This 4-Ingredient Cocktail Is the Drink of the Summer

The Allrecipes Allstars—the most engaged users on our site—have spoken: The drink of summer 2024 is the Chilton! This West Texas favorite and thirst quencher extraordinaire is here to make a splash beyond the Lone Star State this summer. 

The Chilton represents a summer vibe that’s all about back-to-basics patio sippers: Nothing experimental, no specialty mixers required—just old standards and pantry staples. With four easy ingredients, the Chilton is the definition of no-fuss refreshment: equal parts vodka and freshly squeezed lemon juice over ice with as much sparkling water as you prefer and a salted rim. Easy.

The History Behind The Chilton Cocktail

It figures that such a down-and-dirty beat-the-heat cocktail was born in semi-arid plains of Lubbock, where summer temps can climb into the triple digits. Beyond that, though, the drink’s exact origins are less clear. 

Local legend has it that the Lubbock Country Club bar was the first to concoct this bubbly quencher in the early 20th century; its namesake was Dr. Chilton who frequented the bar and had this drink made on special request. The veracity of this story is lost to history: Recent attempts by Texas Monthly and the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal to investigate this tall tale and identify the original Dr. Chilton have come up short. But that’s part of the fun of the Chilton.

"I think all the best stories start that way,” Lubbock bartender Samuel Morin told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. “It allows each person to have their own individual take on its origin.”

“The idea of it coming from the country club,” he added, “is really charming.”

Part of the simplicity of the drink, Morin suggests, might have arisen out of necessity. The Lubbock Country Club was founded in 1921, during Prohibition, and it stands to reason that the bar stock at the time may have been limited to simple liquors and mixers.

What’s undeniable, though, is that such a simple, soda-based drink is an obvious answer to the region’s famed heat. Take, for instance, another Texas classic: Ranch Water, a simple combo of tequila, soda water, and lime invented in Austin in the late 1980s. 

It’s easy to see how these beverages rose to ubiquity in bars across the Republic of Texas: As much as a cocktail can, they’re designed to hydrate. With no added sugar or syrup, the Chilton goes down light and easy, and the wake-me-up hit of soda water, the bright squeeze of citrus, and crystal clear liquor tying it all together make for a satisfying relief from the heat. And you don’t have to be a West Texan to understand that!

What the Allrecipes Allstars Have to Say About The Chilton

“I love this light, fresh, effervescent drink,” writes Allstar Ashley Berger, “especially after an afternoon of pickleball!”

“Vodka is my liquor of choice, and it's so refreshing with bubbly water and the tang of lemon!” adds Allstar Elizabeth Dalton. 

It’s a no-brainer: “Super simple ingredients, quick to whip up, and so refreshing on a hot day,” writes Allstar France Cevallos. “The Chilton is the Ranch Water of 2024!”