Gin Base Flashcards
Aviation
1.5 oz. London Dry Gin 1/2 oz. Maraschino Liqueur 3/4 oz. Lemon Juice 1 Barspoon Crème de Violette Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake to chill. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Cocktail Glass, Cherry (Maraschino, Amarena, Brandied Cherry) or Lemon Peel
Bartender Comments: The name (Aviation) indicates the desired color of the cocktail—a light blue that should be reminiscent of the sky. Crème de violette can be pretty intense so use it judiciously. For a softer and fruitier edge, use crème Yvette. A drier variation, the Casino, swaps a few dashes of orange bitters for the violet liqueur.
Abbey Cocktail
2 oz. Gin 3/4 oz. Lillet 3/4 oz. Orange Juice 2 Dashes of Bitters Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Cherry
Bartender Comments: The standard recipe is a simple combination of gin, orange juice and orange bitters, resulting in a botanical-laced version of a screwdriver. But Lillet is great with gin, providing both sweet and bitter flavors to bring the whole package together.
Alexander
2 oz. Gin
1 oz. White Crème de Cacao
3/4 oz. Heavy Cream
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail, Grated Nutmeg
Bartender Comments: Tangy, bitter, herbaceous…there is a lot of complexity in this three-ingredient drink.
Antibes
2 oz. Gin
3/4 oz. Bénédictine
1 oz. Grapefruit Juice
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into an ice filled Old Fashioned Glass. Old Fashioned Glass, Orange Slice
Bartender Comments:
Bee’s Knees
1.5 oz. Gin
3/4 oz. Honey
3/4 oz. Lemon Juice
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Twist of Lemon
Bartender Comments: It’s important to augment the honey in a way that makes it mixable, as it will lock up completely when it comes into contact with ice. the most common advice is to thin the honey with water (hot water will make the process go faster, and a 2:1 ratio of honey to hot water works best). The other good thing about this is that the level of sweetness will be similar to that of a simple syrup of one part sugar to one part water. Store this a refrigerator to extend the shelf life as is it is now prone to ferment. Another way to go about things is to heat the honey prior to adding it to the other liquid ingredients (without the ice) and stirring until fully incorporated. The latter method may have to be adjusted to balance the end result.
Bijou
1 oz. Gin 1 oz. Green Chartreuse 1 oz. Sweet Vermouth dash Orange Bitters Stir all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Twist of Lemon
Bartender Comments: This is a rich and heady version, although a slightly drier version could be made with, say, 1.5 oz gin and 3/4 oz. each vermouth and Chartreuse. The cocktail’s name translates to “jewel,” as the three colors of the ingredients each represent precious stones: diamond, ruby and emerald. Some recipes call for layering the ingredients to showcase a striking presentation (from bottom to top: vermouth, chartreuse, gin). The resulting cocktail, with a little orange bitters added, is also known as an Amber Dream.
Boston Cocktail
1.5 oz. Gin
1.5 oz. Apricot Brandy
1/2 oz. Lemon Juice
1/4 oz. Grenadine
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass
Bartender Comments: This one’s a bit tricky in the sense that “apricot brandy” may be a bit misleading. You can find fruit brandies (peach, blackberry, apricot and the like) but they are usually of poor quality, especially with large commercial brands. Instead try Rothman & Winter Orchard Apricot or Marie Brizard Apry, and real pomegranate syrup (or molasses) instead of grenadine.
The Bramble
1 oz. Gin 1/2 oz. Sweet Vermouth 1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth 1/2 oz. orange juice Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Orange Slice (optional)
Bartender Comments: A Dick Bradsell classic!
Clover Club
1.5 oz. Gin 3/4 oz. Lemon Juice 3/4 oz. Raspberry Syrup 1 Egg White Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker without ice. Shake vigorously for five seconds to add volume to the egg white (this is called a dry shake, which is weird since all of the ingredients are liquid). Separate the shaker and add ice. Re-shake with ice vigorously. Strain into a cocktail stem. Cocktail Glass
Bartender Comments: Tradition dictates the use of raspberry syrup. To create the syrup, take a plastic carton of raspberries (like the Driscoll ones available at many markets) and combine with a pint of sugar. Stir to combine, and set aside to macerate for 15-20 minutes. Add a pint of HOT water, stir to combine. Strain with a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Store in a refrigerator.
Corpse Reviver #2
3/4 oz. Gin 3/4 oz. Cointreau 3/4 oz. Lillet Blanc 3/4 oz. Lemon Juice Absinthe (glass rinse) Rinse a cocktail glass with absinthe and discard the excess. Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into the glass. Cocktail Glass, Cherry
Bartender Comments: Like the Aviation, this is once more a popular drink. While there are a few (dissimilar) versions of Corpse Revivers around, this is more than likely the expected recipe when a generic Corpse Reviver is ordered.
Delmonico
1 oz. Gin 1/2 oz. Cognac 1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth 1/2 oz. Sweet Vermouth 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters Stir all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Lemon Twist
Bartender Comments: The Delmonico is certainly not the only namesake house cocktail floating around, but there is a reason that it remains in the lexicon: it’s damn good.
Dempsey Cocktail
2 oz. Gin 1.5 oz. Lime Juice 1 tsp Sugar 4 dashes Bitters Build the drink in an ice-filled highball glass and stir. Highball Glass, Lime Wedge
Bartender Comments: I like all of these ingredients, I just don’t like them all in the same drink.
Dubonnet Cocktail
1.5 oz. Gin
1.5 oz. Dubonnet Rouge
Dash of Bitters
Stir all of the ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Lemon Twist
Bartender Comments: This is a great way to showcase (and move through) the often neglected bottle of Dubonnet, a sweet wine-based aperitif laced with quinine.
Gibson
2.5 oz. Gin
1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth
Stir ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Pearl Onion
Bartender Comments: Not much distinguishes this from the classic Martini; indeed, only the garnish. Naren Young created a wonderful spring variation that introduced pickled ramps, or wild foraged leeks. A bit of the pickling brine works its way into the mix to create a slightly dirty expression. This is a great exercise for industrious cocktail nuts. If you can’t find ramps, use the standard pearl onion.
Gimlet
2 oz. Plymouth Gin
3/4 oz. Lime Juice
3/4 oz. Simple Syrup
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain. Cocktail Glass, Wedge of Lime
Bartender Comments: This is a GIN cocktail, not a vodka cocktail. As Sterling Archer says, the proper way to order a vodka Gimlet is to request, “vodka, combined with all the ingredients a sane person would use to make a Gimlet.” For a variation, add two dashes of Angostura bitters to make a Bennet cocktail.
Gin Fizz
2 oz. Gin 3/4 oz. lemon juice 3/4 oz. simple syrup soda water Combine the gin, lemon and syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into an empty Collins glass, with no ice. Top with soda water. Collins Glass
Bartender Comments: Historically, this type of drink that was consumed in the morning, so a collins glass on the smaller end of the spectrum would be appropriate. As the line of comments below mentions, that fundamental difference between a fizz and a collins is the use or disuse of ice. Also, a collins is built directly in the glass while the fizz is shaken. Some variations on the collins include: silver fizz (use of an egg white), golden fizz (use of an egg yolk), royal fizz (use of the whole egg), and the diamond fizz (substitute sparkling wine for soda water).
