Summer is officially here, and if you’re going to indulge in some cocktail action, why not throw a little CBD into the mix?

Seriously, the benefits of combining CBD with alcohol are quite compelling.

In the spirit of summer, here are 5 CBD cocktail recipes for your next happy hour. 

What is CBD?

First of all, if you’re new to the party: What is CBD? 

CBD also known as Cannabidiol is a cannabinoid from the Cannabis sativa plant. 

People turn to CBD to help reduce stress and anxiety. Some also use cbd oil tincture for things like insomnia, pain, or even to quit smoking. 

CBD could also potentially protect your liver and your cells from alcohol damage, according to studies.

Onward to the 5 CBD cocktails recipes!

1 - CBD Mint Julep

The CBD Mint Julep cocktail is perfect if you want to celebrate leisure time with friends and maybe pretend you're getting splashed at the Kentucky Derby.

For the ingredients we’re going to need: 

• 2 ½ ounces of bourbon
• 2 sugar cubes or ½ ounce of simple syrup 
• 1 milliliter or 1 dropper of A1’s tranquil mint CBD oil tincture 
• Garnish: mint spring 

Steps to make the CBD Mint Julep cocktail: 

• First of all, place the A1 CBD mint oil into a chilled julep cup
• Secondly add mint leaves and sugar into the julep cup
• Then muddle the sugar and the mint leaves in the julep cup until you’ll smell the aroma of the mint
• Add the bourbon
• Fill your cup with crushed ice 
• Stir the mixture quickly until you can see that the cup is frosty. 
• Lastly, garnish with some delicious mint and enjoy it! 

If you want to make this cocktail without alcohol, because you just want to enjoy the CBD oil, then replace the bourbon with ginger ale  and add some lemon juice. Enjoy it!

2 - CBD Mezcal Margarita 

If you want to make some delicious green juice spiked with a little CBD oil, then this cocktail is going to be amazing!

Ingredients:

• 1 ounce mezcal
• 1 ounce aquavit
• ¾ ounce lime juice 
• ¾ ounce agave syrup
• 1 ounce of cannabis leaf juice or a green juice for example celery
• 1 pinch of sea salt
• 15 mg of CBD tincture 
• For garnish cannabis leaf or edible flowers

Steps to make this cocktail: 

• Take a shaker, and fill it with ice, and then mix in the mezcal, aquavit, lime juice, agave syrup, green juice, sea salt and the CBD tincture.
• Shake it for a few moments then fine strain into a lowball glass with a large ice cube.
• For garnish you could add a cannabis leaf.

If you’ve done all of these steps right, you’ll be left with a delicious CBD Mezcal Margarita. There’s nothing left but to enjoy it! 

3 - CBD Gin & Tonic

This classic drink is more enjoyable with CBD oil tincture. For people who love both the Gin & Tonic and CBD oil itself, this is going to be the 8th Wonder of the World. 

Ingredients for this one : 

• 1 ½ ounces of gin
• 3 ½ ounces of tonic water
• ¼ ounce lemon juice
• 15 mg CBD oil
• Some aromatics for example: marijuana leaves, grapefruit peel, herbs, etc. 

Follow these steps to make the CBD Gin & Tonic correctly: 

• Take a wine glass or tumbler, pour in the gin, the lemon juice, and the tonic water then stir. Top it with some ice.
• Arrange the aromatics in the drink in an aesthetic, pleasing fashion.
• For the last step float the CBD oil on top. 

4 - CBD Pimm’s Cup 

This drink combines the aroma of cucumber and ginger into a refreshing and relaxing beverage. Make sure to try this one out too. 

Ingredients: 

• 2 ounces of Pimm’s Original No. 1 Cup
• ¾ ounce of lemon juice
• ½ ounce of simple syrup
• 3 cucumber slices 
• 3 cannabis leaves
• 1 ounce ginger beer
• 15 mg of CBD oil

Steps to make this cocktail: 

• Firstly, muddle the cucumber, cannabis leaves and the simple syrup in a cocktail shaker.
• Then add Pimm’s and the lemon juice, shake it with the ice before straining into a chilled glass filled with ice.
• Add 1 ounce of ginger beer and use a cucumber wheel to garnish.
• Don't forget to add the CBD!

5 - CBD Lavender Lemon Cocktail

We recommend this cocktail after a long day at work, when people just want to relax and go to sleep. As you might know, lavender helps people out a lot with sleep, and why not make a cocktail with it? 

If you've found that CBD helps you with sleep, then this could be an amazing combo.

Now let’s see the ingredients:

• Lavender simple syrup
• 1 cup of ice
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 4 oz of gin or tequila 
• 4 tablespoons of Meyer lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons CBD oil
• 2 strips Meyer lemon peel

Follow these next steps:

• Take a large cocktail shaker and half fill with ice before adding the rosemary springs, gin or tequila, lemon juice, 4 tablespoons of lavender simple syrup, and the CBD oil.
• Shake very well for 1 minute. 
• Garnish the cocktail with a lemon peel and enjoy! 

We hope you enjoy these recipes, please make sure to drink safely, also never drink and drive. 

H/T to Hemp Harmony and Tasty.co for these recipe ideas!

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