The Spring Street cocktail
Created several years ago by Cynthia Schroeder and Blue Light Grill’s Remington Donovan in honor of Schroeder’s boutique, Spring Street, this cocktail’s personality is “effervescent, happy and lively,” in Donovan’s words. And it’s pink as a summer sunset.
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blackberries or mixed berries
1 Tbs. sugar
2 oz. Triple Sec or Cointreau
6 oz. vodka
Champagne or sparkling white wine (happily, “you don’t need to use anything expensive,” says Donovan)
 This shakes includes its own strainer; others will send you shopping for a strainer accessory. |
Use a spoon to mash the berries and sugar with the Triple Sec or Cointreau; be sure to leave small pieces of berries. Mix in vodka. Fill a small martini glass half-full with berry mixture and then top with champagne. Makes approximately four drinks.
It’s done in the sun
When the weather starts to heat up and you entertain the idea of entertaining by the grill, consider stirring up festive signature drinks that feature herbs and local berries and fruit.
Harness the energy of the sun to make the base for your signature cocktail (or mocktail, the nonalcoholic version). You’ll need a large glass pitcher or jar, a hot, sunny spot, and imagination—the heat of the sun will infuse water with the color and flavor of your “tea,” which becomes a simple syrup when sweetened with puréed fruit, honey, juice or sugar. This syrup can be frozen in ice cube trays, ready to pop at your next party.
 Seasonal berries make cocktails more fun. |
But how to build the perfect drink? Sweet liquors like bourbon or whiskey would love the astringency of a sun tea of Orange Pekoe, orange zest, mint and honey; clear liquors like rum and vodka are naturals with lemon and Thai basils, vanilla bean, and lemonade. Get wild with a chilled chai—Darjeeling tea, cinnamon stick, clove, black peppercorn, cardamom, vanilla, and milk or cream.
For a fancy presentation (be it tea or cocktails) consider freezing whole or sliced berries or fruit—the trees and bushes in our area produce cherries, blackberries, plums, peaches, melons, and blueberries (in roughly that order). To avoid disposables, serve drinks in Mason jars (or ask friends to bring their favorite drinking vessel!) and use the frozen fruit as ice cubes in each glass.—Lisa Reeder
The shakes
So you have a signature cocktail, eh? Every great bartender is also armed with a bottle opener, “wine key” (or corkscrew) and a drink shaker. For entertaining, a larger drink shaker enables one to mix and pour in batches. You can also mix each drink in a glass, then tip it into a smaller shaker for mixing, and back into the same glass. Regardless of size, a shaker also requires a strainer (either perforations in the top covered by a small cap, or a separate bar-toy that fits inside the shaker and is held in place while the pour is accomplished). Confident you have what it takes? Don’t forget a bar towel and a couple of great stories.—L.R.