Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini Cocktail

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A little sweet and a lot tart, this Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini cocktail is full of bright summer flavors.

A pair of strawberry lemon drop martinis.

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What's in a Strawberry Lemon Drop Cocktail?
How to Make a Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini
Make Your Cocktail
Make Homemade Strawberry Syrup
FAQs and Substitutions
Don’t Miss These Vodka Cocktail Recipes
More Delicious Recipes You’ll Love
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Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini Cocktail

This summer drink is one of my favorite cocktails during those hot months, especially in late June when it's strawberry season in Michigan.

I always go berry picking and end up with waaaay more berries than I intended, which means I'm making a big batch of strawberry syrup for the fridge.

Perfect for a hot weather happy hour, a strawberry lemon drop cocktail is a refreshing twist on a classic lemon drop martini made with fresh lemons and strawberry syrup. Add in your favorite vodka and a splash of orange liqueur for a delicious cocktail.

I love sipping this alongside an easy summer snack like my tomato and mozzarella bruschetta or whipped ricotta dip with honey.

What's in a Strawberry Lemon Drop Cocktail?

Ingredients for a Strawberry Lemon Drop Cocktail - Vodka, Strawberry Syrup, Orange Liqueur, Lemon, Sugar.

Vodka - Use your favorite plain vodka for this recipe, or up the flavor with a citrus vodka or strawberry infused vodka.
Strawberry Syrup - Strawberry simple syrup takes only 3 ingredients and 10 minutes to make. It lasts in the fridge for weeks, so make it ahead of time to be ready for happy hour.
Orange Liqueur - Choose a good quality orange liqueur, like Cointreau, for this drink.
Lemon - Fresh lemon juice is a must. With so few ingredients in this cocktail, you’ll definitely notice a difference in flavor if you don’t use fresh squeezed juice. You only need about ½ a lemon per cocktail, so it’s not asking too much.
Sugar for the rim - Be creative with the sugar rim on this cocktail! Use white sugar, red sugar or a mix of both to add a fun garnish. I used pink sugar with edible gold stars in it for these photos.

How to Make a Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini

Prep Your Glass

A hand running a piece of lemon along the rim of a cocktail glass.

Pour sugar into a shallow dish. Run a slice of lemon around the top of a coupe or martini glass.

A hand rolling a cocktail glass rim in a dish of pink sugar.

Dip the rim of the glass into the sugar. Set aside.

Make Your Cocktail

Lemon juice being poured into a cocktail shaker.

Combine vodka, strawberry syrup, lemon juice, and orange liqueur in a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

Strawberry lemon drop cocktail being poured into a coupe glass.

Shake well. Strain into your prepared glass.

Garnish with fresh strawberries or a slice of lemon.

A hand garnishing a glass of strawberry lemon drop martini with a fresh strawberry.

Enjoy!

Make Homemade Strawberry Syrup

This strawberry lemon drop martini recipe gets its strawberry flavor from strawberry syrup, something that takes 10 minutes to make at home! Get my recipe for the easiest berry syrup over on my Strawberry Simple Syrup page.

FAQs and Substitutions

What kind of vodka should I use?

Use your favorite vodka (unflavored) for this recipe. If you want to up the lemon flavor, use lemon vodka or citrus flavored vodka. Want to up the strawberry flavor? Use my homemade strawberry vodka.

Where can I buy strawberry syrup?

Be careful what kind of strawberry syrup you buy in the grocery store for this recipe. Brands like Torani and Monin are made for mixing in drinks and will work well. Look for these in specialty grocery stores. But more commonly found brands like Nestle Quik and Hersheys are made for mixing with milk and other dairy and will NOT work in this recipe. My recommendation is the make your own strawberry simple syrup. It's quick and easy to do with ingredients easily found at any grocery store.

What kind of orange liqueur should I use?

I like Cointreau orange liqueur in this cocktail, but triple sec will also work well if that's what you have on hand or is more in your budget.

A top view of 2 strawberry lemon drop cocktails.

Don’t Miss These Vodka Cocktail Recipes

Tart, lemony cocktails are delicious on hot days. Shake up a cold refreshing cocktail like my lavender lemon drop, blueberry lemon drop, or blueberry lemonade with vodka to add variety to your next happy hour.