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Gimlet Cocktail Recipe – A Delicious Gin Sour

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The Gimlet is a delicious gin sour, one that inspired many riffs and earned its place among the tried and true classics. 

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Gin Gimlet

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What is Gimlet ?

The Gimlet is a very old cocktail, old enough to appear in 1930’s Savoy Cocktail Book. It’s a gin, lime juice, and simple syrup cocktail, so it’s classed as a gin sour. It came about in a time when gin was celebrated and its botanical notes were meant to take the spotlight. 

As for the name, no one is 100% sure why it’s Gimlet instead of Ginlet, but personally I’m putting it down to a difference in linguistics, and how pronunciation changed over the decades. 

gimlet 2

Gimlet Cocktail Recipe

Ioana Ciuraru
A dainty gin sipper, perfect for summer evenings.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 2.5 oz gin
  • 0.5 oz lime juice
  • 0.5 oz simple syrup

Instructions
 

  • In a shaker add gin, lime juice, simple syrup, ice. Shake well.
  • Strain into chilled coupe glass.

Notes

The recipe calls for lime juice, but you can use lemon juice if you want to amp up the botanical notes in your gin.
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When is this drink best ?

The Gimlet works best in spring and summer, when the sweetened lime paired with the gin bring out wonderful herbal and spicy notes. I also think the Gimlet is better as a pre-dinner drink, as more of an appetizer and sipper. 

My thoughts on Gimlet

I found the gimlet quite pleasant, and while I think citrus goes very well with gin, I think lemon goes better than lime. Even so, the lime brought out enough of the gin’s notes to make this an overall beautiful cocktail with plenty of flavor. It’s easy to underestimate since it’s a bit sweet, but there’s a definite alcohol burn towards the end. 

gimlet making

If you like Gimlet, you might also like…

Gin Rickey – gin, lime, club soda

Gin sour – a sweet and sour gin cocktail, with egg foam on top

Gin Daisy – a goin sour with triple sec and more fizz

Bee’s Knees – a goin sour with honey syrup 

Tom Collins – a gin sour with club soda

Daiquiri – the classic rum sour

Lemon Drop –  a vodka and lemon delight

Raspberry Gimlet – a gimlet with raspberry syrup

Strawberry Gimlet – a gimlet with strawberry syrup

Vodka Gimlet – a gimlet with a vodka base

White Lady – a different version of gin sour

Cucumber Gimlet – a version with refreshing cucumber

Notes, substitutes, and tips

The gin is very strong in this, so use one you like. You can go for a dry one, or you can go for a flavored version.


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