The Killer B

Name: The Killer B
Total time: PT0D0H0M
Yield: makes 1 Cocktail
Ingredients: 1 ⁄ 2 cup sugar; 2 red Thai bird chiles, halved; 1 tbsp. white peppercorns, cracked; 1 1 ⁄ 2 oz. London dry gin, such as Beefeater; 3 ⁄ 4 oz. lemon juice; 3 ⁄ 4 oz. Thai chile simple syrup; Red Thai bird chiles, for garnish (optional)

Serves
makes 1 Cocktail

HELEN ROSNER

A riff on the classic gin-honey-lemon cocktail the bee's knees, Miami restaurant Khong River House gave us this recipe for the Killer B, which swaps honey with a fiery Thai bird chile-white peppercorn simple syrup for a complex balance of tart, sweet, spicy, and bitter.

Ingredients

For the Thai Chile Simple Syrup

¹⁄₂ cup sugar
2 red Thai bird chiles, halved
1 tbsp. white peppercorns, cracked

For the Cocktail

1 ¹⁄₂ oz. London dry gin, such as Beefeater
³⁄₄ oz. lemon juice
³⁄₄ oz. Thai chile simple syrup
Red Thai bird chiles, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Step 1

Make the simple syrup: Bring sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a 1-qt. saucepan, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and add chiles and peppercorns; cool chile syrup to room temperature and refrigerate overnight. Strain chile syrup, discarding chiles and peppercorns.

Step 2

Combine gin, lemon juice, and ¾ oz. chile syrup in a cocktail shaker filled with crushed ice; shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with a chile.