Guest Highball · N° 04 / 10

Lychee Road

By Tom G. Liu — Thunderbolt, Los Angeles

A tea highball retracing lychee’s long road to the imperial court — black-tea tannin and barrel depth lifted skyward by soda.

Style

Tea highball

Glass

Highball, chilled

Ice

Ice spear

Method

Build

Garnish

Fresh lychee

Build
  • 45 mlLychee black tea–infused Dragon Whisky — see preparation
  • 7.5 mlGiffard Lichi-Li liqueur
  • TopClub soda — very cold
Method
  1. Batch the infused whisky and lychee liqueur; keep chilled in the freezer or refrigerator.
  2. Fill a chilled highball with a clear ice spear and pour the batch over.
  3. Top with very cold club soda.
  4. Garnish with a peeled, pitted lychee on a cocktail pick.
Preparation

Lychee Black Tea–Infused Dragon Whisky Steep 7 g lychee black tea in 250 ml Dragon Whisky for about 10 minutes, then strain.

The Thinking

Named for the arduous journey that carried fresh lychee from Canton to the imperial court at Chang’an, the drink mirrors that passage: soda lifts the fruit upward toward the lychee crowning the glass, while black-tea tannin and barrel depth speak to the hardship of the road. Dragon Whisky’s spiced fruit and the lychee liqueur restore the balance — a refreshing tea highball.