Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Blueberry Basil Margarita

 

Summer is coming in hot this year! Pun intended! The weather has been erratic at best and those temps are creeping up quickly so that your outside time should be from 5 a. m. to 8 a. m. or late evening hours. If only that worked in the real world.  At least, we have the perfect cocktail to help cool you down, after working in the garden, or just for sipping on the back deck.  

What is a better way to cool down, than with some favorite summer flavors of blueberry and basil?  Toss in an extra mint leaf and you have a drink worth sipping, to cool you down, or to enjoy with friends.  The white tequila and fresh lime give it a great flavor while being refreshing and cooling over ice.

Blueberry Basil Margarita

1.5 ounce Tequila Blanco

½ ounce triple sec

¾ ounce fresh lime juice

½ ounce simple syrup

8-10 blueberries

3 fresh basil leaves

1 mint leaf

Salt and lime zest for the rim

Prep your glass by running the lime round the outside and partially down the side.  Roll in the salt and lime zest.  Muddle blueberries, mint and basil together, with the simple syrup.  Add in the tequila, triple sec, and lime.  Shake with ice until the shaker cup is cold.  Strain into your prepared glass over fresh ice.  Garnish with blueberries and basil.  

This simple drink is perfect to prepare for friends, for a dinner party or back yard barbeque.  Be sure to not over muddle the herbs, so they do not become bitter, just enough to release their flavor into the syrup and spread color into your glass from the berries.

We have three different types of basil and three different types of mint growing in our garden.  For this drink we use the standard green basil, you can find at your local grocer and any of the mint will work as well.  If you do not like mint, feel free to leave it out.  Make this drink your own with your favorite liquor and herbs.  

We think you will enjoy it no matter how you make it.  As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver. Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Elderflower Basil Martini

     

    After much deliberation for this month's cocktail, I finally settled on an Elderflower Martini.  Here at the Oaks Bed and Breakfast we happen to be big fans of all things Elderflower.  This French liqueur is smooth, and perfect to add a little elegance with a hit of floral to your cocktail.

A relatively new liqueur on the market, Elderflower has gained in popularity since hitting the bar top in 2001.  The flowers are handpicked in the early Spring and smashed within 24 hours of picking to contain their fragrance.  The Elderflower has a long history of folklore in protection and healing. 

The Elderflower Martini is simple and easy to make.  With the added herb of basil this drink is perfect for late Spring where the nights are still cool and the days warm.  Here is what you need to make your drink.

Cucumber Basil Elderflower Martini

1 ounce Elderflower Liqueur

2 ounces Vodka

½ cup chopped cucumber

½ ounce fresh squeezed lime juice

6 basil leaves

Muddle your basil and cucumber in the bottom of your shaker cup, until the flavors are well blended.  Add in the Elderflower, vodka and lime juice.  Add in Ice, then shake vigorously until the outside of the container is chilled.  Strain into a Martini glass.  Garnish with a cucumber ribbon and basil leaf.

        The glimpse of summer really comes out in this drink, with the cucumber and basil, muddled in the bottom of the shaker cup.  The more you press those flavors together the stronger the taste.  What a great way to welcome the changing seasons and enjoy a refreshing beverage while soaking in the cooler temps on the back deck at the Oaks.  

As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Sangria

 

    For this month’s herb infused cocktail of the month, I’m changing things up a little bit.  We have a few events coming up at The Oaks Bed and Breakfast and want to have an easy way to mix up a big batch of cocktails so they are ready when ordered.  For this month we are trying out and mixing up some delicious Sangria.  

The best thing about Sangria is that you can make it your own. If you want it to be sweeter, add more juice.  If you want to have a white Sangria instead of a red, use white wine.  There are even Sangria recipes that do not use wine at all, but are rather a mixture of a multitude of spirits.  However you choose to make your Sangria is the right way.  There can be no wrong ways.  Sangria works great as a party drink, since it can be made ahead of time to be ready for pouring when your guests arrive.    

Dress up your Sangria with matching fruit to the flavors you are melding together.  Or with whatever fruit you have on hand.  We like to use berries and citrus, specifically oranges or blood oranges.  Apples can work as well, since there should be some citrus to help keep them from turning brown.

For this month, we are keeping to a more traditional Sangria and using red wine.  But we will also probably end up swapping our wines around to change things up, based on the event.  

Sangria

2 cans Underwood Pinot Noir

1 ½ cups pineapple juice

1 cup Cognac

A mix of fresh fruit

Splash of Club Soda

Fresh Mint

Prepare your fruit in your pitcher that you will serve your guests.  Cut up larger pieces like apples to make them bite sized. Add in all the liquid except the Club Soda.  The Club soda will be added after pouring into glasses to give it that bubbly look.  We have used black berries, oranges, green apples, and strawberries today.  Garnish with a slice of fruit and mint.  Mint makes the perfect herb to pair with your Sangria. 

Like we said earlier, make this your own.  Mix up your wine options with a white wine.  We used cans since it’s easy to use and makes portioning the drink easier. If you want a more tart drink, change out your juice option.  Orange juice or even cranberry juice.  Club soda can also be substituted with Sprite or Sparkling water.  

This makes an easy mocktail as well.  Drop the wine, and cognac, and mix in more juice and bubbles of choice.  You can always use sparkling wine, for a little extra touch of class for those not imbibing in alcohol.  Remember to always drink responsibly, and have a designated driver. Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Thyme Whiskey Limoncello

     

    March is here at last and we are ready for all that this month happens to bring with it.  Vacations, Spring break and hopefully a little rain.  To start the month off in a celebratory mood, we will be serving up our cocktail of the month, a Thyme Whiskey Limoncello.  Of course, we used our favorite Irish whiskey for this drink, Telling Single Pot Whiskey.  But you can use your favorite Whiskey or whatever you happen to have on hand.  Of course we chose an Irish whiskey in remembrance of St. Patrick’s Day. 

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, who when he was just 16 years old, was kidnapped and brought to Ireland as a slave.  He managed to escape but returned to convert the Irish to Christianity in 432 ce, and is recorded with opening churches, monasteries and schools during his thirty years on the island.  He is said to have used the shamrock to explain the Trinity, and is also said to have driven snakes from Ireland.  The Irish community celebrates the day as a religious feast day and it became Americanized in 1732 led by parade, “wearing of the green,” and dying rivers green, just to name a few.  

In continued celebration with St. Patrick, we selected Irish Whiskey as our base for our cocktail of the month and are excited to share it with you this month.  Please note here are a few more tips to make your drink the way you want it when making it on your own.  If you like your drink on the sweeter side, add in an ounce of simple syrup.  Do not have any Limoncello, just add more fresh squeezed lemon juice.  Make your drink the way you want it and use your favorite whiskey. 

Thyme Whiskey Limoncello

Serves 1

2 ounces Teeling Whiskey

1 ounce Limoncello

½-¾ ounce fresh squeezed lemon juice

One sprig of thyme

Pull off the thyme leaves directly into your ice filled shaker cup.  Add in the whiskey, limoncello and lemon juice.  Shake until the outside is cold.  Pour into an ice filled glass.  Garnish with lemon rind and fresh thyme. 

This cocktail is great to sip and enjoy under the moon light, with friends.  Enjoy your drink with a hearty Irish stew or Seafood chowder.  Ask for it by request when you stay at the Oaks Bed and Breakfast or for any special event.  

Please enjoy responsibly and have a designated driver.  Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Pomegranate Bliss Martini

    

     Love is in the air, or at least the card and chocolate companies want you to think so. Personally, I feel that love can and should be celebrated all year long.  Afterall, it should not be something you take for granted or celebrate only when the calendar tells you to do so.  Even though that is how I feel I still wanted to create a cocktail this month that brought out the feelings of love.  The only way I knew how to make that happen was with color.  

While pink is not my favorite color, it does demonstrate qualities of love and has people feeling like they are feeling the love, when drinking this delicious mixture.  A simple yet elegant drink with a bit of mint, makes for a wonderful and flavorful drink to enjoy while dining.  The pomegranate really sings in this one, and gives a lovely tart but also sweet finish.  

While this drink is served in a martini glass it holds none of the traditional martini flavors or alcohols in the mix.  It is strictly of its own making.  While made in a shaker cup, you could possibly pour and stir, if that is your preferred way to drink and serve a martini.  Today we are shaking, and then pouring our drink into our preferred glass.  

The glass ware used to serve a martini has become an iconic piece of drink couture, and was originally designed to help keep the contents cold, and away from warm hands.  This elegant v-shaped glass really became all the rage in the mid 1920’s and could be found all over the world, and made more popular with the desire for people to imbibe in gin.  Either way, the v-shaped glass has become known as a martini glass to patrons the world over.

Pomegranate Bliss Martini

¾ ounce Pomegranate Juice

  1 ½ ounces  Vodka

½ ounce Cointreau

½  ounce Fresh lime juice

Mint for garnish

Place mint in the bottom of the shaker cup and muddle.  Add ice and the remaining ingredients.  Shake until the outside of the cup is cold.  Pour into martini glass. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.  If you would like  your drink to be a bit sweeter add in ¼ to ½ ounce simple syrup. 

This drink is so simple to make and great to share with others.  You may be wondering if you can substitute out Cointreau with Grand Marnier, and I would say no, unless you are ready for the color of your drink to change.  Grand Marnier is a darker, more amber colored liquor while the Cointreau is clear.  Let the pomegranate shine in this drink and keep the Grand Marnier for another time.  

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Elderflower Smash

     

    Happy New Year, and welcome back to the Oaks Bed and Breakfast Herb Infused Cocktail series.  This year we hope to bring you some new and delicious cocktails that you can enjoy at home or with us, at one of our events.  With 2026, starting off strong we are hitting the ground running with a simple yet sip worthy cocktail. 

    We had a wonderful Holiday season and our cocktail was the hit of the party for several occasions and are welcoming new guests and events for this year, with another great round of seasonal cocktails to enjoy.  

First up is an Elderflower Smash.  Four simple ingredients pack a punch and this drink is definitely one you want to sip and savor throughout the evening. 

Elderflower Smash 

Single Serving

4 - 6 mint leaves

Juice of half a lemon

2 ounces Gin

1.5 Ounces St. Germain Elderflower liqueur

3 dashes of bitter

Add the mint and lemon juice to a shaker cup and muddle to meld the flavors together.  Once muddled, pour in the Gin, St. Germain, and bitters.  Fill shaker cup with ice.  Shake until the outside of the cup is very cold.  Pour into an ice filled glass.  Garnish with a slice of lemon and or fresh mint.

This drink is so very easy to make and just as easy to sip on while drinking.  Enjoy this drink with a delicious meal with friends around the fire pit.  These cooler evenings make for a wonderful atmosphere for friends to join together and make memories.

As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver. Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Spiced Herbed Margarita

 

    The holiday season is fully upon us and we have a special holiday drink for you to share with your friends and family.  This can be made as a mocktail as well, so everyone can enjoy this holiday drink.  Do not let the spices pull you away from this one, they can be strained out completely but also offer rich flavor if they sit within the liquid for a bit after mixing.  I have made this as a batch or individual drinks, so it has flexibility for your holiday party.  

    What could be  more festive than a drink with cinnamon and cranberry to enjoy around the dinner table, fire pit or just while visiting at your next holiday party.  We have made it our own special way and so can you.  Do not be afraid to mix it up and test out different variations to discover the flavor combination that you love the best.  

Spiced Herbed Margarita (makes 2)

2 ounces Cranberry Juice

2.5 ounces Pomegranate Juice

2 ounces Tequila 

3/4 ounce Triple Sec

Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper

1-4 dashes of Orange bitters

First run an orange slice around the rim of your glass and then roll your glass in coarse sugar combined with the spices above.  Fill your rocks glass with ice.  Add all the other ingredients into your shaker cup filled with ice.  Shake it really well, to help the spices spread throughout the drink. Once done, strain over your rocks glass.  

    You can leave your drink just like that and enjoy throughout the evening.  Or here are a few additions to add for a little extra pop.  Top your glass off with some ginger beer or sparkling water for a little bit of a bubbles.

    To make this into a mocktail, remove the tequila and triple sec, top your drink off with sparkling water, and add in a bit of simple syrup or honey to add a little sweet to the bitterness of the fruit.  

    This is a fun and simple cocktail that can be your signature holiday drink for the season.  Mix up the juice options with orange juice or sprite to change it just a bit to make your own unique drink.  This is sure to be a crowd pleaser, so be sure to make it as a batch. 

    Please be sure to drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  Happy Holiday's from all of us at The Oaks Bed and Breakfast.  We hope your holiday season is festive and full of laughter and joy.  Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Rosemary Gin Rickey

 

    The Texas weather is starting to think like fall and lower the temperature, while the sun is down at least.  That means cooler mornings and cooler evening hours, which makes the perfect time to enjoy a herb infused cocktail by the fire.  The twist with this classic cocktail is in the honey rosemary simple syrup.  

    Never one to change a good thing too much, after all vintage is always a current trend.  Instead of just adding in a bit of rosemary to garnish, we have steeped the rosemary and honey together to make a wonderful and powerful simple syrup.  

Rosemary Honey Simple Syrup

6 servings at 1 ounce

1/2 cup boiling water

2 TBLS Raw Honey

1/4 Cup Rosemary leaves

Add the honey and rosemary to a heat proof bowl.  Pour over the boiling water and stir until the honey dissolves. Let the rosemary steep for up to 20 minutes.  This also allows it to cool before making your drink. If you do not plan to use it right away, strain out the rosemary and place in an airtight container in the fridge.  This will last about a week.  Or you can freeze it into ice cubes for several months.

    The simple syrup is a great way to add a little sweet to your drink.  For anyone who knows me, knows that I do not like my drinks overly sweet, this makes the perfect amount to adjust exactly how you like your drink.  We are going to use about 1/2 ounce, so your simple syrup can go along way.  But if you have friends who like their drinks to be a little sweeter add another 1/2 ounce or so to their drink.  

    Rosemary Gin Rickey

serves 1

1 1/2 ounces Gin

1/2 ounces Rosemary Simple Syrup

1 ounce Fresh Lime Juice

1/2 cup Sparkling Water/Club Soda

In an ice filled glass pour all the liquids.  Stir to combine, and garish with lime wedge and rosemary.

    It's that simple to make this drink.  The longest portion of the drink happens to be making the simple syrup.  Once you have yours made it's pretty simple to put together.  Want to make your drink a mocktail?  Eliminate the gin and add in a bit more Sparkling Water or Club Soda.  Everyone in your group will enjoy this refreshing beverage.

    As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  Cheers!

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Lemon Basil Elderflower Sake Cocktail

    

     For our Asian themed dinner I wanted a cocktail that had a unique flavor and taste from the area. Sake was my first choice to mix with others to make a cocktail our guests would enjoy. The addition of the Elderflower liquor and Brut Champagne brought it all together. 

     Of course, to add in our herb choice, I went with Lemon Basil to add in a bit more lemon flavor. The real star of this drink just might be the pomegranate juice. The juice gives the drink a distinct pink color with a little extra tart. 

     While there are a lot of liquids that go into this drink, the portions we have for mixing today make two. Grab your sweet heart and make up something to celebrate. You will want to mix this one up, and love it. 

 Lemon Basil Elderflower Sake Cocktail 

Serves 2

 

6-10 Lemon Basil leaves 

2 ounces Sake 

1 ounce Elderflower liquor 

1 ounce pomegranate juice 

1/2 ounce fresh lime juice 

Brut Champagne 

 Muddle your lemon basil in your shaker cup before adding the liquid. This will help to release the flavors. Once muddled add all the liquid except champagne. Give it a good shake, pour into champagne flutes about 3/4 full. Top with champagne and garnish with lemon or basil. 

 If you are looking for a little sweeter version of this drink, then you could top off with a Prosecco or Moscato. Overall, it is pretty dry but still refreshing. By using a champagne flute you have a more measured drink. As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Spicy Grapefruit Margarita

 

Over here at The Oaks bed and breakfast, we love a good margarita, and often the spicier the better.  This month we are bringing to your bar, a Spicy Grapefruit Margarita that is paired with a jalapeno and lemon basil. 

 

               We kicked up the spice a bit by zesting the jalapeno to create more kick with this summer special, and the garnish with the lemon basil just adds a little kick of citrus to an already delicious drink.  Another key component to this drink is to use only fresh squeezed juice.  Juice that grapefruit and lime directly into your shaker cup, when mixing this delightful drink. 

 

               Of course, you can dial up your sweetness and spice by adding more honey or jalapeno or less.  Make this drink your own and enjoy it with friends.  You can even make it a mocktail by removing the tequila and orange liquor.  I would splash in some nonalcoholic  orange bitters to grab that flavor and an additional amount of grapefruit juice to help fill the glass. 

 

Spicey Grapefruit Margarita

Serving size 2 drinks 

½ cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice

3 TBLS fresh squeezed lime juice

2 TBLS agave or honey

3 oz white tequila

2 oz orange liquor

Salt to rim the glass

Lemon basil for garnish

 

Before you mix your drink prepare your glass.  Rub a lime wedge or grapefruit wedge around the glass and then salt with your favorite option.  Take all your liquid ingredients and pour into a shaker cup that has been filled with ice.  Vigorously shake your drink to mix together.  Then pour it over your salted, ice filled glass.  Garnish with grapefruit, lemon basil, lime or jalapeno slices.

 

               Make this drink your own and mix it up with different bases to find the one you like the best.  Increase the sweetness as you desire or decrease to make your drink more tart.  Mix in additional jalapeno for extra spice or remove it to eliminate all spice.  Either way, this drink will be a summer favorite for sure.

 

               As always please drink responsibly by having a designated driver.  We hope you will let us know if you make this cocktail and tell us which you like it the best.  Cheers!