Earl Grey Martini

1. Sprinkle the tea leaves over the gin in a small glass, and set aside to steep for 2 hours.

2. Pour 1/4 to 1/2 inch of white sugar onto a small, shallow plate. Moisten the rims of 2 martini glasses with a wedge of lemon, dip the moistened glasses into the sugar; set aside.

3. Strain the infused gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker over ice. Cover, and shake until the outside of the shaker has frosted. Strain into the rimmed glasses to serve.

Cook's Note

To make it easier, the Earl Grey infused gin can be made in a large quantity ahead of time. To infuse the gin, pour 1 liter of gin over 1/4 cup of Earl Grey tea leaves in a glass or metal bowl, and allow to steep for 2 hours. Afterwards, strain the gin back into its bottle. Do not press the tea leaves to extract excess gin - this can make the infusion bitter.