#infused gin

This Winter Sunset is what a Wintry evening tastes like in my mind. At the hour when the late rays colour the skies in splashes of orange and gold and bright red in the farewell ritual, one should drink a cocktail with the warming notes of mandarin, the tang of lemon and the fruity sharpness of raspberries. With gin, obviously, and Tawny Port for a bit of suaveness. Happy Friday!

Ingredients (serves 1):

6 fresh raspberries

1 teaspoon caster sugar

1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 ice cubes

75 millilitres/2 1/2 fluid ounces (5 tablespoons) Mandarin Gin

15 millilitres/1/2 fluid ounce (1 tablespoon) good quality Tawny Port

In a shaker, muddle four of the raspberries with caster sugar and fresh lemon juice. Then, add the ice cubes. Poir Mandarin Gin and Tawny Port over the ice. Close the shaker tightly and shake energetically until well-chilled.

Double strain into a coupe glass. 

Garnish with remaining raspberries, speared.

Holiday Smack-Up: Skeptic Spirits, “Ginquila”: I WAS Skeptical

So…back during the late summer, I got an, uh, enigmatic cardboard box from something called “Skeptic Curious Spirits”, in Chicago. No clue. But my first thought was, “Hmmm, somebody actually paid attention when I said I like weird stuff.” Most PR firms and even a LOT of distilleries don’t like weird stuff. Harder to sell. Right nearly impossible to come up with something truly original.…

Citrus-Tarragon Gin Fizz: Hello, SPRING!

This herbal spin on a traditional gin fizz uses the homemade citrus gin that we made last week. You don’t have to use citrus gin, but it really gives this gin fizz some extra jazz.

You guys! Sometime while I was infusing the gin for this cocktail, spring happened. And it’s been glorious. Darrol Henry, Dave, and I have basically been living outside and soaking in this beautiful weather. I love it…

Homemade Citrus Gin: More Adventures in Infused Gin

I am on such a gin drink roll these days! This homemade citrus gin is the latest in my gin-making adventures, and I can’t wait to use it in a cocktail next week.

Last week the winter weather finally broke here in Atlanta. It’s been spring, spring, spring around here, and it got me in the mood to make something bright and citrusy to match the happy weather.

Gin’s flowery flavors felt like the…

Small-Batch Kiwi Gin for a Gin Cocktail Recipe to Come

OK, so you don’t have to make a small batch of this kiwi gin. I made a small one, because I only had a small amount of gin in the house. Size this recipe up to make as much as you like!

So remember when I made Tangerine Vodka for that Tangerine White Russian recipe? It reminded me of how much I like making boozy infusions. When I was coming up with a drink recipe not too long ago, I once again…

After overwhelming success with homemade "Mulled Cranberry" bitters last month (I'll eventually get around to writing up a post about them, recipe included), I'm getting ready to try out a couple more bitters recipe ideas, this time citrus-related. Since it's "Citrus Fest" at the local Central Market, I went in to stock up on hard-to-find varieties for peel-drying purposes.

Shockingly, I found actual bergamot oranges! Admittedly, half the shock was the $5.99/lb. price, but still... I had to have some! My Lady Grey bitters will now (hopefully) be all the more delicious! Of course, at that price point, I couldn't let the delicious fruit/juice go to waste. But not surprisingly, there's a lack of cocktail recipes featuring fresh bergamot juice. Not wanting to waste this precious liquid commodity, I decided to try something fairly safe with a basic sour.

The Earl Grey Sour

2 oz. Earl Grey-Infused Gin (see below)

1 oz. freshly-squeezed bergamot juice

1-2 barspoons honey, to taste (or 2-3 barspoons honey syrup)

Bergamot peel for garnish

Combine ingredients in a shaker. Stir until honey is dissolved (skip this step if using honey syrup). Add ice and shake. Strain into chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze peel over drink, rim glass and drop in.

For the infusion, I steeped an Earl Grey teabag in the gin for 4 or 5 minutes, bobbing and dredging the bag every minute or so. Also, if you keep your gin cold, let it warm up to room temp first... I haven't tried this yet, but in the absence of true bergamot, I imagine lemon juice and a few shakes of a good grapefruit or lemon bitters would be a serviceable substitute... Also, if you're one of those weirdos who prefer sugar in their tea over honey, by all means substitute simple syrup. Weirdo.