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Hello from all of us at Epicurious, a team of recipe website professionals who are passionate about hydration. On hot days when that feels like a full-time job, we rely on a lineup of fun cold beverages to keep us going. From chocolate oat milk to sparkly, coconut water-laced refreshers, these are the 11 drinks we're reaching for again and again until this heat wave ends.
Coffee
“I'm drinking coffee over ice with chocolate oat milk and maple syrup. I'm not drinking cold brew, or even proper iced coffee, really. I'm just taking my boyfriend's hot coffee, pouring it over very big, very square ice cubes, and adding syrup and oat milk. I know the coffee is being diluted; I don't care. I think maple syrup is the best sweetener for any cold coffee, and it brings out the chocolate flavor in the oat milk, which is surprisingly savory and deep.” — David Tamarkin, Digital Director
“I'm at home with my parents right now, and my stepmom buys big bottles of Califia Farms almond milk mocha cold brew. I take my leftover cold coffee, pour a glass most of the way full with that coffee and ice, and then add just a splash of this stuff to top it off.” — Emily Johnson, Commerce Editor
Bubbles
"Besides drinking a ton of regular water, I am drinking lemon Spindrift. I love it: It's not too sweet, not too bubbly, and just lemony enough." — Joey DeLeo, Photographer and Senior Visuals Editor
“My very favorite bubbly water is Gerolsteiner, which is delightfully mineral tasting—chalky in a really good way. It's good with a glass of whiskey or mezcal. But that might be too complicated for right now.”— Maggie Hoffman, Senior Editor
“Have you had the new watermelon La Croix? I love it. It's just a little bit sour, tastes almost like watermelon candy, but not in an overpowering or cloying way. I think I drank four cans yesterday, which I know is not good for my teeth, but I am not deterred.” — Wilder Davies, Staff Writer
"I have spent the past five years acting like I'm above the whole seltzer trend because 1) I refused to pay money for water in a can and 2) what does "naturally essenced" even mean? But a friend recently offered me a tangerine La Croix and I am now 100% the person who regularly checks to make sure we're not running low on our carbonated water supply. Yes, I'm years late to the party, but that doesn't make it any less tart, refreshing, and exactly what I want when the forecast calls for 80-percent humidity." — Alex Pastron, Audience Development Manager
“I also don't usually love grape flavored things, but the grape Waterloo seltzer has a really pleasing artificial grape flavor that's kind of candy-ish or soda-ish, but without all the sweetness. That might sound crazy or bad, but it's not! I've found it super refreshing.” — Emily Johnson
“I'm a sucker and bought into the Topo Chico trend. That sharp carbonation can't be matched!” — Travis Rainey, Associate Photo Editor
"Excluding wine and cocktails, I mostly drink Sodastream'd water with citrus peels. But when I am in need of hydrating or want to drink something super refreshing, it's half Harmless Harvest, half seltzer, and a squeeze of lime. Non-alcoholic drinks do not get better than this." — Joe Sevier, Associate Editor
In Lieu of Booze
“I'm usually not a big cocktail person but I've really been wanting a refreshing little something in the evening, and am trying not to open a bottle of wine every night. I also seem to want a cold celebratory drink after every hot evening run and making that an actual cocktail would be a little dangerous. Ghia, a non-alcholic spirit, is perfect. The bitterness and earthiness of it makes it really something to savor. I usually drink it over ice, or with seltzer and a generous squeeze of lime–but recently I grated some ginger and lime peel in there too and that was absolutely the best drink of summer so far.” — Lauren Joseph, Associate Commerce Editor
“I first tried San Pellegrino Chinotto at a little Italian restaurant in my neighborhood last summer, and my bitterness-loving self has never been the same. Made from a variety of orange of the same name, chinotto soda is dark like Coke but less syrupy-sweet; it feels like a specialty cocktail, but costs only $5 for a pack of four (extremely cute) bottles.”— Kendra Vaculin, Staff Writer