Refreshing homemade summer drinks for working outside

It's finally summer - gardening season is in full swing here, which finds me spending WAY too much time in the heat and sun, coming in craving a cold, refreshing drink before heading back out. (Especially since my AC situation is somewhat lacking).

I've rediscovered home made ginger ale. Somehow mildly sweet, yeasty, bubbly ginger water hits the spot when I'm dehydrated.

(Ginger Ale - Combine approx 3.75L of water, a tiny pinch of yeast, 1-2 cups sugar, a small glug of molasses, and a finger of minced ginger in a soft 4L water bottle. Screw the top on, leave it in a moderately warm place, refrigerate after the bottle is hard, in 6-48 hrs, to keep it from exploding. Avoid glass. At the lower sugar level, this is pretty close to a commercial sports drink, and only mildly alcoholic if you stop the fermentation once bubbly. To serve - pour in glasses over a strainer if you dislike chewing ginger pieces).  

What do you make to drink while working outside in the summer?

Good idea! I sometimes get bored with plain old water and don't chug as much as I need when working outside.

I go through the tea collection and pull out all the odd varieties, esp. herbal, that didn't work out. Soaking them for half a day in a pitcher adds just a little bit of flavour and clears out the cupboard at the same time.

I keep wanting to make 'switchel' (https://www.almanac.com/switchel-recipe-haymakers-punch). I've done pickle juice, and not always watered down. I like coconut water, but it's usually pretty pricey. So, mostly, I make lemon water with sliced (organic, of course) lemons, a bit of stevia, and some Himalayan salt, in our unfiltered, artesian well water. Sometimes, I'll add fresh mint, basil, other citrus, blueberries, ginger, melon, or cucumber.

I’ve been drinking agrimony tea which is quite refreshing. Maybe other similar teas would work well too.

During the hot season I get into drinking a quick concoction that I just refer to as haymakers, whether or not that's accurate...  I splash a little apple cider vinegar (or any homemade vinegar I might have or alternatively any kind of fruit juice) add a pinch of Himalayan salt and sometimes but not always blackstrap molasses or maple syrup then top the glass with water. It's easy, cheap, tasty and refreshing. Easy to make all kinds of variations.

Switchel: a natural version of a sports drink:

https://permies.com/t/40/57424/Switchel-natural-version-sports-drink

We just missed National Ice Tea Day:

https://permies.com/t/87375/National-Ice-Tea-Day-June

These days I've been drinking maple syrup and water(maple water). Great for the heat.

And honey water. Sugar cane water is another good one.

I think water with a few wedges of lemon floating in it is my favorite drink, period full stop. For fun I will sometimes also add a few mint leaves, or basil leaves if I've got'em, or just the leaves by themselves. Really there are many infusions that are delicious and refreshing in water.

Anyway I read once, when I was little, that one of the coaches of the Oakland A's used to put lemon slices in his team's water cooler and this somehow aided their performance.

Ned Harr wrote:... or basil leaves if I've got'em

Adding savoury herbs is something I never would have imagined. Hm!

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:

Ned Harr wrote:... or basil leaves if I've got'em

Adding savoury herbs is something I never would have imagined. Hm!

I mentioned it in my first post, too. The first time I ever tried combined lemons, basil, and sweetener was in a lemon drop martini, on a cruise. I fell in love with the combination, though there's no alcohol or sugar in my lemon water (which is a few whole lemons, sliced, in 2 gallons of water, I keep in the fridge, all the time), and now, it's lightly sweetened with stevia, rather than sugar.

Chris Clinton wrote:During the hot season I get into drinking a quick concoction that I just refer to as haymakers, whether or not that's accurate...  I splash a little apple cider vinegar (or any homemade vinegar I might have or alternatively any kind of fruit juice) add a pinch of Himalayan salt and sometimes but not always blackstrap molasses or maple syrup then top the glass with water. It's easy, cheap, tasty and refreshing. Easy to make all kinds of variations.

Yes, what you make is closely related to traditional haymaker's punch AKA switchel.  The classic version uses molasses and is flavored with ginger.

Traditionally, powdered ginger was used, so I read.  I like to use fresh ginger and the following shortcut.  I keep around a bottle of ACV infused with fresh ginger slices and mint sprigs.  Dissolve together with a little molasses and a lot of cold water to make switchel on a hot day.

Sumac-ade. Take 2 to 3 sumac berry bunches in a gallon of water,  crush them with your hands in the water and put in fridge for a few days or sun for day and this is the best refreshing drink!!! Often save some for having in winter to share at family gatherings as they keep really well. Just air dry and put in air tight container.

Kombucha, sometimes mixed 50 50 with water.

Water with or without some mint or parsley

Most of the time I drink only water. It's from the tap, but boiled first and then cooled down. Not cooled in the fridge, I don't like it that cold. I prefer 'room temperature', or even 'body temperature'. If I don't forget I add a little 'sea' salt (Atlantic ocean, from France).

I do drink my water kefir, but only one glass a day. Not against the thirst, but for the probiotics.

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:Most of the time I drink only water. It's from the tap, but boiled first and then cooled down. Not cooled in the fridge, I don't like it that cold. I prefer 'room temperature', or even 'body temperature'. If I don't forget I add a little 'sea' salt (Atlantic ocean, from France).

Do you have unreliably safe tap water in the Netherlands?  I would be very surprised.  Why do you boil it first?  To me that always makes for "dead tasting" water.  If you want to eliminate chlorine, I think that can be achieved with sufficient hours of passive evaporation.

Usually water with a splash of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, or my own version of electrolite powder, loosely based on the following recipe:

Electrolyte Mix

1 Gallon Water
2tsp Potassium Chloride (No Salt)
2tsp Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda (not powder))
1tsp Sodium Chloride (Pink Salt)
1tsp Magnesium Sulfate (Food-grade Epsem Salt)

Best served chilled after allowing to mix for 12Hr
--Ike Jones as heard on the Permaculture P.I.M.P.cast Episode #117 @
1:08:40

(Thanks for the reminder, I need to mix up another batch of powder for this summer.)

I'll drink the pickle or sourcraut juice as the jars contents get consumed.

Matthew Nistico wrote:

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:Most of the time I drink only water. It's from the tap, but boiled first and then cooled down. Not cooled in the fridge, I don't like it that cold. I prefer 'room temperature', or even 'body temperature'. If I don't forget I add a little 'sea' salt (Atlantic ocean, from France).

Do you have unreliably safe tap water in the Netherlands?  I would be very surprised.  Why do you boil it first?  To me that always makes for "dead tasting" water.  If you want to eliminate chlorine, I think that can be achieved with sufficient hours of passive evaporation.

1. Yes I think the drinking water here is fairly good. There is no chlorine in it.
2. I don't boil it because I think that's needed. It's just the leftover boiled water from the electric kettle, after making coffee, I pour in my glass to drink. To me it doesn't taste different.

I make a drink, in an insulated thermos, with a variable recipe, but something about like this:

A palm-full of salt or do-it-myself electrolytes
A scoop or two of collagen peptides
A tablespoon of olive or coconut oil
Some lecithin (emulsifier)
A teaspoon of tincture of "throat coat" tea

Ice. Then top off with distilled water.

I make a tincture, so I don't have to brew tea constantly.

With the super-dry, high-altitude, dusty desert air, the throat-coat makes a huge difference for me.

Oh, thank you all for sharing these. I am stealing them! Lately, my community garden has introduced me to iced tea or plain water with lemon verbena leaves and fruit (I know, plain water, so sad). But it is honestly so refreshing, and I am hooked. It has become my go to drink, especially in this California heat.
I usually throw in whatever berries I have on hand, although I recommend not going too wild since certain berry and fruit combinations with lemon verbena may trigger heartburn. Still, overall it is a really delicious summer drink.

Lemon verbena YUM.  

I wish it didn’t increase photosensitivity.  I have fair skin, it already burns easily enough, and I help support the dermatologist with my skin cancers and actinic keratosis lesions.

Thekla McDaniels wrote:Lemon verbena YUM.  

I wish it didn’t increase photosensitivity.  I have fair skin, it already burns easily enough, and I help support the dermatologist with my skin cancers and actinic keratosis lesions.

There are a few similars you can use for an almost identical taste: we rotate out lemongrass, verbena, and two kinds of lemon balm (the usual lemon balm that's more like a mint, and then one with a woodier stalk that the internet tells me is Lippia alba). And sometimes lemon thyme too! They all have a similar taste if you need to avoid one.

I'll be honest, nothing beats an ice cold beer when I am soaked with sweat and cooling off in front of a fan!