Lemon Verbena Infused Vodka

In one of my favorite movies, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Professor Henry Jones (Sean Connery) has a great line. When all seems lost, he whips out an umbrella and sends a flock of birds into the enemies plane which causes it to crash.

"I suddenly remembered my Charlemagne: Let my armies be the rocks and the trees - and the birds in the sky."

With summer upon us in the Black Hills, I suddenly remembered my Charlemagne but it had nothing to do with rocks, trees, birds or sky.

Last fall, I infused some good vodka with the herb, lemon verbena from my garden. I carefully removed all the leaves, made sure they were clean and covered them with vodka. My concoction sat in mason jars for months. Around Christmas, I strained it and it was a dark brown and not appetizing at all. In fact, the nose was super strong -- like taking a whiff of straight vodka. And it was yucky brown color. So over the holidays I tried to get my friends to try it and did not have much luck.

Fast forward to spring! I found one of my three jars under the cabinet and it turned a pretty golden color so I decided to give it another try. The nose was subtle with a slight lemon scent. This could be the start of a wonderful friendship!

Michelle's Lemon Verbena Summer Tonic

1 shot of lemon verbena infused vodka

tonic water

splash of fresh lemon juice

splash of 7-UP

Fill a highball with ice. Add one shot of lemon verbena infused vodka. Fill almost to the top with tonic water and add a splash of fresh lemon juice and 7-UP. Stir. And enjoy.

Yes, summer is here.