Now that spring rains have ended, District residents are lining up at rooftop bars and crowding patios to get in some al fresco drinking. Navigating the cocktail menu at popular outdoor bars poses a particular challenge for drinkers and bartenders alike. Both are looking for signature drinks that refresh on hot days, are quick and easy to make, yet that still keep up the high standards of the trendy indoor restaurant.
Gone are martinis and Manhattans, which are too warming and hard to carry on wood decking. Nix made-to-order old fashioneds and mojitos that require muddling; they’ll never be fast enough for a packed patio on a Friday. This summer you’re likely to find juicy cocktails that are pre-batched and served in large format containers for group consumption. They are often tropical drinks made with iced tea or juice and, as often as not, spiked with vodka.
“You can put them back. They are refreshing, low ABV [alcohol by volume]. They’re ‘patio pounders,’” says Dirty Habit beverage manager Sarah Ruiz.
She designed the cocktails for Dirty Habit’s patio menu with high volume business of happy hour in mind. These drinks have a completely different focus than the menus she made for the rest of the bars at Kimpton Hotel Monaco (555 8th St. NW).
They have $13 single serving bottled cocktails, ready made for speed, like the Rice ‘N Roses. This slender tulip glass comes filled with Absolut Elyx vodka, unfiltered nigori sake, a rose and almond syrup, and lychee and citrus juices to make for a smooth and nutty drink for hot weather.
But when business really heats up and crowds flood the bar, you can’t beat the $65 tropical punch served in a giant bronze pineapple and decked out with flower petals. Rooibos (African red tea), passion fruit and coconut puree, and Absolut Elyx single estate vodka turn the D.C. street into an island vacation for four to six people.
“I call it Island Time,” says Ruiz.
Why no rum in this punch? Ruiz says that “vodka is a neutral spirit that gives us the opportunity to focus on the other ingredients.”
That means it is less noticeable when too much flavor could make a punch rich.
“With vodka you can pretty much build off it so you can’t tell what the base spirit is,” she says.
Vodka also appears in $75 dollar pitchers of vodka strawberry lemonade, also with Absolut Elyx, served high atop Hotel W (515 15th St., NW). Here guests pay for more than the view of the White House when all of the spirits, from Avion tequila Margarita pitchers to the Pyrat XO rum Tam Tam Punch, are top shelf.
It’s not impossible to get a moderately priced cocktail at a prime outdoor spot, though. Vodka is also at the heart of Occidental Grill & Seafood’s (1475 Pennsylvania Ave. NW) most popular patio drink, the Pretty Woman. Strawberry-infused Rock Town vodka, cava, lavender syrup, and lemon juice make this sweet spritz stronger than it looks. They also make a daily rotating punch that’s ready to serve a thirsty crowd. Both go for $13.
For a good rooftop bar punch for the price, hit up Roofer’s Union (2446 18th St. NW) where lead bartender Erin Goodman eschews vodka for flavorful rum, bourbon and herbal notes.
“Every one of my punches has some sort of tea in it,” says Goodman. The Passionate Punch has a chamomile tea syrup that’s backed up by a vegetal Clement Canne rhum agricole and spicy velvet falernum. The richness of the punch is balanced with passion fruit and citrus tartness and chocolate bitters. Green tea shows up in Lei Me Down, with bourbon, dark rum, a lemongrass ginger syrup and a blend of pineapple, lemon and mandarin juices.
Goodman says she follows the, “traditional punch proportions” according the old pneumonic mnemonic: one part sour (juices), two parts sweet (sugar syrups), three parts strong (alcohol) and four parts weak (teas and sodas).
The punches are priced at $10 dollars per person, “which is great when people come upstairs in groups and all want the same drink,” Goodman says.
If these price seem high, you can get a whole bottle of Smirnoff Sourced cranberry apple vodka for the price of a single cocktail and make the Sexy Devil Punch for the home patio. Use these proportions to make a single serving or a large bowl for sharing.
• 6 parts vodka
• 2 parts cranberry apple vodka
• 1 part sweet vermouth
• Strawberry slices
• Mint sprigs
Mix spirits in a container and refrigerate for at least an hour. Serve in a rocks glass with crushed ice and garnish with strawberries and mint.
