25 December 2021: Suzy's Hanky

This cocktail comes from David Lebovitz’s most recent book, Drinking French and was a perfect cocktail for our weather-impacted Christmas Day not-so-much-of-a-gathering. Deliciously orange-y, spicy, and (my personal favorite) based on a juniper forward gin from South Hollow Spirits in North Truro, MA (gifted to me by our son and daughter-in-law), it brought together a great blending of Suze, Cointreau, and sweet vermouth.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz. London-style gin

• 1 oz. sweet vermouth

• 1/2 oz. Suze

• 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier, Cointreau, or Triple Sec (we used Cointreau)

• Orange twist and spring of fresh thyme for garnish

Add the gin, vermouth, Suze and (in our case) Cointreau to a cocktail mixing glass. Fill with ice and stir until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Hold the orange twist over the top of the drink and twist it to release the oils from the peel into the drink. Drop the orange twist into the glass and garnish with the thyme sprig floating on top.