Cool as a Cucumber

I stopped in Smith & Vine wineshop in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, the other day and who did I see but mixologist and Hendrick's Gin rep Charlotte Voisey mixing up some Cucumber Collinses for the people. This was the second time in just a few months that I had caught Voisey in this act; she did the same service at LeNell's in Red Hook.

I liked the Cucumber Collins she made just as much as I had liked it in Red Hook. And I thought to myself: I can't very well count on Charlotte to turn up every few months at a neighborhood wine shop to keep me in Cucumber Collins. I better learn how to make the damn thing.

So I bought a cucumber, went home, and looked up the recipe on the web. This is what I found, courtesy of DrinkBoston.com:

Cucumber Collins
1½ oz Hendrick’s Gin
3 oz cucumber puree
Shake and strain over fresh ice in a Collins glass, garnish with a long cucumber rod.
(To make a batch of cucumber puree: blend 1 cucumber with 3 oz fresh lemon juice and 3½ oz simple syrup.)

I had all the ingredients, so went to work. It was a snap, and tasted just as refreshing as it had at Smith & Vine. I do have a confession to make. I didn't have Hendrick's on hand (which, as you all know, has a distinctive cucumber flavor to it), so I used Stoli. (Sorry, Charlotte. I was thirsty.) The Stoli did just fine. And it's easy to whip up a batch of the puree and just store it in the fridge for a few days.