Contests

We Have a Winner for First & Hope’s Debut Tonight!

Photo: First & Hope

Congratulations to Grub Street reader Thomas Kim, our winner for two tickets to “Red Rover, Red Rover,” tonight’s mixology party coinciding with the public premiere of Downtown’s new First & Hope. We asked for your original cocktail recipes and Kim gave us a winning “Downtown Julep Brown,” a take on the famous bourbon cocktail that finds you making your own minted sugar. If you didn’t win, tonight’s celebration, a party for Tony Abou-ganim’s new book, The Modern Mixologist, is still open to the public, though you’ll have to queue up with everybody else. See below if you’re itching to make Kim’s “Downtown Julep Brown” recipe.

The Downtown Julep Brown

2 fluid ounces good quality Bourbon preferably Maker’s Mark
1 tablespoon simple syrup
Micro Mint or regular mint sprigs
Crushed ice
Minted Sugar

Simple Syrup:
1 cup water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 bunch fresh mint sprigs


Minted Sugar
2 cup Granulated white Sugar
1 cup volume Mint leaves (more or less depending on taste)
1/2 cup water

Blend mint and water until well blended. Mix sugar with mint blend until throughly blended. Spread the sugar mix on a sheet tray and allow to dry or bake on very low temp in oven. Break up the sugar and make it a powdered form.

Muddle mint with simple syrup add ice then pour into rimmed Minted Sugar glass. Finish with bourbon.

We Have a Winner for First & Hope’s Debut Tonight!