Emerald City Tea

Bourbon & Whiskey

Mar 14

So this cocktail got stuck somewhere between St. Patrick's Day and The Wizard of Oz. It happens. A lot more than you'd think.

And yah. I gave my chicken green feather extensions for St. Paddy's. Didn't want her to get pinched. #safetyfirst

The inspiration for this cocktail came directly from these gorgeous, vintage glasses that my SIL gave me for my birthday (HOLLA, ELSIE!). I knew I would use them for a St. Paddy's cocktail, but my brain also went directly to The Wizard of Oz; they look like they came straight outta Emerald City...amirite? SO let's kill two stones with one bird.

E M E R A L D C I T Y T E A

Makes one serving.

1 oz. Jameson Irish Whiskey
1 oz. Greenbar Distillery Grand Poppy Amaro (Poppies...poppiessss...poppies will put them to sleeeeep...)
1 oz. 1:1 mixture of cooled jasmine green tea and matcha green tea (I used Trader Joe's brand of each of these)
.5 oz. homemade mint simple syrup (directions below)
.5 oz. heavy whipping cream
2 fresh mint leaves (dusted with edible gold foil DON'T COMPLAIN ABOUT IT JUST DO IT)
Matcha powder to dust

To make approximately 1 cup of fresh mint simple syrup, place 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves in a small pot over medium-high heat. Bring just to a boil long enough for the sugar to completely dissolve, remove from heat and set aside to steep for 30 minutes. Strain mixture into an airtight 8 oz. jar and place in fridge to cool. Store in fridge for about a week.

Teas: brew a cup of jasmine green tea according to instructions, then add one packet of matcha powder to it and let steep for about ten minutes. Place mixture in fridge to cool before using.

To make your cocktail: in a shaker over ice, add whiskey, liqueur, tea mixture, simple syrup, and cream and shake until chilled. Strain liquid into a coupe glass, dust with matcha powder, and garnish with two fresh mint leaves. Maybe they have gold on them, maybe they don't. DON'T STRESS ABOUT IT.

The resulting cocktail is something akin to a grasshopper (but with less chocolate and more whiskey), with a lovely faint, matcha-green hue. If you'd like it to be greener for St. Paddysake, sub bright green crème de menthe liqueur for the mint simple syrup. More alcohol? Why not.