Infused Sambuca Twist
Take five… real ingredients that seem to go well together: Sambuca, botanical gin, freshly-squeezed grapefruit juice, and a bit of freshly squeezed lime juice with just a touch of simple syrup. That is, before you add the weed… then they sing a song of sixpence together!
That is the Sambuca Twist. No, it’s not a dance, but you may feel like dancing after you have one of these curious elixirs.
But how do you get the weed in there? Please, let me tell you what goes into this delicious combination of pretty to amazing in your glass.
You must decarb your cannabis. I know that there are many methods to decarb, but the very best way for your fine herbs is by using the Ardent FX Decarb Machine
(https://ardentcannabis.com/). Why?
Because, when you decarb cannabis in the oven, or the toaster oven for that matter, it is an unreliable and quite frankly a poor way to decarb. But first, what is decarbing and why is it so important when infusing cannabis into a recipe?
Decarbing is activating the non-potent THCa into potent THC, which is what happens when you light up your stick. At a certain temperature the cannabis undergoes several chemical reactions. The Ardent device is a microprocessor controlled to give you a perfect decarb every single time. No more burnt-up batches of your expensive cannabis.
I recommend the Ardent because I’ve bought several incarnations of this marvelous machine over the years. It makes my life much simpler- and less expensive! There’s no more burnt-up herb.
The Sambuca Twist gets its name from the infused simple syrup. That little thing known as a cross-fade is why it’s called a twist. Or really twisted, something like that… because I use exactly one-half ounce of the finest cannabis per cup of simple syrup. This takes a potent and delicious quaff, and elevates it into the clouds.
The Sambuca Twist is more than a sum of the parts. It must contain freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and the best gin that you can afford. The Sambuca should be from Italy as I love the original product the best. It’s pretty herbaceous in the nose, and it marries with the gin beautifully.
Ingredients for two rather robust drinks, and as some have said, containing irresponsible amounts of weed:
4 oz. Botanical Gin- I use Hendrick’s because it has that marvelous rose note that I think is quite beguiling
1 oz. Italian Sambuca
3 oz. Freshly Squeezed grapefruit juice
2 oz. THC infused simple syrup
Ten shakes of Peychaud’s Bitters- They’re colored bright red for a reason! Since Peychaud’s was invented for use by pharmacists in the early Apothecary, the vivid red color signified strength and potency.
½ oz. Freshly squeezed lime juice
Grapefruit zests- use lots of them. For your Scurvy. You don’t drink enough juice anyway.
How do you know you have scurvy?
Ask a Seafaring Pirate. One without hair or teeth. He has Scurvy. Don’t make him angry!
Prep:
Pre-chill two Collins Glasses- the tall narrow ones, with ice and water to speed cooling.
In a cocktail mixing glass, fill ¾ with ice.
Add the fresh grapefruit juice.
Add the Gin and the Sambuca.
Add the THC infused simple syrup (more if you want a strong, strong drink...). Add the fresh lime juice.
Stir briskly to combine.
Pour the ice and water out.
Add fresh cube ice into your Collins glass.
Double strain the Sambuca Twist over the ice, and add a healthy amount of Peychaud’s Bitters over the top.
Garnish with freshly cut grapefruit zests.