April Fool’s Martini

A riddle: When is an Apple Martini not an Apple Martini?

The answer: Today.

In honor of April Fool’s Day we decided to mix up some trouble. Sure, we could have filled your vodka bottles with gin or added hot sauce to your whiskey, but those tricks are for amateurs.  Instead, we challenged Aisha Sharpe, our advisor and co-founder of drinks consultancy Contemporary Cocktails, to come up with a cocktail that tricks both the eye and the palate. No matter how many times you read the recipe, when you see her Apple Fool’s Martini you expect to taste a cloying sweet Apple Martini. But her drink—which calls for tequila, Chartreuse, ruby red grapefruit juice and basil—is distinctly herbal with a spicy and tart kick. Maybe it’s the apple slice garnish but Sharpe gets us every time. The good news is that this drink is both a trick and a treat.

Apple Fool’s Martini

Contributed by: Aisha Sharpe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1.5 oz Don Julio Blanco Tequila
• .5 oz Green Chartreuse
• 5 Basil leaves
• 1 oz Ruby red grapefruit juice
• .75 oz Lime juice
• .75 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• Garnish: Thin apple slice or maraschino cherry
• Glass: Martini

PREPARATION:

In a shaker muddle the simple syrup and basil leaves. Add the remaining ingredients and ice. Shake and strain into a chilled Martini glass. Garnish with a thin apple slice or a maraschino cherry.

For another April Fool’s cocktail try Eben Freeman’s Pimm’s Pony.