Tools of the Trade recipe and post #7: Bee my basil

A good bar tender knows how to make a drink taste good, a great bar tender has a couple of GREAT drinks under his belt. Sometimes the right cocktail hits the wrong mouth and the results can be disorienting, but every once in a while the right cocktail hits the right mouth. This post is about that cocktail and that mouth.

Grab a healthy handful of basil (5-8 leaves) then make the portions easy to remember. As I am making drinks on the fly, I often forget to write down the recipe in between taking payment, making other drinks, checking IDs and explaining to guests whats in the drink. So I tried to keep a habit of making the portions simple and easy to remember.

This fateful evening, a dashing women ordered something "Fun with basil!" as to which I obliged in normal fashion. A lil vodka, a lil St. Germain, a lil Yellow Chartruese, a touch of lime,lemon and grapefruit juice. Shakey Shakey. Serve in a cold collins glass and watch the dashing women fill her mouth with refreshing delight. Holy Smokes Sam! This is amazing. Yeah Yeah Yeah I said in agreement. Little did I know that her enthusiasm for the drink would spark excitement not only through the entire bar but from then on the entire town of Aspen and very quickly on to the drink list. The Bee My Basil was born. For one summer, the Bee My Basil was more popular than any drink other than the good ol vodka soda.

Maybe that is why the drink was so successful, I remember I was always trying to class up the ol vodka soda with a dash of culture and depth. Well it worked and now I wish I would've listened to all the people telling me to put it in a can. Now I missed out and white claw is making billions. Once again this comes down to listening to your customers, truly listening to your customers.

Cheers

Sammy G

In a shaker tin add:

1.5 ounces Vodka - .5 ounces Yellow Chartreuse - .5 ounces St germain

.5ounce Lemon, Lime and Grapefruit Juice

5-8 leaves of basil

Shakey Shakey

Pour over Ice and add soda if you want. Garnish with any of the above mentioned citrus.