She Strengthens

Elevate Your Happy Hour with a Smoky Whiskey Highball

When it comes to crafting the perfect highball, author and expert Nick Mautone swears by a rich, smoky whiskey style. He recommends an Islay malt from Scotland, like Laphroaig, or a robust single-cask Kentucky bourbon like Blanton’s. To complement the whiskey, Mautone uses a Lapsang Souchong tea for its deep, smoky flavor.

Planning Ahead is Key

Before you start mixing, make sure to refrigerate the tea for at least 3 hours. This will allow the flavors to meld together perfectly. If you’re looking for more highball inspiration, check out our Americano Cocktail or Basic Highball, a refreshing whiskey and ginger ale drink.

Gather Your Ingredients

For this recipe, you’ll need:

• 2 oranges
• 2 quarts water
• 8 teaspoons or 8 tea bags black tea
• 1 bunch fresh mint, ends trimmed
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups Scotch or bourbon
• Ice
• 8 mint sprigs, for garnish

Steep the Tea

Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from the oranges in wide strips, avoiding as much of the white pith as possible. Set half of the zest aside for steeping and refrigerate the remaining half for garnishing. Bring the water to a boil, remove from the heat, and add the loose tea or tea bags and the orange zest set aside for steeping. Let steep for 5 minutes, then pour through a fine-mesh strainer into a 3-quart heatproof container; discard the solids. Refrigerate the tea until cold, at least 3 hours.

Create the Mint Syrup

While the tea is steeping, make the mint syrup. Place all of the ingredients in a small saucepan, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the syrup has slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl; discard the solids. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Assemble the Highball

When ready to serve, stir the Scotch or bourbon and half of the mint syrup into the tea. Taste and add more syrup as needed. Fill 8 highball glasses with ice and add several strips of the remaining orange zest to each glass. Pour the tea mixture over the ice, garnish with a sprig of mint, and serve. Enjoy!