Let’s raise a toast to the class of 2017!  These simple drink recipes will fill your empty glasses, are easy to make and are fancy enough to impress your friends and family the day of graduation.  Bonus tip: Pre-mix the drinks the night before so you can save those last few precious moments of college to spend at the beach instead of in the kitchen.  Here’s to you, Gauchos!

Sam Wulff / Daily Nexus

Thank you, MOMosa
The perfect drink to celebrate the ones who got us through our four years of college. Add a few raspberries for a pop of color that emulates a Santa Barbara sunset.

Recipe:
1 part orange juice
1 part champagne or sparkling wine
3-4 raspberries for garnish

The Graduate
“I’ve got one word for you: gin.” This blueberry take on a Tom Collins is perfect for those graduation Instagrams and is a refreshing way to sport your gold-and-blue UCSB colors. Layer gin and lemon juice on top of the blueberry simple syrup to get the ombré effect. Topped with a lemon slice and a few blueberries, this drink screams Gaucho pride.

Recipe:
.75 oz. lemon juice
.75 oz. blueberry simple syrup
2 oz. gin
2 oz. club soda
Combine ingredients over ice and serve with a slice of lemon and blueberries.

Blueberry Simple Syrup:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup blueberries
Combine ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes. Chill.

Gaucho Gimlet
Olé Olé Olé Olé, Gauchos, Gauchos! This classic drink is updated with a rosemary simple syrup that will get you in the summertime mood. Lift your drinks to the best four years of your life.

Recipe:
.75 oz. rosemary simple syrup
.75 oz. lime juice
2 oz. gin
Combine ingredients over ice and serve with a lime wedge and a sprig of rosemary.

Rosemary Simple Syrup:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp. chopped rosemary

Combine ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes. Chill.

However you may choose to celebrate the end of your undergraduate experience, the most important thing is to surround yourself with the people who helped get you here. So cozy up with some of these drinks and you’re sure to have a fantastic finale to college! Congrats!

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