Bloody hell – how on earth did we get this far! Today marks the fifth birthday for the Wine Wankers, and from both Conrad and I (Drew), a big thank you for hanging out with us and talking shit about wine on twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google +, LinkedIn, and here!  We truly believe we have the best job in the world.

If you’re intrigued about how on earth we got here, you can reminisce with last year’s blog post where Conrad explains all.  Over the past year we’ve travelled to some amazing wine regions and made friends with some of the coolest winemakers on the planet who also share our no bullshit passion for wine. Running The Wine Wankers is a big beast, and considering both Conrad and I have full time jobs as well as managing five social media accounts and a blog, please excuse us when go missing for a coupe of days – we’re earning a living!

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But rather than boring you with more of our story and all the expensive booze we drink on a daily basis, let’s celebrate! It’s freaking hot in Sweden (where I live at the moment) and I need something really cold and lots of fun to drink – and is cheap to make!

Frosé, Friesling and Pinot Freezio

Last year’s hot trend was the Frosé, however every single one I tried was lacking a punch. They were too sweet and two dimensional. The Wine Wankers believe supercharging your Wine Slushies with a fortified wine is exactly the best way to survive summer.

Tips for making the perfect wine slushie 

• freeze your wine into ice cubes the night before if you don’t want to dilute your slushie with ice!
• Experiment! Use your wine as a basis and then super charge it with a hefty swig of an appropriate fortified wine. Examples of fortified wines include any kind of vermouth, Port, White Port, Campari, Aperol, Lillet etc. You can even throw vodka in if you want – it’s a birthday party after all, and mum won’t smell it on your breath later!
• Frozen fruit is your friend! Not only will it not dilute your drink like ice, it will add another layer of flavour
• Use a high speed blender so the slushie mixes nice and fine
• Make sure you balance the sweetness of your wine slushie with lemon or lime juice
• Have sugar syrup on hand in case your slushie is too tart
• Add herbs such as mint or even sweet basil if you want to give your slushie and exotic touch
• Don’t spend too much on the wine. The other ingredients and the icy cold nature of the slushie will negate any of the flavours you pay a premium for!

Try these simple recipes

Negroni Frosé – half a bottle of rosé, 60 mls of Campari, 60mls sweet vermouth, a handful of frozen strawberries, 45mls lime juice, 60 mls of sugar syrup.

Midsommar Friesling –  half bottle of Riesling, elderflower syrup/cordial mixed with water and made in to ice cubes (2 handfuls), 100 mls of white vermouth, 10 mint leaves, 60 mls of sugar syrup

Je suis Pinot Freezio – half bottle of Pinot Grigio, 100 mls of Lillet, lime juice, 60 mls of sugar syrup

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