Spiked Cherry Iced Teas

 

My original plan this week was to make an old fashioned muddled with fresh cherries rather than the fluorescent kind, but with the steaming hot weather in Boston, I needed a cocktail that was more refreshing!  I decided on a bourbon spiked iced tea, mixed with a muddled cherries and cherry syrup.  This came together quickly after a long day at work and cooled me down quicker than my hulking air conditioner.   Bourbon and cherries are a great combination, and I brewed a very strong PG Tips tea to make the iced tea portion, so the bourbon was kind of hidden in this drink, which of course can be dangerous!  If you are not a drinker, you should absolutely still make this iced tea anyway and don't add the bourbon, and do it quickly while it is still cherry season!

 Spiked Cherry Iced Tea

This recipe is for one large cocktail, but this is clearly something that belongs in a pitcher, just multiply it by how many drinks you want to make.  Also, this is  not "sweet tea", if you want it sweeter, add another couple of teaspoons of sugar.

Ingredients

About 1 to 1//2 cups iced tea, depending on the glass you use (I just made some regular tea and cooled it in the refrigerator)

1 shot of bourbon

8-10 cherries, plus one for garnish

1 teaspoons sugar (more if your cherries are not sweet)

1 tablespoon of hot water

Directions:

1. Pit all of the cherries but one (my tip on pitting cherries, stick a medium piping tip on your finger and use that to pit the cherries, easy as pie...) and put in a small bowl.
2. Add the sugar and with a fork, mash up the cherries and sugar.
3. Pour the tablespoon of hot water over the mixture and let sit for 10 -20 minutes to let the cherries macerate and flavor the water.
4. Mix the cherries and liquid together with the iced tea and bourbon in a cocktail shaker or glass, pour into a glass filled with ice, stir.
5. Garnish with a cherry and relax.