Meriggiare

Summer is my favorite season:  things are at a slower pace, not embarrassed to take a midday nap and it doesn’t get dark til 9PM.  This drink, created for Cinzano, is my way to express my yearning for summer months and the excitement that I will travel through the mediterranean coast soon. It is floral, fruity with unexpected vegetal notes, not to mention the subtle complexity brought by the Jasmine tea.

Recipe

Meriggiare is an alluring Italian word: rest in shade on a hot summer afternoon

Ingredients

1.5 oz bell pepper infused gin

1 oz Cinzano dry vermouth

1 oz strawberry jasmine tea syrup, with orange blossom honey

0.5 oz fresh lemon juice

Notes

Infuse sliced bell pepper in gin for 24 hours. I used green, yellow and red bell peppers

“Off through the haze that dances in the shine
The warm sun showers in the open glade,
The forest lies, a silhouette design
Dimmed through and through with summer shade.”