José Andrés is into cocktails, too. The star chef’s Washington, D.C., concept Barmini features more than 100 drinkable creations. When it opened last year, Andrés told The Washington Post: “You can eat to live, but you can drink to survive.”

Want to raise a toast to that sentiment? Andrés’ China Poblano at the Cosmopolitan has four new concoctions perfect for beating the brutal heat with a kick of booze. The Empress ($15) starts cooling you down with the visual, cloudy white popped with a miniature garden that perfumes every sip. The fruity, just slightly earthy backbone of unfiltered sake and Ty Ku Soju is accented by sweet-tart, yogurt-based Calpico soda and brightened by yuzu’s delicate citrus. Introduced with a layer of chilled, velvety foam, these flavors have surprising harmony.

Maggie Myers, a manager at China Poblano, says the bold combination by Juan Coronado (Andrés’ cocktail innovator) is about “not being afraid—trying to push yourself to incorporate new and unique things to attract a crowd here, stand out from the masses.” She says the Empress is an ideal palate cleanser, though the clean, subtle taste has a way of lingering.

Ingredients:

1 oz. Ty Ku Soju

1 oz. nigori sake

1½ oz. Calpico

½ oz. yuzu juice

½ oz. simple syrup

micro flower petals (garnish)

Method: Combine all ingredients, shake and strain over ice. Garnish with flower petals.