Just in time for your hot summer weekend, say hello to the Watermelon Bourbon Smash Cocktail!  This might just be the most refreshing cocktail I’ve ever posted! (My full cocktail archives are worth a look also.)

The key to this drink is making fresh watermelon juice. Actually, now that I think about it, I’m not sure you can buy watermelon juice, but even if you can, don’t do it! The fresh stuff is light, fruity, and incredibly in a cocktail with some mint, sugar, and club soda!

Watermelon Bourbon Smash Video

Making Fresh Watermelon Juice

To make the watermelon juice, pulse some fresh seedless watermelon in a food processor until it has completely broken down. If you don’t have a food processor, you can mash the watermelon with a potato masher or something. It’ll get you there!

Watermelon Juice - Bourbon Smash Cocktail
Making juice!

Most importantly, strain your juice through a metal sieve. There’s lots of pulp in the watermelon and while it tastes good the texture kind of messes up the cocktail. This is the move that makes your juice professional instead of amateur and it makes a huge difference in the smoothness of the final bourbon cocktail.

Straining watermelon pulp for fresh juice.
Gotta strain it.

Look at that color!!

Watermelon juice  made fresh for cocktails.
Love the color.

Can you make the watermelon juice in advance?

This watermelon juice keeps nicely for 4-5 days in the fridge. Even if you don’t want to make cocktails with it, it’s a nice refreshing nonalcoholic drink if you add a little club soda to it. While you can drink it straight, I find it to be a bit too sweet so I like to mix it.

If you are short on time though, making the watermelon juice in advance will make the cocktail SO easy to make when you are ready to make it.

Finishing the Watermelon Bourbon Cocktail

To make a Watermelon Bourbon Smash, add some mint and sugar to a cocktail glass and muddle it lightly. We aren’t making mint juleps here. Just a little mint and you can muddle lightly.

Muddled Mint and sugar for watermelon bourbon cocktails.
A quick muddle.

Then add the bourbon and watermelon juice! Feel free to adjust amounts to your liking.

Adding juice - Making Watermelon Bourbon Cocktail
Action shot.

Top the cocktails with some club soda for some fix and a few thin slices of watermelon.

Watermelon Bourbon Smash is the drink of summer!

If you wanted to make a pitcher of this cocktail, you can multiple the watermelon juice and bourbon by 6 or 8, but be sure to top off each drink individually with some club soda!

Watermelon Bourbon Smash Cocktail

Watermelon Bourbon Smash

5 from 3 votes
Author: Nick Evans
Servings: 1 Cocktail
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 2 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Chill out this summer with these cool Watermelon Bourbon Smash cocktails! Fresh watermelon, mint, bourbon, and a topper of club soda for some bubbles. The perfect summer sipper!

Ingredients 

  • 3-4 fresh mint leaves
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 ½ ounces bourbon
  • 3 ounces fresh watermelon juice
  • Club soda

Instructions

  • Add the flesh of 1/2 a small seedless watermelon to a food processor and pulse until completely smooth. Alternatively, you can add it to a bowl and mash it well with a potato masher. Either way, run the watermelon through a mesh strainer to strain off any solids.
  • In a cocktail glass, add fresh mint and muddle sugar until fragrant. Add bourbon and stir together.
  • Add watermelon juice and stir to combine.
  • Add ice and top with club soda.
  • Enjoy immediately!

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1drink | Calories: 145kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.02g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.03g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 113mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 611IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 0.4mg
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @crunchtimekitchen

Here are a few other great Summer Cocktails!