Cava Bistro's Southern Belle

Alissa, the lovely GM at Cava Bistro (301 Main, 713-223-4068) came up with the idea for the Southern Belle one lazy Sunday afternoon by the pool. See, she and her girlfriends were just chillaxin’, catching some rays, and they needed a poolside thirst-quencher. So our hero combined two great Southern traditions: sweet tea and whiskey. Then she mixed in a little mint and honey she had lying around, and voilà — manna from heaven, Dixie style. So the girls whiled away the afternoon, drank plenty of Alissa’s newfangled automatic summer refresher and then they all fired off their bikini tops, jumped in the water and had insane, GGW-style chicken fights, which eventually led to a marathon pillow fight back at their sorority house…or so I imagined anyway. Yes, I’ve been watching too much late-night TV. So what? I never let the truth stand in the way of a good story.

2 ounces Gentleman Jack

1 ounce iced tea

Fresh mint

Honey

Simple syrup

Muddle mint in shaker tin; add a few drops of honey and dash of syrup; add whiskey, tea and ice; shake and serve over crushed ice in a highball glass.

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