The original Blackberry Smash that I wrote so gushingly about a few weeks ago was described on the menu at the restaurant where I first sampled it as a "Bourbon based drink with lemon-verbena and blackberries". My Internet research showed that the base recipe for the drink is Bourbon, blackberries, mint and soda water. My personal research, with family and friends as guinea pigs, yielded the version below. I tried making the drink with both lemon and lime, various sodas, flavored simple syrups, etc. I think that my recipe shows the Bourbon off to its best advantage because the ginger and spice bring out the smokiness of the alcohol. I would not suggest more than one and a half of these drinks...and the half is only on offer because it is too good a cocktail to only have just the one!'
So, a week or so later than promised and many attempts later, here is the base recipe for one drink. Just multiply ingredients based on the number of people you are serving.
7 blackberries
8 mint leaves
1 lime, well washed and cut in quarters after you cut one end off (to use as decoration in the cocktail)
1 tsp spiced honey (or chili infused simple syrup)
2 oz. Bourbon of your choice
Gingerale
Ice cubes
Fill a lowball/Old-Fashioned glass 3/4 way up with ice cubes and place in the freezer while you make your drink.
Put 6 of the blackberries, 7 of the mint leaves, the honey and the lime quarters in a shaker and muddle well. For those without a shaker or a muddle, a large jug and a wooden spoon work just as well. Work together until the blackberries have turned to juice and the honey has melted into the released lime juice.
Add the Bourbon and some ice cubes and shake. For those without the shaker, stir.
Remove the glass from the freezer. Strain the cocktail into the glass, top off with Gingerale and serve garnished with the end of the lime and the remaining mint leaf and blackberry.
I bet a version could be made with Bourbon, lime and Chambord liqueur (eliminating the need for fresh blackberries and honey) and will work on that at some point.
Edit (09/30/19): I made a version of the above, as promised, with Chambord instead of fresh blackberries. Should you decide to do so, use 2 parts of Bourbon to 1 part of Chambord, eliminate the honey, add a bit of jalapeno to the muddling mixture, and up the amount of lime juice to counter the sweetness of the Chambord. This makes for a very good cocktail as well, but you will have to work harder to get the right balance of sweet, smoky and spicy.
Photo by L.