Mint Lemonade

You are grinding it rather than pressing it. Mint gives up its oil under gentle pressure, but tear the leaf apart and you release chlorophyll along with the bitter compounds in the stalk. Press four or five times against the syrup and stop there.

Spearmint, almost always. Peppermint carries a lot of menthol and reads cold and medicinal against lemon, closer to toothpaste than fruit. Spearmint is softer and sweeter, and it is what grows in gardens and gets sold in supermarket packets under the plain name mint.

That is the version much of the Levant actually drinks. Blend the lemon, the syrup, a generous handful of mint and about a cup of ice until it goes pale green and slushy, then leave the soda out entirely. Serve at once, because it separates within minutes.

Eight to ten leaves per glass, pulled off the stalk. Stems give you very little oil and most of the bitterness, so they belong in the bin rather than the muddler. Keep one sprig back for the top and slap it against your palm before it goes in, since that's the part you smell.

A classic Mint Lemonade calls for 10 mint leaves Fresh mint, 30 ml (1 oz) Fresh lemon juice, 22 ml (0.75 oz) Simple syrup, 90 ml (3 oz) Soda water. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

Nothing — the Mint Lemonade is completely alcohol-free, which makes it a great mocktail for drivers, kids and anyone skipping alcohol.

A Mint Lemonade is muddled and built right in the serving glass — press the fresh ingredients gently to release juice and aromatic oils, then build the drink on top. No shaker needed.