White Wine Spritzer with Lemon-Thyme Syrup

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A wine spritzer that tastes like it came from a good wine bar instead of a backyard cooler: chilled dry white wine, hard-sparkling soda water, and a splash of quick lemon-thyme syrup that adds perfume without turning the glass sweet. The syrup takes five minutes on the stove and keeps for two weeks, so you can build a glass in under a minute — or batch a pitcher for a crowd.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 strips lemon zest, removed in wide strips with a peeler
• 1 pinch kosher salt

• 1 bottle (750 ml) dry white wine, very cold (Pinot Grigio, Grüner Veltliner, or dry Riesling)
• 2 cups sparkling water or club soda, very cold
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• as needed large ice cubes

• 1 lemon, cut into thin half-moons
• 1/2 English cucumber, sliced into long ribbons or thin coins
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme, for the glasses

Instructions

1. Make the syrup: combine the sugar, water, thyme sprigs, lemon zest strips, and pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a bare simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar fully dissolves, about 2 to 3 minutes. Do not let it boil hard or reduce.
2. Pull the pan off the heat, cover, and let the thyme and zest steep for 20 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a jar, pressing gently on the solids. Refrigerate until cold, at least 1 hour (or set the jar in an ice-water bath for 15 minutes if you're in a hurry). The syrup keeps, covered, for 2 weeks.
3. Chill everything: the wine and sparkling water should be at 38 to 40°F, straight from the back of the fridge. A lukewarm spritzer goes flat and tastes flabby, so put the glasses in the freezer for 10 minutes too.
4. To build one glass: fill a wine glass or tumbler with large ice cubes. Add 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) lemon-thyme syrup and 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, then pour in 4 ounces cold white wine.
5. Top with 2 1/2 ounces cold sparkling water, pouring down the inside of the glass to protect the bubbles. Stir exactly once with a bar spoon, lifting from the bottom, then stop.
6. Tuck in a cucumber ribbon and a lemon half-moon, slap a thyme sprig against your palm to wake up the oil, and lay it across the ice. Serve immediately, while the glass is still frosted.
7. To make a pitcher for six: stir the full bottle of wine, 6 tablespoons syrup, and the 3 tablespoons lemon juice in a pitcher and refrigerate up to 4 hours. Add the 2 cups sparkling water, cucumber, and lemon slices only in the last minute before pouring over ice.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

More from Sprig Originals

Dark Roux Seafood Gumbo with Quick Shrimp Stock

One-Skillet Blackened Cajun Chicken Pasta

Char-Grilled Oysters with Garlic-Worcestershire Butter

Are you this recipe's original author or publisher? Report a problem