I texted my friend Mike and asked if he would care to join me for a cocktail. He texted back in the affirmative and asked if 4ish worked for me. Indeed it did, I replied, and we had a date.
We met at the outdoor deck bar at Northampton Brewery on Brewster Court, located conveniently right next to the E.J. Gare Parking Garage.
I got there first, and bided my time with water and lemon and an order of boneless chicken wings in honey mustard sauce.
For the middle of the day on a Wednesday, the deck was doing a good business. The barstools were in the shade and the outdoor fans created a refreshing breeze.
Mike arrived and dug into the remaining chicken wings (did he think I needed his assistance?) while Jamie, our bartender, took our cocktail orders.
We both opted for ginger beer cocktails: Mike’s was the Rye Whiskey Smash with fresh mint and lime juice; I got the Vermont Mule. Both were delicious. The ginger beer and fresh lime juice added spritz and flavor to the cocktails.
The base spirit for my Vermont Mule was Barr Hill gin, made in Hardwick, Vermont. This award-winning gin is smooth and honey-infused; the honey takes the edge off the juniper flavor that one associates with gin.
If you’ve never had a ginger beer cocktail, you owe it to yourself to give one a try. They’re delicious year-round, but are especially good on a hot summer’s day.
Tim Driscoll is a bartender, a former bar owner and a perpetual student of mixology.
How to make a Vermont Mule cocktail
Serves 1
1 ounce Barr Hill gin
1 ounce ginger beer
½ ounce rosemary-infused simple syrup (Simple syrup is equal parts sugar dissolved in water. Add fresh rosemary sprigs and let it sit overnight)
Fresh-squeezed lime juice
Serve on the rocks in a heavy-footed cocktail glass
Garnish with a lime wedge