I’ve had the house to myself all week, which has meant catching up with friends, eating an unhealthy number of salads, and watching TV I already enjoy — at least I don’t have to share the couch.
Although it’s cooled down a bit outside my apartment, inside it feels like a furnace. Installing the air-conditioning unit in the window requires two people, so for now I’m relying on an old-fashioned solution to stay cool: cocktails.
Half-and-halfs — Arnold Palmers, iced tea and lemonade — are already brilliant. Add gin, and they become something special.
My iced tea habit started early. When I was a kid, during hot August afternoons we made sun tea. My dad would fill a large glass pitcher with water and I got to add the tea bags. The pitcher was too heavy to carry once filled, so I’d sit in the sun and watch the dark color slowly infuse the water. I couldn’t wait to pour it over ice and take that first sip.
You know what’s more boring than watching paint dry? Watching sun tea steep.
I suppose my impatience started young.
That’s why I make black tea simple syrup. I don’t have a deck, and I imagine my downstairs neighbors wouldn’t appreciate pitchers teetering on my fire escape.
Black tea syrup gives you the flavor of iced tea with sweetness already built in — ideal for stirring into a summer cocktail.
You can skip the gin if you prefer, but this drink welcomes a splash. Be mindful: the booze can hide nicely in this mix, so pace yourself if you don’t want a mellow afternoon to turn rowdy.
Or maybe that’s exactly what you want — no judgment here.
Sparkling Black Tea Lemonade Cocktail
Makes one cocktail
1–2 spoonfuls black tea cocktail syrup (recipe below)
1 lemon
1 ounce gin
3–4 ice cubes
soda water
Cut the lemon in half, slice off a round for garnish, and squeeze the juice from both halves into the bottom of a tall glass. Add a few spoonfuls of black tea syrup, pour in the gin, add ice, then top with soda water. Stir well and garnish with the lemon slice and a straw.
Black Tea Cocktail Syrup
Makes about one cup
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup water
5 bags black tea
Combine the brown sugar and water in a medium saucepan and heat over medium, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, add the tea bags, and cover. Let the mixture steep for one to two hours. Discard the tea bags, transfer the syrup to a glass container, and refrigerate until ready to use.