“We tried to add three elements to it: sweet, savory, and heat,” says Rachid Hadouche, general manager of The Bristol at Four Seasons Boston. He’s referring to Feed the Fire, the Bristol Bar’s zingy daiquiri variant that trades rum for vodka and possesses those three qualities in spades.

Hadouche’s team manages this feat by infusing vodka with basil and jalapeño. Prior to infusion, the pepper’s seeds are removed to achieve a more temperate result. “We don’t want it to be super spicy; we just want a hint of jalapeño,” Hadouche says. That prevents the pepper from outshining the basil, which adds a savory twist of its own.

The drink’s sweet element comes from a small amount of simple syrup and an ounce of pineapple juice. Aside from adding bright, fruity flavor that contrasts with the jalapeño’s heat and the basil’s herbaceousness, the pineapple brings an almost egg white-level of froth to the cocktail.

But just how frothy you want it is up to you. “The froth comes from pineapple, so the harder you shake it, the frothier it gets,” Hadouche says.

Feed The Fire
2 ounces jalapeño- and basil-infused vodka*
1 ounce pineapple juice
½ ounce simple syrup
½ ounce lime juice
Edible flower, for garnish

Add all ingredients to a shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled and double strain into a Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with an edible flower.

*Jalapeño- and Basil-Infused Vodka (makes 750 ml)
1 750ml bottle Absolut Elyx vodka
3 jalapeños, quartered and seeded
1 cup basil leaves

Wrap jalapeños in cheesecloth. Add vodka, basil leaves, and cheesecloth-wrapped jalapeños to an airtight container and seal. Allow mixture to sit for 24 hours before straining out jalapeños and basil leaves and re-bottling. Keeps indefinitely.