It's Cocktail Time! Cucumber-Mint Gin and Tonic

You know it's coming. You can feel the air getting just one degree cooler with each day we creep closer to September. With Labor Day approaching there's no better time to enjoy these last easy breezy days of summer than with a classic cocktail.

But there's a twist. No, not just the lime; we're talking a new take on the classic gin and tonic, long a Southerner's (and Northerner's, Mid-Westerner's and those California coasters' too ...) answer to get some relief from the heat.

This year, say good-bye to the languishing last days with a cucumber-mint gin and tonic.

Sounds refreshing, no? And, you can use up the last bit of bounty from the yard — the meandering mint and the cool cukes that you can't bear the thought of just going into another cucumber salad.

Thanks to The Daily Green (with the recipe courtesy of Juniper Green London Gin, which is organic — even better!), you'll be sipping something special by sundown.

Here's what to do:

For 1 drink

INGREDIENTS 2 slices cucumber 3 mint sprigs 3 ounces gin 4 ounces Q organic tonic water 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice

PREPARATION 1. Muddle 1 slice cucumber and 2 sprigs mint in highball glass. 2. Fill with ice. 3. Add 3 ounces gin, 4 ounces tonic and 1/2 ounces lime juice. 4. Stir and garnish with a cucumber wheel.

Photo courtesy of Hajnalka Ardai@sxc.hu