illustrations by Ethan Colchamiro
In this edition of “Mix Your Menu,” our ongoing series where we serve up fresh spins on classic cocktails, we’re highlighting a different kind of brew: tea.
Over the last few years, tea-based drinks have seen an uptick in popularity, from more fruit-forward iced teas to the fermented, slightly sweet tea called kombucha.
But if you aren’t enticed by the fermented brew brouhaha, tea-infused cocktails are the perfect option for those who prefer mature spirits instead.
Breakthru Illinois Beverage Development Specialist Adam Halyckyj crafted three easy-to-sip cocktails inspired by tea’s colorful spectrum of flavors.
Chai Old Fashioned
2 oz. rye whiskey
.5 oz. chai demerara syrup (2 parts demerara sugar to 1 part strong brewed chai tea)
2 dashes aromatic bitters
1 dash orange bitters
Glass: Rocks
Method: Build all ingredients in a stirring glass and stir until properly diluted. Strain into cocktail glass. Add ice.
Garnish: Orange swath (express oils over top of cocktail and insert into side of the glass)
Rosé in Sicily
1.5 oz. gin
1 oz. rosé vermouth
1 oz. Sicilian blood orange green tea syrup
1 oz. ruby red grapefruit juice
.5 oz. fresh lime juice
1 dash honey bitters
1 dash cardamom bitters
Glass: Collins
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker tin, add ice and shake hard for six seconds. Strain into glass and fill with ice.
Garnish: Lime
Karma Chameleon
1.5 oz. single malt whisky
.5 oz. pamplemousse liqueur
1oz. ruby red grapefruit juice
.75 oz. fresh lime juice
.75 oz. chamomile syrup (1:1)
Glass: Collins
Method: Combine all ingredients in a shaker tin, add ice and shake hard for six seconds. Strain into glass and fill with ice.
Garnish: Grapefruit wheel