Spring Garden Recipe

Make cucumber juice

Peel (optional) and roughly chop 1/2 of a medium cucumber. Place in a blender and blitz until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth into a bowl, pressing to extract about 1 oz of juice. Discard solids.

Lightly bruise mint

Gently clap or press 6 fresh mint leaves between your palms to release aromatics. Set aside.

In a cocktail shaker, add the bruised mint leaves and simple syrup. Gently muddle once or twice — just enough to release oils without shredding the leaves.

Add the Tanqueray gin (2 oz), St-Germain elderflower liqueur (0.5 oz), fresh cucumber juice (1 oz), and fresh lime juice (0.5 oz) to the shaker.

Fill the shaker with ice (about 6 cubes). Secure the lid and shake vigorously for 10–12 seconds until well chilled.

Double-strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a chilled highball or Collins glass filled with fresh ice. Double-straining removes small mint bits and cucumber pulp for a clean finish.

Top the strained cocktail with 2 oz of sparkling soda (club soda or light tonic) and gently stir once with a bar spoon to integrate, preserving fizz.

Slide a cucumber ribbon down the inside of the glass or skewer it along the rim. Add a fresh mint sprig and a lime wheel on the rim as accents.

Serve immediately with a short straw. Optionally, rub the lime wheel around the glass rim and drop it in for an extra bright aroma.