Searsucker

Named after the funny men's summer suits of the Carolinas. This isn't my recipe, and its not in the NY Bartender's Guide I'm doing for the blog, but it is a good one. Grilled lemon and sweet tea syrup make this cocktail a favorite for backyard barbecues in the American South. The recipe that follows makes preparations for about 20 cocktails, a fitting number for a party.

Sweet tea syrup is easy to make. Use your regular iced tea bags to steep about a cup of water in a saucepan. When finished steeping, remove the tea bags and add one cup of sugar. Stir while continuing to simmer until all sugar is dissolved and the solution is reduced somewhat (about five minutes.) Store in a sealable container in the refrigerator.

The grilled lemon halves make for great ice cubes that impart flavor as well as coolness to the cocktail. Halve a dozen lemons and roast them cut-side-down on a barbecue grill until they are sufficiently charred. Store them in the freezer to make juicy ice cubes when added directly to the drink.

• 2 oz. bourbon
• 1/2 oz. sweet tea syrup
• frozen charred lemon half
• dash Angostura bitters

Combine bourbon, bitters and syrup in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled Old Fashioned glass. Add frozen lemon half to the drink.