Whiskey Peach Smash

Is there any better combination than bourbon whiskey and fresh Georgia peaches? Maybe, if you threw in a little lemon, mint, and curaçao – like in this summery cooler from veteran barman Dale DeGroff.
DeGroff mixed his first Whiskey Peach Smash back in the late 80s – but it’s a thoroughly modern balance, a drink ahead of its time.
This drink absolutely requires fresh, juicy, almost-overripe peaches (or nectarines). We tried it once with an out-of-season peach, tough and tannic, and it wasn’t awful – it was simply a bland smash with peach bits floating in it, and we resolved to never make such a mistake again.
Word to the wise: this drink is basically impossible to strain through the strainer of a cobbler shaker. We usually just end up opening the shaker and pouring it into a wire-mesh strainer perched over a large measuring cup, and then serving from the measuring cup into the glass.

Ingredients
- 1 part Orange curaçao
- 3 wedges Lemon
- 2 slices Peach
- 2 parts Bourbon
- 4 leaves Mint
Instructions
Add the peach slices, lemon wedges, and orange curaçao to your shaker and muddle to release the juice from the fruit. Add the mint leaves, bourbon, and ice. Shake and strain into an ice-filled short glass.
Garnish with a peach slice and a freshly-slapped sprig of mint.


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Read more
- Whiskey Peach Smash from Imbibe magazine
- The Craft of the Cocktail: Everything You Need to Know to Be a Master Bartender, with 500 Recipes by Dale DeGroff
