How to Make A Perfect Gin Cocktail—And 13 Recipes to Get You Inspired
This editor-favorite spirit is extremely versatile and the base of some of the world's best craft cocktails.
While gin is now seen as a sophisticated spirit that beckons to 1920s speakeasies and 20th-century British power players, this iconic beverage has only recently been back in the public's good graces. Mixologist and Spirited: Cocktails From Around the World author Adrienne Stillman says in the early aughts, cocktail bars had to work hard to make gin drinks appealing, and she's glad to see the botanical spirit is back in fashion. Acclaimed chef, restauranteur, and founder of Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. Brooks Reitz says he traces the "gin renaissance" to the boom of small-batch bourbon producers in the U.S. that have turned to distilling gin to start making profits quicker while waiting for whiskey to age. Today, there are more gin brands than ever before, making it more accessible and worthy of experimentation from the world's most iconic watering holes.
Of course, classic gin cocktails are a mainstay of our favorite neighborhood spots, from the bittersweet Negroni to the simple-yet-fabulous Gin & Tonic. Both Stillman and Reitz say that the beauty of gin is in its versatility. It pairs best with fresh citrus and floral flavors, but it can work in a more savory beverage or a fruit-forward Tiki drink. However, Stillman says the cocktail you're making should impact the type of gin you use to mix with.
"A citrusy, less-juniper-forward gin may shine in a French 75, but it may get lost among the strong flavors of a Red Snapper or a Negroni," she says. "Conversely, a very assertive gin like St. George Spirits Terroir may be overpowering in more delicate drinks. For all-purpose mixing, I tend to keep it classic with something like Bombay Dry." Reitz has a penchant for making Beefeater his workhorse, as it was his grandmother's favorite and also like American-made Castle & Feed and Bristowe.
"The other interesting thing about gin is its seasonal versatility," says Reitz. "In the summertime, we lean on Gin and Tonics or a Bees Knees while in the winter, you can sip more robust drinks, like martinis or our Hot Gin and Tonic in a teacup. You really can enjoy gin year-round while most people think of bourbon as a cool-weather drink or tequila in the summer or at the beach." Here, find recipes and expert tips for creating a perfect gin cocktail at home.
Hotel Barriere Le Majestic's La Grande Dame
Hotel Barriere Le Majestic is one of Cannes's most iconic hotels, and this sparkling cocktail features 44 Paradiso Gin which was created specifically for the property. An elevated take on the French 75, luxurious cocktail will transport you to the Côtes d'Azur with the aromas of lemon verbena and notes of French bubbly.
Ingredients:
1 ounce 44 Paradiso gin
3 ounces Fouquet’s champagne
dash lemon verbena bitter and its perfume
Directions:
Add gin and bitters to a shaker with ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a Champagne flute and top with bubbles. Perfume the glass and a ribbon with the verbena perfume. Tie ribbon around glass and serve.
Floradora
"A raspberry-lime buck named for a hit Broadway musical and created for one of the show's actresses," writes Stillman in Spirited: Cocktails From Around the World. "A contemporary newspaper article described it as 'an express transport to Elysium."
Ingredients:
2 parts Hendrick’s Gin
1 part lime juice
1/2 part raspberry syrup
ginger beer, raspberry, and lime wedges, to garnish
Directions:
Build all ingredients in a highball over ice cubes. Churn, garnish with raspberries and serve.
Armani / Ristorante 5th Avenue's Intro to Select Cocktail
Fans of Aperol and Campari will love Select Aperitivo, a Venetian bitter liqueur. Armani / Ristorante 5th Avenue pairs it with gin and lemon for a bold beverage in color and taste.
Ingredients:
2 ounces Select Aperitivo
3/4 ounce Plymouth Gin
3/4 ounce Lemon juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup
grapefruit twist, for garnish
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a shaker, fill with ice. Shake, and double-strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with grapefruit twist.
Cucumber Lemonade
Consider this cocktail the ultimate summer libation. Hendrick's cucumber and rose-infused spirit pairs excellently with fresh lemon juice for an upscale (and boozy) take on a glass of lemonade.
Ingredients:
1 part Hendrick’s Gin
1 part lemon juice
1 part simple syrup
3 parts soda water
cucumber and lemon slices, for garnish
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a highball filled with cubed ice. Lightly stir and serve. Garnish with 3 thinly sliced rounds of cucumber and a lemon wheel.
Ian Palmer's Last Flight Cocktail
This cocktail pairs with VERANDA's Sip & Read Book Club pick for October 2020: Charlotte McConaghy's Migrations. Ian Palmer, VERANDA's assistant photo editor (and resident cocktail savant) was inspired by both the novel's arctic setting and the Prohibition-era cocktail, Last Word. Classic cocktail aficionados will love this frothy, sour treat.
Get the recipe, here.
Lavender Bee's Knees
This glitzy cocktail was created at the Ritz Hotel in Paris in the 1920s and was likely a favorite of the Jazz Age set. Using honey instead of sugar to sweeten this drink gives it a unique layer of sweetness and complexity for a beverage that is truly "the bee's knees." Brooks Reitz shares his take with a touch of lavender.
Ingredients:
2 ounces gin
.75 ounces fresh lemon
.75 ounces honey syrup (equal parts honey and hot water)
6 drops Jack Rudy Lavender Bitters
Directions:
Combine ingredients in shaker tin, add ice and shake; strain into a coupe glass.
Pear Collins
This cocktail is perfect for transitioning from summer to fall, thanks to in-season pears and ginger spiced syrup. You can easily make this a batch cocktail by multiplying the amount of each ingredient by 10.
Ingredients:
1.5 ounces Fords Gin
1 ounce lemon juice
1 ounce ginger syrup (recipe follows)
1.5 ounce pear juice
1 ounce sparkling water
pear slice, for garnish
Directions:
To make the ginger syrup: combine 1 cup sliced ginger root, 1 cup sugar, and 1 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, then simmer on low for 1 hour and strain.
To make the cocktail: Add all ingredients to a shaker except sparkling water and shake with ice until chilled. Strain over rocks in a Collins glass and top with sparkling water. Garnish with a pear slice.
Ina Garten's Pomegranate Gimlet
This vibrant and fruity beverage is a favorite of Ina Garten's and therefore a perfect choice for any occasion you're hosting. Serve in martini glasses à la The Barefoot Contessa to bring some old-world glamour to the evening.
Get the recipe, here.
G&T Turbo
Back before Reitz had his own slew of highly acclaimed Charleston restaurants, he helped revamp FIG's bar menu to match the innovation going on in the kitchen and created some house-made syrups that gained a cult following. Jack Rudy Cocktail Co. sells some of his original tonic syrups that will make for a turbo-charged G&T at home.
Ingredients:
2 ounces gin
3/4 ounce Jack Rudy Tonic Syrup
3/4 ounce lime juice
lime wedges, for garnish
Directions:
In a shaker tin, combine gin, tonic syrup, and lime juice. Add ice, shake, and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with lime wedge.
Ian Palmer's Summer 75 Cocktail
Created to pair with VERANDA's first-ever Sip & Read Book Club pick, Alex George's The Paris Hours, this cocktail offers a funky twist on a classic cocktail. The addition of St. Germain, Chareau, and grapefruit juice makes a beverage that's ripe for summer celebrations.
Get the recipe, here.
Spring Meets Summer Punch
This lively cocktail plays on gin's versatility with hints of bitter, sour, and sweet. Multiply the amount of each ingredient by 10 to prep a big batch for your next alfresco dinner party.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Fords Gin
1 dash (or 1/2 barspoon) Absinthe
0.5 ounce fresh lemon juice
0.5 ounce fresh lime juice
1 ounce simple syrup
2 ounces sparkling water
1 dash Angostura bitters
2 cucumber slices
1 lemon and 1 lime wheel (for garnish)
Directions:
Add all ingredients except sparkling water into shaker and shake until chilled. Strain over ice in rocks glass and top with sparkling water. Garnish with a cucumber slice, lemon and lime wheels.
Ian Palmer's Mountweazel Martinez Cocktail
VERANDA's February 2021 Sip & Read Book Club pick was The Liar's Dictionary by Eley Williams. Palmer's book-inspired version of this historic drink pairs sweet vermouth with dry to make it a "perfect" spirit-forward cocktail.
Get the recipe, here.
Coffee Negroni
Do you love a Negroni as much as we do? Then it's time to try a little upgrade. The addition of cold brew coffee liqueur makes all the ingredients sing and will have you wondering why you've never tried it before.
Ingredients:
1 ounce Mr Black Coffee Liquor
1 ounce gin
1 ounce Campari
orange twist, for garnish
Directions:
Stir first three ingredients together and pour over a rocks glass with ice. Garnish with orange twist.
Lauren Wicks is a Birmingham-based writer covering design trends, must-have products, travel inspiration, and entertaining. She’s obsessed with globally inspired textiles, hosting dinner parties, and French cocktails.
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