Love Bite: The Endless Joy of Cocktail Season

Words: Lauren O’Neill

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Every year it happens; usually around this time. Just as the nights start to get a bit longer and you start transitioning out of your big coat, into your slightly smaller jacket, there’s a shift. You start actually wanting to leave the house after work, instead of hibernating under your duvet, and life becomes a bit of an occasion again. And as winter slowly morphs into spring, another change happens too - we leave pints season behind and move into something fruitier, sexier, and much more fun: cocktail season. 

This year, I knew, unmistakably, that cocktail season had begun because it announced itself in my life via one very specific but undeniable marker, which I came across online. Recently, at the Hollywood Bowl, a memorial concert for the musician Jimmy Buffett (the man responsible for the song Margaritaville, and then later on, the actual real life chain of Margaritaville bars and restaurants, with branches across the world) took place. Buffett died late last year, and he was known for his “tropical rock” sound. He was, by all accounts, an altogether goodtime guy, who was also very beloved and respected, and massive artists like the Eagles, Jon Bon Jovi and Sheryl Crow showed up to perform at the concert – which aptly carried the title “Keep the Party Going” – to pay tribute to him. 

Another musical legend who turned up was Paul McCartney, and, as such, it is Paul who is responsible for cutting the ribbon on Cocktail Season 2024, at least in my brain. A video from the concert, in which McCartney is bopping along to the music - swaying around like a nan at a wedding with a bright orange cocktail in his hand - went viral, and I have been able to think of little else since. The image of him dancing as though he has just heard “Agadoo” come on the jukebox at the pub is the sheer essence of cocktail season: it’s silly, up-for-it, and a massive laugh. 
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Fairly obviously, cocktail season coincides with spring and the start of summer. I’m not saying that nobody enjoys a cocktail in the winter – and there are arguably cocktails best drunk in dark bars while it rains outside, like Negronis and Manhattans which warm your throat as you drink them – but usually it feels incongruous, like a dog walking on two legs. I think of winter as being the time for a pint of Guinness or a rich red wine: drinks that are comfy and cosy. Cocktail season, however, glides in on the wings of the time of year when everyone’s going on holiday, more interested in being out socialising, seeking out an adventure or a change. Just as we get a bit more outgoing in our lives, our drinks orders get a bit more outlandish too.

“Will it be served in a coupe, for you to daintily cup as though you are the most flirtatious coquette at the lawn polo match? Maybe there’ll be salt or fiery chilli around the rim, or it’ll come out from behind the bar with bells, whistles and a sparkle.”

Obviously, it won’t surprise you to know that I am a big advocate of cocktail season. I love cocktails for the same reason that I love party food: I think they feel explicitly feminine and fun. A cocktail makes any old night out a Night Out (that’s why my favourite TikToker is hands down Danielle “so for pres tonight” Walsh), and I think it’s cool to turn ordinary days into little events where you can. 

It’s because of this that I especially love the element of surprise you get with a cocktail. When you order a pint, you know what you’re getting. When you order a cocktail (whether a boozy one or a non-alcoholic option), however, you don’t know what it’s going to arrive looking like. Will it be served in a coupe, for you to daintily cup as though you are the most flirtatious coquette at the lawn polo match? Maybe there’ll be salt or fiery chilli around the rim, or it’ll come out from behind the bar with bells, whistles and a sparkle. The colours might blend into each other prettily as they do in a Tequila Sunrise. Perhaps it’ll be diamond clear, weirdly murky or bright blue.

A cocktail is creativity and possibility: it’s a nice way to try new ingredients that you might not have usually come across. In cocktails I’ve drunk recently, I’ve got to know flavours like tomatillo and aloe vera and Génépy (a liqueur made from Alpine flowers). Often, drinking a cocktail is as interesting as eating a new dish. 
I’m definitely not saying here that you have to drink alcohol to have fun and find out about new things - most cocktail places love catering to non-drinkers - because that’s not true at all. But I like the approach to life in general that the simple act of ordering a cocktail represents: it’s trying something different, it’s having fun, and it’s hopefully going to arrive with a little paper umbrella. 

Ultimately, I think the moral of cocktail season – which we are now happily into, because Paul McCartney drinking something that looks for all the world like an AllBarOne Pornstar Martini says so – is that it’s great for things to be pretty or dainty or a little bit out of the ordinary. Because in general, if there’s even the slightest opportunity to be fussy or cute, you should absolutely take it. Let cocktail season guide us. It’s good for life to feel like a celebration.