Picnics call for refreshing, unfussy long drinks—Arnold Palmers, mojitos—beverages that don’t take too much prep and provide ample hydration. But furthermore, ones that keep up well to move and lengthy, languorous days in the solar. The Sandia Fairy, something of a multiplied watermelon margarita, exceeds on each count. It may also pique the curiosity of any cocktail nerds in your institution with a surprising combination of flavors.
“I like blending the pepper and soil flavors of the tequila with the candy, herbal taste of absinthe,” says Victor Lopez, an agave-spirit enthusiast, and longtime bartender at PDT (Please Don’t Tell), the well-known neo-speakeasy in New York’s East Village. And for the base, the most iconic of summer fruits: watermelon.
Watermelon has a wonderful capability to support and blend properly with various flavors. They have salty factors like feta cheese or candy accompaniments, including berries and stone fruit. Here the juice bounces off the savoriness of El Tesoro and tempers the rich, woody notes from the bourbon barrel getting older. The tequila’s natural notes are delivered via the fennel, mint, and tarragon of the St. George Absinthe. “They’re like two exquisite friends that come collectively,” says Lopez—that is exactly how a picnic must be.
Using the mint only as a garnish presents a clear-eyed hit of aromatics without dialing up the herbaceousness an excessive amount. If you may discover the unique bottles indexed, ask your liquor keeper for a reposado that asserts “one hundred% de Agave” on the label so you comprehend it’s the actual deal; any absinthe would do in a pinch, even a pastis if pickings are slender.
For method, the trick is to pre-batch, i.e., blend it ahead of time to finish inside the glass instead of lugging the entirety to the park. If you don’t have a juicer, you may purée watermelon in a blender and pressure out the solids to get sparkling juice. And you may want to add a little extra simple syrup depending on the ripeness of your watermelon.
Combine all components in a field and stir, chilling for up to two to a few hours before serving; watermelon juice is very fragile, so whatever beyond 5 hours is pushing it. At your picnic, pour immediately into Collins glasses with ice or fill in an ice-stuffed pitcher to allow visitors to help themselves. (Notice, the greater time it sits over ice in the pitcher, the more dilution you’ll get from melting.) Take a twig of mint and clap it among your palms to release the oils, and garnish at the side of a small slice of watermelon.
As our lives get busier, our sleep is the first thing we always seem to sacrifice. Food halls in NYC have come to be almost as ubiquitous as nail salons. Time Out Market New York is the most recent, directly off Brooklyn Bridge Park and set interior Empire Stores. Energy drinks are huge in the United States and other parts of the world. Designed to provide both a shot of energy and a source of nutrients, these drinks allow us to make it through the day without passing out before lunchtime. In recent years so many people have adapted their lifestyle around these drinks that stories have started to surface of the possible negative attributes of these drinks. Alleged death from consuming these drinks in clubs and during other activities has raised a red flag to legislatures worried about energy drink health concerns. What about these drinks is cause for alarm, and how many of these claims are accurate?
A Short History
