I’m a self-confessed urban soul living a country life. I love my trees, I love my land and I love that my children get to grow up with horses as neighbours. But, I also love my red, patent leather heels, martinis, great music and meeting new people. I guess I could strut around my ‘hood, heels on, drink in hand, ipod in and wave randomly at people in the street, but I’m almost certain someone would call 911.

So, a couple of Saturday nights ago, I ventured out of the country and into the burbs to dine at a relatively new restaurant that had received some really good word of mouth. Trendy and urban were a few of the buzz words used, despite the fact that it was still 45 minutes outside of the city (Montreal).

After a great meal accompanied by great wine, I had a chance to chat with Sublime’s owner, Rick Stamegna, over a martini. A great, blow your mind kind of martini that he expertly mixed in what seemed like a blink of an eye. He kindly agreed to share his recipe with the Quench family. Enjoy.

Ingredients

2 ounces Hendrick’s Gin

¼ cucumber, peeled and diced

¼ ounce fresh lime juice

2-3 fresh basil leaves

½ ounce simple syrup

Soda water

Ice

Preparation

Muddle cucumber, lime juice, basil and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker.

Add gin and ice, shake well.

Strain and serve in a martini glass. Top with a splash of soda water.

Garnish with a thin slice of cucumber, skin on, on clear swivel across the glass.