassified in December of last year). Yes, it is still possible this could tip off a drug test– so proceed with caution if you have an employer who likes that kind of thing.
So, there you go: my super-tough week of trying a zillion different brands, so you don’t have to.
It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it, right?
Mariah Douglas has written about sexy stuff for Playboy and Men’s Health. She mainly tweets about lingerie and burlesque at @halfbuttoned1.