INGREDIENTS
4 lemons
2 grapefruits
1½ cups sugar
30 mint leaves
1 750-ml. bottle Rieger’s Midwestern Dry Gin
1 750-ml. bottle Contratto Bianco
1 750-ml. bottle Aperol
12.5 oz. lemon juice
12.5 oz. ruby red grapefruit juice
12.5 oz. sparkling water
12.5 oz. Scarpetta prosecco
1 cup sliced strawberries
PREPARATION
• The night before, peel the rinds from the lemons and grapefruits, avoiding the pith and reserving the fruit. Muddle the peels with the sugar until wet with oils, making an oleo saccharum. Cover and let sit 1 hour, then remove the peels and refrigerate.
• Meanwhile, slice the lemons and grapefruits. To a 1-pint container, add as many fruit slices as can fit with 10 mint leaves, reserving the rest. Fill with water, cover and freeze overnight.
• In a large punch bowl, combine the gin, Contratto Bianco, Aperol, lemon and grapefruit juices, and 6 ounces oleo saccharum, reserving the rest. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Gently pour in the sparkling water and prosecco. Taste for sweetness and add more oleo saccarum if necessary, gently stirring to dissolve.
• Add the ice block, strawberries and remaining mint just before serving.
This article appears in August 2016.