A certain baby kept us away from our regular Friday Happy Hour column last week. But we didn’t want to leave you hanging right before the Christmas break, so here’s a delicious cocktail with one of our favorites – St-Germain – that is guaranteed to be a hit at your holiday table. – Andrew

Illustration by Shauna Lynn for Oh So Beautiful Paper

The Laughing Monk

2 oz Old Tom Gin (we like Hayman’s – but you can also use dry gin if you don’t have Old Tom Gin on hand)
1 oz St-Germain
1 oz Lemon Juice
1/4 oz Ginger Liqueur (like Domaine de Canton)
1 dash Green Chartreuse

Add the Chartreuse to a cocktail glass and swirl to coat, then discard the rest. Combine the gin, St-Germain, lemon, and ginger liqueur and shake well with ice. Strain into the Chartreuse-rinsed glass and garnish with a bay leaf. Enjoy!

This is a fun pick-me-up drink, bright and clean and crisp like a winter day. There’s a lot going on in this drink: lots of botanicals with a hint of herbal sharpness from the Chartreuse and a subtle savoriness from the bay leaf. (Which I originally added as a lark, looking for an interesting garnish, but I liked it so much that I’m working on some other recipes that can use it too).

We first featured this drink over on my Instagram feed, which has become something of a test kitchen for our happy hour posts. Go check it out for more fun experiments!

Photo Credits: Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper