The boy and his poison: The Green Park

Messing about with thyme in last week's drink rekindled my interest in using herbal flavours in cocktails, which in turn reminded me of a fantastic drink I tasted last year called the Green Park. I first came across it at the Savoy's American Bar when I took a chance and asked the bartender to ply us with his favourite cocktail of the moment. This thing tasted incredible but the night was young and the seat was magnetically comfortable… I had a sneaking suspicion I'd completely forget the recipe come the morning.

Cue me waking up seven hours later, traces of barely legible text scrawled on my hands and wrists in permanent marker (think Guy Pearce in Memento) and a surreal six word mantra/shopping-list of ingredients in my head… that's when you know the drink is worth remembering. So if you need a mid-week April sharpener or have a few leaves of basil that need a home, this is the drink for you. It has the perfect balance of bold flavours (from the lemon and gin) and sneaky subtle aromas (from the celery bitters and basil) that belie how easy it is to make.

Before we get going I've found that agave syrup is an amazing and easy to find sweetening ingredient at the moment but you can always substitute it for sugar syrup. You can also make this without the celery bitters but having a set of bitters in your cupboard will really open up your drink mixing repertois, this is the set to get.

You'll need:

• 50 ml gin
• 25ml lemon juice (just shy of half a lemon)
• 25ml of agave nectar (or sugar/gomme syrup)
• 1 egg white
• 5 large basil leaves torn to release their oil
• 3 dashes of celery bitters

Make it:

• Add all your ingredients to a shaker
• Shake hard for 5-10 seconds to blend your egg white (the dry shake)
• Then add your ice and shake vigourously for a further 10 seconds
• Strain into a martini glass
• Spoon in a little of your foam if the strainer hasn't allowed it through
• Garnish with a basil leaf