Tea Time--Make a Mar-TEA-nez with Beefeater 24

We finally got our hands on a bottle of the recently released Beefeater 24, and were quite taken with its pretty, citrusy style. We loved the grapefruit peel and bergamot notes and strong essence of tea, but were not sold on the red-bottomed bottle, which looks too much like a dose of grenadine has sunk to the bottom of it.

Aesthetics aside, we were eager to try the gin in a cocktail and opted to make a version of a Martinez--a drink that's on every serious cocktail menu in the city these days--that incorporates, of all things, a teabag. This flash infusion of tea (originally made by Charles Vexenat of the Lonsdale in London, but taught to us by Dan Warner, Beefeater's brand ambassador) makes for a refreshing and delightfully caffeinated cocktail.

Mar-TEA-nez

2 parts Beefeater 24
1 part Lillet Rouge (we had none and substituted Martini & Rossi Rosso)
1/4 part Maraschino
dash Angostura Bitters
dash Peychaud's Bitters
1 Earl Grey teabag

In a shaker, infuse the teabag in the gin by swirling until it reaches an amber color. Add the other ingredients, ice, and stir well before straining into a rocks glass. Garnish with orange zest and a cherry on the side (we used lemon peel... hey, we like lemon in our tea!).