Easy Pitcher Drinks - Cocktails and Mocktails for a Party

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Love entertaining, but don’t want to spend your time bartending? Need a quick cocktail or mocktail recipe that serves a crowd? That’s where Pitcher Drinks come in! Make one batch boozy and keep one alcohol free.

A tray with a pitcher and glasses of cocktails.

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Ingredients for Pitcher Drinks
How to Make Pitcher Drinks - Cocktails and Mocktails
Recipe Tips
Try These Pitcher Cocktail Recipes
FAQs and Substitutions
Easy Pitcher Mocktail Recipes
More Delicious Recipes You'll Love
Print the Recipe Card
Easy to Make Large Batch Pitcher Drinks

My favorite pitcher cocktails are ones that make a big batch and come together quickly. Perfect for last minute summer parties and get togethers, this unique cocktail recipe (and mocktail recipe!) uses a can of frozen juice as both the base of the cocktail and the measuring cup. It's ideal for quickly making large batches of drinks for summer gatherings.

Pitcher drinks are full of fruity flavor and there's no need to let flavors mingle like you do with fruity sangria. Just pour everything together into a large pitcher or punch bowl and serve! Add fresh fruit to the mixture for added flavor and garnish. I love using orange slices and sliced strawberries if I'm serving in a pitcher, or thin slices of fresh pineapple in a punch bowl, for an extra dose of fresh flavors.

There is absolutely NOTHING fancy about this recipe. However, sometimes fancy isn't needed. Just a delicious fruity cocktail that's sure to be a crowd pleaser. This recipe doubles and triples easily, making it quick to fill large party pitchers or decanters with drinks.

Ingredients for Pitcher Drinks

Frozen juice concentrate
Vodka (for cocktails)
Triple sec (for cocktails)
Lemon-lime soda (for mocktails)

How to Make Pitcher Drinks - Cocktails and Mocktails

To start, empty the can of condensed juice into a large pitcher.

For cocktails:

Using the juice can to measure, add 1 can of vodka, ½ can of triple sec, and 1 ½ cans of water to the pitcher.

Stir. Serve over ice cubes and garnish with fresh berries, a lemon wedge, and/or fresh mint.

Enjoy your pitcher of cocktails!

For mocktails:

Using the juice can to measure, add 1 can of lemon lime soda, and 2 cans of water to the pitcher.

Stir. Serve over ice cubes and garnish with slices of fresh peaches, berries, or mint leaves.

Enjoy your pitcher of mocktails!

A hand pouring a pitcher of drinks into a glass.

Recipe Tips

Use an orange juice blend along with the vodka and triple sec for a delicious pitcher of brunch cocktails.
Use frozen apple juice concentrate for delicious fall themed drinks.
Avoid watering down your cocktails by keeping the ice cubes in the glasses, and not adding them into the pitcher. You can also freeze 2 cups of grapes, blueberries or cranberries, then add them to your pitcher before serving to keep drinks cold without dealing with melting ice.
These cocktails are perfect for a large gathering, especially if you've been tasked with bringing drinks at the last minute! I love to set a large pitcher or two out in a bowl of ice and let guests help themselves.
When I need to make pitcher drinks for a December holiday party, I turn this into a big-batch cocktail recipe for cosmos, a favorite classic cocktail. Simply use cranberry juice concentrate in this recipe and add ¼ cup of fresh lime juice to the pitcher. Chill well before serving, then serve in martini glasses with frozen cranberries (no ice!) and a lime wedge for garnish.

Try These Pitcher Cocktail Recipes

Apple Cider Sangria — Apple Sangria with Apple Cider

FAQs and Substitutions

What flavors of fruit juice concentrate work best?

Berry or cranberry juice blends are delicious and work well with the orange flavor in the triple sec.

Can I use something besides triple sec?

Sure. I know triple sec is the cheapest of orange liqueurs and often looked down on, however, we're mixing things with concentrated juice here. We do not need the fancy stuff. Can you pour in a more expensive orange liqueur? Yes. Do you need to? Nope. The goal is to add sweet, orange flavor and triple sec definitely gets you there.

How do I make a single serving of this recipe?

You don't. Because we're using fruit juice concentrate as our base, there's no making this in single drink portions unless you can find cans of frozen juice that make individual drinks.

What can I use in the mocktail recipe besides lemon-lime soda?

The soda is providing the sugar, so don't swap it out for club soda or soda water. Instead use ginger ale or ginger beer in place of the lemon lime soda.

Easy Pitcher Mocktail Recipes

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Print the Recipe Card

Easy to Make Large Batch Pitcher Drinks

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★★★★★

5 from 1 review

Want a to quickly make a batch or two of delicious drinks for your next happy hour a hot summer day? These pitcher drink recipes are full of fruity flavors and exactly what you need to make so you can enjoy your guests and not be left bartending.