A Long, Meandering Summer Drink
June's Cocktail of the Month comes in high volume and low proof for sipping through longer sunsets
The Cocktail - Summer Sling
I like long drinks. Usually those are highballs, but I don’t write much about those these days. I’ve had some recent recipes that still involve soda or tonic water, but usually only an ounce or two to top off. To kick off summer properly, I wanted a true, long drink. And this one’s a winner.
Fresh citrus, salt, baking spices, orange-y syrup, and a little bite all combine to result in a delicious ~7oz sipper that came off much more tiki than I expected. It’s not really all too similar to the more famous sling you’re thinking of, but I think it scratches mostly the same itch. There’s a lot of flavor here, but they all play really well together.
What You Have - Free Spirts Spirit of Gin, Noverna
Spirit of Gin works really well to provide a bite without booze in a larger drink; you’ll get the flavor and a hit of the bite, and more liquid will help mask some of the capsaicin spice that you can sometimes taste. I don’t think it acts any differently than a “well” gin would here.
The noverna comes back out in more of a supporting role here, but the flavor still shines through. All of the baking spices are highlighted and the sugar doesn’t act too much like added syrup. Just a hint of it goes such a long way.
What to Buy - Aperol
I’ve used Aperol a lot before (like here, where I really just wanted to write something as an excuse to share that hero photo).
Summer Batch Cocktail - Blush
We went camping with some friends this weekend without much planning, but one thing I definitely did have time to plan out was a batch cocktail to take. We were only gone for one night, so I didn't feel the need to be constrained to my usual flask cocktail
But I haven’t really dove into it before. I’ll do that soon, but for now think of Aperol as Campari that switches out half its booze for sugar. It’s still bitter, but not bracing. It’s orange-y but not zesty. It’s sweet, but not cloying. It’s perfect for summer, and great for more than a spritz.
What to Make - Salty Lemonade
Lemonade as a cocktail ingredient gets a bad rap. I think that’s mostly because it’s usually out of a gun and combined with bad well booze. This ain’t that. This is perfect. I think I might make 100 gallons of this this summer. Mark Bittman is the GOAT of simple recipes, follow it exactly. Always add the salt.
The Recipe
The best part about a true long drink is you only get a single glass and one spoon dirty. There’s lots of dirty pans in the process, but only one dirty glass when you actually make the drink. Fill a tall glass with ice and add the rest:
0.5 oz noverna
1 oz Spirt of Gin
1.5 oz Aperol
3 oz salty lemonade
Stir it all together, sip, and enjoy.