Smoking Blackberry SageMargarita Cocktail

I love making fun cocktails and this was definitely the most fun. How could it not be with smoked dry ice! It’s going to take a bit of work to find some dry ice, but it was worth it. You know what’s funny? Every person I talked to about dry ice felt the need to tell me that I shouldn’t play with it and that it was dangerous. So I’m going to do my duty here and state the obvious….

DO NOT TOUCH DRY ICE, DO NOT EAT OR DRINK DRY ICE, DO NOT PASS GO WITH DRY ICE.

Seriously folks, dry ice is perfectly safe as long as you use tongs to handle it. It’s also perfectly safe in cocktails, as long as you use food-grade dry ice and let it melt completely before enjoying your delicious concoction.

Okay, warning/warning over. Let’s talk about this blackberry goodness. I’m a big fan of any berry, but blackberries and sage are a winning combination and I thought it would be perfect for Halloween. If you can’t find dry ice or just don’t want to use it, you can still make a “steaming” margarita by lighting a dried sage leaf just before serving. The aroma of sage burning only adds to the sage flavor profile in the drink. Plus it looks pretty spooky too!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 ounces 100% agave silver tequila
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• 8 medium blackberries
• 5 fresh sage leaves
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• 1 pinch of orange bitters

GARNISH (OPTIONAL)

• Dried sage leaves
• Blackberries
• Dry ice

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Stir the blackberries and sage together in a cocktail shaker until broken up and fragrant.
2. Pour in the tequila, lemon juice, bitters and maple syrup. Give it a good shake and pour over a cube of dry ice (if using) or regular ice if using the dried sage leaf. If using dried sage, light the tip on the fire just before serving.