Gin Basil Smash — 2000s bartender muddles fresh basil with gin and proved

A bartender in Hamburg started muddling fresh basil with gin in 2008, and accidentally launched the herb cocktail revolution. The Gin Basil Smash proved that mint didn’t have to own the botanical cocktail game.

Ingredients

• ½ oz gin
• 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• 1 oz simple syrup
• Garnish: them bright green
• Garnish: aromatic, not wilted from sitting in your fridge for two weeks

Method

Grab your shaker and add the basil leaves first. Give them a gentle muddle — just enough to release their oils without turning them into green confetti. You want to bruise the leaves, not obliterate them. Add the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Fill with ice and shake hard for twelve seconds. The basil will infuse during the shake, turning the drink a beautiful pale green. Double strain through a fine mesh strainer to catch any leaf fragments — nobody wants basil bits stuck in their teeth. You want it cold enough that the shaker frosts in your hands.

Serve

Serve this up in a coupe with no ice. The traditional garnish is a single fresh basil leaf, but slap it between your palms first to release the aroma before you drop it in.

Pro Tip

The key to this drink is fresh basil — dried herbs are useless here. If your basil is starting to turn black around the edges, buy new basil. The drink lives or dies on that bright, peppery herb flavor. Some bartenders add a pinch of black pepper to amplify the spice, and it works beautifully.