The second of the Christmas spirits to visit Scrooge is the Ghost of Christmas Present. Dickens describes him as "jolly giant" with dark brown curls. Oddly enough, his TV depictions always reminded us of one of our uncles. Anyhow...the burly ghost shows Scrooge around London taking him first to his nephew's Christmas celebration where those assembled are making merry. He also shows Scrooge multiple scenes of those who are deprived during Christmas, using Scrooge's own words against him.
Yesterday's cocktail, the Ghost of Christmas Past, represented the classic version of our cocktail trio. For the Ghost of Christmas Present, we went wanted to make a martini that represented one of the prevalent themes found in the recent cocktail renaissance, the combining of herbs with spirits. The cocktail we constructed is a slight twist on the classic gimlet (a martini with lime juice) with the addition of basil and cucumber.
Ghost of Christmas Present Cocktail:
- 2 oz Victoria gin
- ½ oz lime juice
- 1 ½ inch piece of cucumber, peeled and seeded
- 1 tsp simple syrup
- 2-3 basil leaves
- cocktail glass
Cube the cucumber into small pieces and place in a cocktail shaker. Coarsely tear the basil leaves into the cocktail shaker with the cucumber and muddle together. Add ice, gin, lime juice and simple syrup. Shake until ice cold. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Cocktail Notes:
Typically a gimlet uses Rose's Lime Juice which is sweetened and takes the sour edge off of the lime juice. Depending on your taste, you may want to adjust the sweetness of the cocktail with more or less simple syrup.
Inspiration:
Sometimes, the Ghost of Christmas Present is a jolly giant with a broody side. And sometimes, he's Dot - the unabashed sister from the Animaniacs.
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