Fearless Mabel’s Iced Tea

This week I was inspired to make a drink in celebration of Mabel Stark, the world’s first female tiger trainer and subject of Leslie Zemeckis’ new award winning documentary ‘Mabel, Mabel, Tiger Trainer.’ Mabel was born in Tennessee and early on in childhood moved to Kentucky, the birthplace of bourbon, the boozy base to our cocktail. Bourbon is one of my favorite spirits to use for summer cocktails; it’s vanilla and oak aromas brighten up and blend beautifully with the majority of seasonal summer fruits, in this case peaches! Plus boozy iced teas are the best. If bourbon is not your thing (but how could it not be?!) swap it out for vodka; the flavor will not be as complex but it will be equally refreshing for these hot summer months to come!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 oz Bourbon

Approx. 4 ounces Earl Grey ( Unsweetened and chilled)

2 tablespoons Peach Puree

1/4 oz Lemon Juice

2 mint leaves

Optional Garnish: 1 mint sprig

How to:

Gently muddle the mints leaves in a tall glass. Add Bourbon, peach puree and lemon juice and fill the glass with ice. Fill the glass to the top with iced tea, stir well in the glass to combine ingredients and garnish with a mint sprig!

Homemade Peach Puree Recipe:

Add approximately 1 pound of fresh, ripe peaches cut into chunks and 2/3 cup of brown sugar to a bowl. I add a splash of Bourbon to my peaches and sugar to get the juices flowing but that’s optional. Mix the sugar and peaches around a little and cover the bowl and let sit in the fridge over night. The next day throw the contents into a blender and blend until smooth.