Because there's more you can do with a bottle of gin.
Don't get us wrong, we love a good G&T as much as the next person, but with a renaissance of superb gins upon us (both US-produced and imported) it seems a shame to relegate this flavorful, diverse spirit to a single spritz. To that end, we've put together a collection of some of the best gin-forward co*cktails around to prove that yes, you really do like gin, even if you don't know it yet.
Celery Gimlet
Ingredients
1 small celery rib, chopped
.75 oz simple syrup
2 oz. London dry gin
.75 oz lime juice
Instructions
Add celery and simple syrup to base of co*cktail shaker and muddle, about 30 seconds. Add gin and lime juice, then fill shaker with ice. Shake about 30 seconds. Double-strain co*cktail into chilled co*cktail glass. Garnish with celery leaf.
From America's Test Kitchen's How to co*cktail
Autumn Fizz
Ingredients
2 oz Alibi Gin
.25 oz lemon juice
agave nectar
Sparkling apple cider
Garnished with Thyme and apple
Instructions
Pour gin in shaker, Add lemon juice and agave nectar, shake and then pour into a high ball glass and top with sparkling cider. Garnish with fresh thyme and an apple slice.
Courtesy of The Ebbitt Room, Cape May NJ
Empress Old Fashioned
Ingredients
1.5 oz Empress 1908 Gin
.75 oz Pisco
.25 oz simple syrup
3 dashes Angostura Bitters
3 dashes Peychauds Bitters
Instructions
Stir together on ice. Garnish with a Lemon twist.
Advertisem*nt - Continue Reading Below
The Last Word
Ingredients
.75 oz Martin Miller's Gin
.75 oz green chartreuse
.75 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
.75 oz lime juice
Instructions
Combine ingredients in a co*cktail shaker and shake with ice. Strain into a co*cktail coupe.
In The Weeds
Ingredients
2 oz Nolet's dry gin
1 oz yellow chartreuse
.5 oz lime juice
.5 oz lemon juice
.75 oz tarragon tea syrup*
Tarragon leaves for garnish
Instructions
Combine ingredients in a co*cktail shaker with ice and stir. Strain into a martini glass and garnish with tarragon leaves.
*Tarragon tea syrup
Combine 2 cups of water, .5 cup sugar, and .5 cup fresh tarragon in a saucepan and bring to boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool before use.
From Ocean House in Watch Hill, RI, courtesy of The Art of The Garden by Relais & Chateaux
Advertisem*nt - Continue Reading Below
Rosemary Grapefruit Martini
Ingredients
1.5 oz Farmer’s Organic Gin
1.5oz fresh grapefruit juice
.25 oz simple syrup
2 rosemary sprigs
Instructions
Saving 1 sprig of rosemary for garnish, combine ingredients in a co*cktail shaker with ice. Shake until well chilled and double strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
La Guapa
Ingredients
2 oz CH Distillery Lavender Gin
2 oz rhubarb simple syrup*
1 oz lemon juice
Top with Anna Codorniu Brut Rosé Cava
Instructions
Muddle rhubarb simple syrup, lemon juice, and fresh lavender sprigs. Add dry gin. Shake and pour over ice. Top with brut rosé. Garnish with fresh lavender sprig
*To make simple syrup:
Cook down rhubarb in boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Remove rhubarb and add sugar. Continue to reduce for a few more minutes.
Courtesy of Tomy Lokvicic at Tanta, Chicago, IL
Parakeet Nordine Gin co*cktail
Ingredients
1.5 oz Fords Gin
.75 oz Giffard Pamplemousse
.25 oz green chartruese
.5 oz lime juice
2 drops Tiki bitters
Instructions
Add ingredients to a co*cktail shaker and shake with ice. Strain into a co*cktail coupe and garnish with a lime peel and a grapefruit peel.
Courtesy of Laura Belluci at SoBou, New Orleans, LA
Advertisem*nt - Continue Reading Below
The Green Virgin
Ingredients
.75 oz egg white
2 oz Tanqueray gin
.5 oz Chartreuse yellow liqueur
1 oz lemon juice
1 oz rosemary syrup*
.5 oz extra virgin olive oil
4 dashes Peychaud's bitters
Instructions
Add egg white and gin in a Boston shaker and shake 5-6 times. Add in liqueur, lemon juice, rosemary syrup, and EVOO, then fill shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain in to a co*cktail glass. Garnish with bitters and rosemary sprig.
*Rosemary Syrup: In a heavy bottom saucepot, combine equal parts sugar and water with a few sprigs of rosemary and turn on high heat. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 5 min. Turn off heat allow to cool at room temperature and allow rosemary to steep for 24 hours.
From Brunos Italian Kitchen in Brea, California
Cranberry in London Gin co*cktail
Ingredients
1 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin
.075 oz Cranberry Hibiscus Syrup*
.5 oz fresh lemon juice
3 oz brut champagne
Instructions
Shake gin, syrup and lemon juice together with ice and strain into chilled glass/flute. Top with champagne.
*Cranberry Hibiscus Syrup
.5 liter water
.5 liter white sugar
3 cups Hibiscus flowers
2 cups sliced fresh cranberries
Heat all in a pan for 12 mins on medium heat. Stir well. Remove from heat and strain thru a sieve to remove solids. Leave to chill in the fridge.
Created by Eddie Fuentes at Finka Table & Tap, Miami, FL
M Spritz
Ingredients
.5 oz fresh lime juice, plus a lime twist for garnish
.25 oz simple syrup
.75 oz Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto
1 oz Monkey 47 gin
A small pinch of flaky sea salt
3 oz prosecco
Instructions
In a co*cktail shaker filled with ice, combine the lime juice, simple syrup, Italicus, gin, and sea salt.Shake well, then strain into a wine glass filled with fresh ice. Top with the prosecco and garnish with a lime twist.
From RPM Italian in Chicago.
Advertisem*nt - Continue Reading Below
Tea Thyme
Ingredients
.75 oz fresh lemon juice
.25 oz Suze
.5 oz Bigallet China China
.75 Maraska Cherry Liqueur
.75 oz Fords Gin
Instructions
Fill a Collins glass with ice. Combine first five ingredients in a shaker. Pour into glass, top with soda water, and garish with a lemon wheel and sprig of thyme.
Courtesy of Eric Brooks at CBD Provisions
Christmas Gin and Cranberry Sauced Martini
Ingredients
2 oz gin
.5 oz fresh lime juice
2 tbsp cranberry sauce (without whole berries)
2 dashes Peychaud's Bitters
Rosemary sprig
Instructions
Add cranberry sauce to a co*cktail shaker with the gin, lime juice, and bitters. Add ice, shake very vigorously at least 30 to 45 seconds and strain through a mesh strainer into a chilled coupe glass. Smack a sprig of rosemary between palms to release aromas and drop on top of the co*cktail.
Courtesy of the Cooking Channel
Orange Blossom
Ingredients
2 oz. Aviation Gin
.5 oz Galliano liqueur
1.5 oz orange cordial
1 oz egg white
3 fresh mint leaves
5 dashes Regan's Orange Bitters
Instructions
Dry shake gin, Galliano liqueur, orange cordial, egg white, and fresh mint leaves with Regan's Orange Bitters vigorously to emulsify the egg white (about 20 times). Add one scoop of ice to shaker and shake again. Strain into chilled coupe glass.
From Broadway Bar at Nordstrom, New York City
Lauren Hubbard
Writer
Lauren Hubbard is a freelance writer and Town & Country contributor who covers beauty, shopping, entertainment, travel, home decor, wine, and co*cktails.
Sam Dangremond
Contributing Digital Editor
Sam Dangremond is a Contributing Digital Editor at Town & Country, where he covers men's style, co*cktails, travel, and the social scene.
