In addition to the heat wave we’ve had the last week or so, New York has also been treated to a number of sudden, intense thunderstorms.
With the exception of Iggy—who hides under the bed at the first hint of thunder–we love sitting on the stoop or at the fire escape watching the storm brew. The only problem with these otherwise pleasant summer storms is that they don’t always bring along cooler temperatures.
I went to the Union Square Greenmarket only about an hour before yesterday’s rain started. I came home with fresh blueberries and right away, we knew they were the exact thing to base a cocktail on. We came up with this drink, the Summer Storm, as a way to both handle the heat and to pay homage to the stormy weather out the window.
Made with gin, blueberries, soda water and some mint from our fledgling garden, the Summer Storm is refreshing even when the sun is still shining.
We puréed a handful of blueberries with a little bit of water, which is what gives the drink its blueberry flavor and intense color. Then, we put 1/2 oz. of fresh lime juice, a 1/2 oz. simple syrup and the blueberry purée in a shaker.
Add 2 oz. of gin and shake. Strain into a chilled Collins glass, top with soda and garnish with mint.
We used St. George’s Terroir Gin, made in California—a souvenir from our trip to L.A. It gave the cocktail a nice earthy tone and we could almost taste the coastal waters that it was made near, although that might have just been the residual rain droplets.
– Ryan and Laura
i’m a sucker for any kind of gin cocktail, but this one looks particularly delicious!
yum! gin, my fave and summer blueberries + mint! love the packaging on that gin too!
What a beauty and I love the name!
oooo that looks delish.
I hare gin (it is too sour for me) but for that I’d compromise!:p would it be tasty with vodka, too?
Beautiful cocktail! Blueberries (and other berries) nicely complement our Terroir Gin’s woodsy notes of Douglas fir, bay laurel, fennel, and coastal sage. @Dora, sure, vodka could work, but it’d be a more one-dimensional experience—lacking all those beautiful herbaceous notes that the botanicals bring to the picture. Many gin haters/skeptics are shocked at how much they like our gins. If you have the chance to try Terroir (or our Botanivore & Dry Rye Gin), we hope you’ll be similarly swayed by how lush and elegant gin can be.
Cocktails and Summer storms… that sounds like a perfect plan to me!
I love your blog. I have a similar one and aspire to one day look like yours. Your pictures are beautiful.
thenycdiet.blogspot.com
How convenient – I just purchased all of these ingredients at the market yesterday…
Yet another classic recipe!
xoxo,
mon amy
I did a very similar cocktail today called a Blueberry Smash…smash blueberries, lemon, lime and mint and then combine with vodka and St. Germain. We need rain so bad in Colorado I should have done a Blueberry Storm and a rain dance huh?