Aoi — Shiroi Recipe

Prepare syrup

Lightly bruise the shiso leaves by stacking and folding them once or twice to release aroma. In a small saucepan combine water and sugar and heat over medium until sugar fully dissolves (do not boil hard). Remove from heat, add the bruised shiso leaves and lemon juice, cover and steep for 15 minutes.

After steeping, strain the syrup through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth into a clean container, pressing gently on the leaves to extract flavor. Cool completely. Refrigerate; syrup keeps 1–2 weeks.

Chill glass

If desired, place the coupe or nick-and-nora glass in the freezer a few minutes or fill with ice water while you prepare the drink.

Combine ingredients

In a cocktail shaker add gin (1.5 oz), aloe & cucumber gin (0.5 oz) or substitute, Midori (0.5 oz), hibiscus liqueur (0.5 oz), lychee juice (1 oz), fresh citrus juice (0.5 oz), and shiso leaf syrup (0.5 oz).

Shake

Fill the shaker with ice (about 1 cup), cap and shake vigorously for 12–15 seconds until the shaker is well chilled and slightly frosted.

Double strain & serve

Discard ice/water from the chilled glass if used. Double strain the cocktail into the chilled coupe or nick-and-nora glass to remove small ice chips and any herb bits. The drink should have a delicate pale pink-to-green hue depending on hibiscus and Midori balance.

Garnish

Float one fresh shiso leaf on top. Optionally thread a lychee onto a pick and rest on the rim, or add a thin cucumber ribbon inside the glass for aromatic effect.

Serve immediately.