This easy berry vodka smash makes a cocktail that looks beautiful and tastes seriously refreshing, featuring blackberries or raspberries, mint, and lime.

Ready for our new favorite drink recipe? It’s a vodka smash. It’s tangy and refreshing, featuring muddled blackberries, mint, and lime. It’s tangy, it’s sweet, and it’s got a bit of back-end vodka flavor, though it’s not too strong. Basically: these go down easy — so beware! Alex and I had one while out with some friends at a restaurant in town. Of course we had to try our hand at recreating it: and it was simpler than we thought! Here’s how to make a berry vodka smash at home.

What’s a vodka smash?

What is a vodka smash? A smash is a fruity, icy cocktail that often highlights seasonal fruit. It’s a drink for hot summer days, and can be made with your spirit of choice. Mint is a classic choice used in a smash, but other herbs can work. If you’d like, you can water down your smash a bit, or top off with a bit of soda water. The smash is pretty variable, and flexible depending on the season. (Here’s more on the history of the smash cocktail.)

Tools required for this cocktail

For this vodka smash, you’ll need a few cocktail tools: or one of our alternatives below in case you’re not ready to add the professional ones to your kitchen! Here’s what you’ll need to make a vodka smash:

Favorite Cocktail Shaker: A cocktail shaker quickly chills cocktails by shaking them against ice, then has a perforated lid so you can pour out the cocktail without pouring out the ice as well.
Cocktail Muddler: A cocktail muddler is used to mash fruits and herbs in a glass or cocktail shaker to release their flavor.

Now, don’t want to invest in the professional cocktail tools? Here are some alternatives you can use instead?

What can I use instead of a cocktail shaker? Use a glass mason jar. Place the cocktail in the jar and fill it with ice. Screw on the top and shake away!
What can I use instead of a muddler? Use a wooden spoon to gently mash the berries, lime wedges, and mint leaves.

How to make a vodka smash

Once you’ve acquired the tools for the job, making this berry vodka smash is a breeze. It’s all about muddling the fresh ingredients together, then adding the alcohol and sweetener. Alex and I like to use maple syrup to sweeten our cocktail recipes, but you can use simple syrup if you prefer. Also, you can use any berry you’d like: we’ve called for blackberries or raspberries in the recipe below, but others are welcome. Let us know in the comments below if you try a variation.

Here’s how to make a vodka smash (see the full recipe below):

In a cocktail shaker, muddle together blackberries or raspberries, lime wedges, and fresh mint.
Add the vodka and maple syrup.
If desired, top it off with soda water. Serve with crushed ice!

And that’s it: how to make a berry vodka smash!

Let us know in the comments below if you try it! We hope you love this blackberry cocktail: it’s one of our favorites of the season. Except for this blackberry margarita, of course!

This recipe is…

Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, gluten-free, dairy-free, refined sugar free, and naturally sweet.