My Favorite Lemon Vodka Drinks
I love everything about lemons and have put together some of my favorite lemon vodka drinks. These are popular in our home all year long.
I made lemon vodka and three cocktails: a lemon drop martini, a lemon-lime slush, and a lemon vodka tonic with just a little raspberry simple syrup.
Lemon Vodka
I have made lemon vodka many times, and it is so easy to make at home! This infused vodka only needs two items … vodka and lemons … to create delicious-tasting lemon vodka for your cocktails.
You can make more by multiplying this recipe, but I use the base recipe.
Lemon Vodka Recipe
- 2 cups vodka (you can use any brand, but use a good quality vodka)
- 3 lemons, rinsed and quartered
Use a container with a lid that seals. Add both the vodka and rinsed/quartered lemons to the container. Store in a dark, cool space for at least a week. Taste to check on the depth of the lemon infusion. If you want it to taste more lemon, leave it for another week and taste it again for flavor. Discard the lemons and reseal the container once the lemon vodka is as lemony as you like. If stored in a cool, dark space, homemade lemon vodka will be stored indefinitely (just like any other vodka).
Warm Weather and Cool Cocktails
As the weather begins to warm up and we head outside more often, I love to begin a party, gathering, or just an evening on our back porch with a cool lemon vodka cocktail. There is something special about the lemony tart-sweet combination over ice that is the perfect antidote to the heat.
The recipes I am sharing are really easy to make. Don’t be fooled into thinking simple syrup is fancy or complicated. It is just that, simple. Equal parts of sugar and water are combined over heat until the sugar dissolves. I made lemon simple syrup and raspberry simple syrup for the cocktails I shared today. Both will be kept refrigerated for 1-2 weeks so that you can enjoy these beautiful cocktails for more than just one evening!
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Lemon Drop Recipe
The Lemon Drop is a cocktail that first arrived on the cocktail scene in the 1970s in San Francisco. It started being served in a regular short cocktail glass, evolved to being served in a martini glass with a sugar rim, and is now also available as a shot. Beware, they taste just like the candy they are named after but do have alcohol in them!
- Combine the ultra-fine sugar and lemon zest.
- Wet the rim of the martini glass and then dip it into the sugar and lemon zest for a delicious mixture that tastes just like a lemon drop candy.
- Strain the cocktail into the prepared glass (see recipe below)
Lemon Drop
Just the right amount of sweet and tart. Lemon Drops are one of my favorite cocktails, especially in warm weather.
Ingredients
- 2 oz Vodka
- 1 oz Contreau or TripleSec
- 1 oz fresh lemon juice
- 1 oz lemon simple syrup
- Lemon Simple Syrup
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Lemon-Sugar for Rim
- 1/2 cup ultra fine sugar
- zest of 1 lemon
Instructions
Make lemon simple syrup first so that it is completely cooled
- Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water to a small saucepan
- Over medium heat, stir until sugar is melted, about 10 minutes
- Turn heat off and add lemon juice.
- Stir to combine and let cool completely
- Lemon simple syrup will last 1-2 weeks if refrigerated
Next, combine ultra fine sugar and zest of one lemon and set aside
For the cocktail, use a cocktail shaker so that your cocktail is super cold
- Add ice to the cocktail shaker
- Add 2 oz vodka (I used the lemon vodka I had made)
- Add 1 oz Contreau
- Add 1 oz fresh lemon juice
- Add 1 oz lemon simple syrup
- Shake vigorously
To assemble the Lemon Drop
- Dip the rim of your martini glass into a plate of water (this will make the yummy lemon-sugar stick to the rim)
- Dip the wettened rim of the martini glass into the prepared lemon sugar
- Strain the contents of the cocktail shaker into the martini glass
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Lemon-Lime Vodka Slush
If you were a fan of slushies as a kid, then this is the cocktail for you. It’s one of my favorites for the summer. It’s tart and tangy and a little bit sweet and bubbly. I guess I still love slushies!
Fresh juice is the key to this slush. It is so easy: Measure everything into the blender and blend until you have a perfect sweet and tart grown-up slushie.
Lemon-Lime Vodka Slush
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
- 1/2 cup lemon simple syrup
- 1 cup vodka (I used Titos)
- 1 cup 7-Up
- 4 cups ice
Instructions
Make lemon simple syrup first so that it is completely cooled
- Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water to a small saucepan
- Over medium heat, stir until sugar is melted, about 10 minutes
- Turn heat off and add lemon juice.
- Stir to combine and let cool completely
- Lemon simple syrup will last 1-2 weeks if refrigerated
To make the Lemon-Lime Slush
- Add all ingredients to the blender and blend until slushy
Lemon Vodka Tonic with Raspberry Simple Syrup
A vodka tonic with a slice of lemon is my go-to cocktail order. Since I made my lemon vodka, I decided to upscale the cocktail a bit and added an ounce of raspberry simple syrup. The lemon cuts the sweetness of the raspberry. Who doesn’t love the lemon raspberry combo? It’s so good!
Flavored simple syrup is so easy to make and is an amazing way to upgrade a cocktail with flavor.
I used these fantastic ice cube trays that make “ice cube sticks,” which are great for water bottles or tall cocktail glasses. I added lemon slices to these to add lemon flavor.
Lemon Vodka Tonic with Raspberry Simple Syrup
Ingredients
- 2 oz vodka (I used the lemon vodka I made)
- 1 oz raspberry simple syrup
- Tonic water
- Ice
Instructions
Make raspberry simple syrup first so that it is completely cooled
- Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water to small saucepan
- Over medium heat, stir until sugar is melted, about 10 minutes
- Turn heat off and add 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
- You can muddle (fancy would for smush up or leave raspberries whole, your preference)
- Stir to combine and let cool completely
- You can strain the raspberries out, if you like, I leave mine in
- Raspberry simple syrup will last 1-2 weeks if refrigerated
To assemble the cocktail
- Fill a tall glass with ice
- Add 2 oz vodka (I used the lemon vodka I made)
- Add 1 oz raspberry simple syrup
- Top off glass with tonic water
Lemon Inspired Tablescape
Perfect Gifts For Mothers Who Love to Host
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For every holiday I like to have a signature drink. I am going to use one of your drinks made with lemons and limes. Thanks for sharing.
Tudy Ellis
Oh yay! Let me know what you think!
Thank you Leslie, for these recipes. They look so good and I love that you don’t need an arsenal of liquor to make them. Cheers to summer!
Yay! Thanks Barb!
These sound delicious for summer. Can’t wait to try them. Yum!!
They are sooo yummy! Thanks!
I’m ALWAYS in when lemons are mentioned!🍋💛 Aren’t we lucky to live where lemon trees are everywhere!
Right! We are so lucky! 💛
Oh yumm – Lemon Drop is one of my favorites! The others look great too. We got snow on Monday, so we’ve got a ways to go for warm weather, but I might have to practice a little first! 🙂 Thanks for the great recipes, and for the whisper of summer!
We are so close!
Une traduction en français serait la bienvenue
Merci
Cordialement
May God bless you and your family with a wonderful Easter
Hope you had a wonderful Easter Heidi! 💗
Such an inventive Valentine’s treat! The idea of diverse flavors for these cookie sticks is very appealing, with cranberry orange sounding particularly tasty. These would be a big hit for classroom parties!