Scottish Daily Mail

Pop a petal in your prosecco!

And other novel ways to perk up your summer tipples . . .

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PLANNING to take advantage of the heatwave with a garden party? You’re in luck.

Fabulous new drinks perfect for warm weather are popping up everywhere — from prosecco infused with rose gold, to popsicles made from rosé wine and giant ice cubes. Even the punch bowl is back in fashion! Here,

MANDY FRANCIS picks the best of this season’s drinks . . .

ALL THAT GLITTERS

TuRN a glass of supermarke­t prosecco into a flute of glittering pink fizz with PopaBall’s Rose Gold Shimmer for Prosecco (£6.99, lakeland.co.uk). Add a teaspoon of glitter powder to a glass of bubbly. Your drink will swirl into a raspberryf­lavoured, pink-gold shimmer.

FLOWER POWER

‘A SPRINkLING of edible flowers is a really easy way to give any drink the wow factor,’ says Holly Clark of events company Pearl & Pear. Companies such as maddocksfa­rmorganics.

co.uk and greensofde­von.com supply edible flowers and leaves for drinks from £10.95.

Scatter a handful over gin and tonics, cocktails, soft drinks and even sparkling wine. You can use flowers from your own garden — rhs.org.uk has a list of suitable blooms — if they are well-rinsed and pesticide-free.

Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup (£9, ocado.com) add glamour — and flavour — to sparkling wine. Pour a little syrup into the bottom of a glass, drop in a bud and pour fizz over. The bud will bloom at the bottom of the glass.

NICELY ICED

DECORATIVE oversize ice cubes melt much more slowly than regular-sized cubes, keeping drinks colder for longer, without diluting them.

The Zoku Mixology Set (£19.99, johnlewis.com) allows you to make three, geometric ice lumps, which fit neatly into

a tumbler. The Ice Balls kit (£10, thechampag­necompany.

com) makes four ice spheres. Alix Nardella, mixologist for Mr Black Spirits, recommends freezing edible flowers, herbs and berries in ice cubes for a pretty effect and subtle taste.

An alternativ­e to ice and a slice, Lakeland’s clever Citrus Ice Cube Infuser (£9.99, lake

land.co.uk) is a lemon juicer with two ice cube trays underneath. When you juice a lemon or lime, the juice flows into the trays to be frozen as wedgeshape­d citrus ice cubes — perfect for pepping up cocktails.

FLAVOUR SAVIOURS

THE last few years have seen a dramatic surge in interest in cocktail bitters. A drop or two of well-chosen aromatics can hugely enhance the taste of any drink, and there are lots of new brands and formulas to try.

The Dr Adam Elmegirab range of bitters (£8.85 for 10ml, the

whiskyexch­ange.com) includes Teapot bitters, a blend of tea, hazelnuts, citrus peel and ginger, perfect with rum. Fee Brothers Peach bitters (£10.45,

masterofma­lt.com) would work well dashed on a brown sugar cube and left to dissolve in the bottom of a glass of bubbly.

FROSé POPSICLES

ALCOHOL-INFuSED lollies are a lovely addition to a garden party or barbecue. Lolly-makers Pops have just launched a delicious Frosé popsicle, blending rosé wine and raspberrie­s, and a Watermelon Martini ice lolly this year — both £5.99 for three popsicles from Whole Foods Market, Ocado and Amazon Fresh.

Aldi is selling gin and tonic and bellini ice lollies at £2.99 for four. And luxury ice cream brand Jude’s are selling tubs of gin and tonic ice cream, infused with Sipsmith gin (£1.85 for 120ml, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose).

If you fancy making your own cocktail popsicles, the recipes in The Poptail Manual: Over 90 Delicious Frozen Cocktails, by kathy kordalis, may inspire you (£4.59, amazon.co.uk).

SERVE WITH STYLE

DRINkS should be served with a flourish this summer, says Tom Noori of the Door 4 cocktail bar in Cheltenham. Punch and cocktails served with ladles and cups, such as the LSA Internatio­nal Bar Punch Bowl Set (£85,

johnlewis.com), are making a comeback, he says.

The Botanist bar in Farnham, Surrey, suggests serving cocktails from a watering can, such as the 1.5l one from All Things Brighton Beautiful (£17.95, notonthehi­ghstreet.

com). And cocktail bowls that look like small fish bowls (from £2.99 each, partypiece­s.co.uk) look lovely dressed with a paper umbrella and colourful straw.

If you’re holding a party, don’t be afraid to go wild with accessorie­s. Flamingo straws, cocktail stirrers and pineapple cups can be found in supermarke­ts.

Finally, for a bit of fun, why not turn your drinks into bubbles? Bubble Lick Edible Bubbles (£12.99 for six 25ml bottles,

firebox.com) turn any liquid into bubbles you can lick out of the air. Fill the bottle with your drink of choice, shake, then use the wand to surround yourself and your guests with alcoholinf­used bubbles.

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