With International Gin & Tonic Day on the horizon –19th October in fact if you want to mark it in your diary – it’s time this classic got a new twist, 2020-style.
As alcoholic beverages go, it’s one of the easier ones: not only is a gin and tonic easy on the palate, but it’s also easy to knock up. A splosh of your gin of choice topped with tonic and hey presto (G&T purists look away now).
Peach & Thyme G&T
Take three or four slices of peach (fresh or tinned will work) and blitz in a blender. Strain into a tall glass then add 50ml gin and 125ml of tonic and ice. Stir to mix then garnish with a sprig of fresh thyme.
Gin to try: Gordon’s White Peach Gin
Strawberry & Black Pepper G&T
Wash and hull three fresh strawberries then slice into smaller pieces. Pop into a cocktail shaker and add a good twist of freshly ground black pepper. Muddle, then pour over ice. Stir in 45ml gin and top with elderflower tonic and a strawberry garnish.
Gin to try: Sloane’s Premium Dry Gin
Spiced G&T
Add a measure of gin to a glass of ice along with a slice of ginger, half a whole red chilli pepper and a few crushed cardamoms. Squeeze over the juice of a lime wedge and top with an Indian tonic.
Gin to try: Opihr Far East Gin
Top Tips For Perfect G&Ts
Getting the perfect gin & tonic is harder than it looks. The best G&Ts are those with fizz, so to help this process, you want to ensure your ingredients are well chilled.
The colder your drink, the longer the fizz will last. Another way to retain more of those bubbles is by sandwiching the gin between the tonic. Fill your glass with ice, pour a little of the tonic in, then your gin and finally top with the rest of the tonic.
The tonic is denser than the gin so will sink and mix with the gin negating the need to get busy with a stirrer - which will cause more of those precious bubbles to pop.
What To Drink If You Don’t Like Tonic
Hey, we get it, not everyone likes a good tonic - we’re not judging. But that’s not to say you can’t still enjoy a gin and…
Bitter lemon - pair with a citrus gin like Bathtub Gin Old Tom
Ginger beer - pair with a rhubarb gin like Dark Matter Spiced Rhubarb Liqueur
Chilled Earl Grey - pair with a botanical gin like Beefeater 24 Gin
Pink lemonade - pair with a fruity gin like Whitley Neill Raspberry Gin
