The Key to the Best Spring Drink May Be in Your Grocery Bag

Spring cocktails can use garden ingredients like sugar snap peas, cucumbers, and fennel to create fresh vegetal character. A muddler crushes fruits, vegetables, and herbs to release flavors and aromas into the drink, and building in the glass or accepting extra texture are options. For a smoother result, strain the shaken cocktail through a Hawthorne strainer and then a fine-mesh strainer to remove smashed bits and add refinement. Avoid barrel-aged spirits because they can overpower delicate flavors. Prefer clearer, botanical-leaning spirits such as gin, grassy tequila, or pisco to enhance savory notes. Herbaceous liqueurs or green-leaning bitters can further amplify green elements, and infused simple syrups with herbs like mint can extend the garden-fresh profile.

"Using a muddler (or the end of a wooden spoon or rolling pin) to crush fruits, vegetables and herbs imparts their flavors and aromas into the final drink. Unless you're building the cocktail directly in the glass (or are fine with more texture), Ms. Williams Pierce suggests a double strain to catch every smashed bit before serving. It adds a little extra layer of refinement, she said."

"To do so, strain the shaken cocktail into the glass through both the Hawthorne strainer (or the strainer on top of your shaker) and a small fine-mesh strainer. Ms. Williams Pierce suggests avoiding barrel-aged spirits, which can overpower delicate flavors. Instead, look to clearer, botanical-leaning ones, like gin, a grassy tequila or pisco, which enhance the drink's savory notes."

"Should you want to double down on the greener elements or don't want to make a market run incorporate an herbaceous liqueur (such as a quality fennel liqueur, Chartreuse or genepy) or green-leaning bitters. My staff has to keep me from putting celery and green cardamom bitters in everything, Ms. Williams Pierce said. We put it in margaritas. We put it in gimlets or daiquiris, anything that's just going to want that little extra oomph."

"Simple syrups offer another excellent means to a garden-fresh end. Try infusing a standard sugar syrup with mint, cel"

Read at cooking.nytimes.com