This drink disappeared within half an hour at the Serious Eats holiday party—we're guessing that you can write "cardamom" on anything and people will love it. Here, it meets lemon, Black Grouse, and soda for what's a essentially a scotch Tom Collins against a cardamom backdrop.

If you're more into rum than Scotch, swapping out the Black Grouse for dry Brugal rum works equally well, which McCarthy calls the "Pedro Collins."

Note: This recipe makes about 12 ounces of cardamom syrup, more than is needed for the punch recipe; it will keep, tightly sealed, for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.