Freshers Week Favourites: Student Drinks Ideas for September
Posted by Erin McCall on 24th Aug 2022
Calling all uni students! Looking for some student drinks ideas and inspo to be the envy of your new housemates? Perhaps you’re looking to try out that infamous jalepeno and rose trend? Fancy a go at no-and-low?
Around 320,000 of you have applied to university this year, and in mere weeks, will be descending on the 165 higher education institutions up and down the UK.
Students are expected to spend around £62 on alcohol during their first week at university, according to research by UCAS and with the cost-of-living crisis looming, we thought we’d round up some of our top student drinks ideas and Freshers Week favourites to make sure you’ve got the best booze (and non-booze) stocked up along with some super simple serves to try out for yourself.
Vodka
Top of our list, vodka is a drinks cabinet/corner/shelf must-have. With its neutral flavour, it’s an ideal base for a wide range of cocktails from Cosmo’s to Martini’s. Alternatively, if you fancy drinking it with a simple mixer, it pairs perfectly with pretty much anything soft drink or juice you find at the back of your cupboards.
A true student staple, gone are the days where we’re settling for cheap vodka. In fact, CGA data shows that consumers are turning to ‘trading up’ when it comes to their alcohol choices.
This means that people are drinking less, but better – turning away from cheap brands and, instead opting for something a little more premium.
We recommend:
Ciroc Premium Vodka
£30.99
Ciroc is a premium French vodka, one of the only vodkas in the world to be made from French grapes. Exceptionally smooth and with a silky mouthfeel, it’s an ideal choice for cocktails.
Plus, it’s now available on ClickNDrink for only £30.99 for a 70cl bottle.
Use this for: Channel your inner James Bond with a Vodka Martini. Shaken, not stirred.
Simply pour 60ml vodka, 1 tbsp dry vermouth and ice into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until cold. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with an olive or a lemon peel.
Rum
The rum renaissance is upon us!
Yes, rum is back and it’s back with a bang. It’s big news at the minute with everyone trying their hand at creating and curating some amazing rum concoctions.
Plus, with a wide range of rums on offer; from coconut rum, to spiced and everything in between – there’s something for everyone to enjoy so let’s raise a glass to the good stuff!
We recommend:
Old J Cherry
£21
A collection of seven exciting flavours, the range of Old J Spiced Rums offer something for everyone’s tastes. The range includes Spiced, Pineapple, Cherry, Gold, Dark, Silver and Tiki Fire – all flavoured with sweet notes of lime and vanilla, perfect for spicing up your student drinks!
Old J Cherry Spiced Rum has all the flavour Old J lovers have come to expect from their favourite spiced rum, but with the extra flavour of marasca cherries.
The addition of these cherries enhances the vanilla and spice flavours and gives Old J Cherry a beautifully rounded fruitiness that works brilliantly in a range of cocktails, or just mixed with cola.
Plus, at only £21, it’s an absolute steal!
Use this for: A drink that tastes like Fruit Salad sweets? Yes please!
Simply combine 25ml of Old J Cherry and top with Pineapple Soda. Serve over ice and garnish with citrus or raspberries. Simple yet so, so good!
Low and No
More and more of us are going tee-total as we welcome in ‘Generation Moderation’. As many as 20% of students are estimated to abstain from alcohol as going low-and-no becomes more mainstream.
Whether it’s economic factors, austerity, cost of living – or just to engage in more health-conscious behaviour – it’s clear that drinks brands are taking our dedication to reducing our alcohol intake seriously.
We recommend:
Seedlip Spice
£20.99
Seedlip Spice is a non-alcoholic spirit with an aromatic flavour profile, retailing for only £20.99 on ClickNDrink. It has a warm spice-led flavour from allspice berries sourced from Jamaica, citrus notes from lemon and grapefruit peels, and a long bitter finish from high-quality barks.
Use this for: Seedlip Spice can be used as a base spirit for non-alcoholic cocktails or combined with tonic water and ice.
Combine 50ml Seedlip Spice and 125ml tonic water into a highball glass. Add ice and garnish with a red grapefruit twist.
Wine
Well, we couldn’t finish this article without featuring a rose could we? How else would you try out the jalapeno and rose combination?
We recommend:
Healy & Gray Zinfandel Rose
£24.99
With a bright salmon pink colour and fresh nose of both strawberry and raspberry, the Healy & Gray miniatures are ideal for single serve options when you’re going for pre-drinks or simply sipping at the park.
Plus, they come in a back of 12 meaning they’re sure to last – and all for the unbeatable price of only £24.99.
Use this for: Trying out the jalapeno in wine trend
Pour a glass of Healy & Gray Zinfandel, add a few slices of jalapeno and indulge in a spicy kick to your afternoon wine tastings.
What will you be drinking this Freshers? Have you got any student drinks ideas we should be trying?
Let us know through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.