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Forbes
8 hours ago
- Forbes
8 Classic Gin Drinks That Go Beyond Gin & Tonics
Gin gimlets are an ideal cocktail for citrus-forward gins to shine. getty The nuances of a premium gin comes from the quality of its botanicals. Juniper may be gin's star ingredient, however, modern gins comprise a number of unique herbs, aromatics and seeds that contribute to the final flavor and texture of the spirit. The combinations can range from citrus-forward expressions, full of lemon, grapefruit or orange peel, to herbal-centric recipes, with rosemary, anise and coriander. There's also floral expressions, using the likes of lavender, rose and violet flowers. Gin's botanicals can most often be appreciated in the spirit's simplest drinks like a gin and tonic or a martini but sometimes the complexity of a gin isn't realized until you layer it in a cocktail with other spirits – for example a gin with more floral than herbal qualities can completely change the taste of a negroni. For this reason, it can be fun to explore mixing one of your preferred gins for a gin and tonic in one of gin's other tried and true cocktails, from a French 75 to a White Lady. With World Gin Day approaching on June 14, there's no better time to start experimenting with one of the eight classic gin drink recipes below. Tart yet refreshing, freshly squeezed lime juice perfectly mingles with gin in this simple, three ingredient cocktail. This cocktail is an ideal example of how gin's complexities can affect the final flavor; opt for a London dry gin with citrus notes over an herbal gin. Ingredients: 2 oz gin, ½ oz fresh lime juice, ¼ oz simple syrup Method: Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice; shake until well-chilled. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with a lime wheel. For another citrus-forward, potent gin drink, a Bee's Knees is a prohibition-era cocktail that's still beloved by modern gin drinkers. The lemon and honey combine with the gin for a sweet, bright sip that can be made to taste more earthy with a juniper-forward gin or refreshing with a citrus-inspired gin. Make the honey syrup ahead of time and keep it in your fridge for up to a month. Ingredients: 2 oz gin, 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice, 0.5 oz honey syrup (boil equal parts honey to water until it dissolves, let cool). Method: Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice; shake until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass and garnish with a lemon twist. 50/50 martini. getty As its name suggests, this is an equal-parts cocktail that can make for a really entertaining, and simultaneously upskilling, recipe to sample different gins with. Bartenders also have fun adding their unique twist on this recipe by adding a dash or two of flavored bitters which can complement the chosen gin. Ingredients: 1.5 oz gin, 1.5 oz dry vermouth Method: Add the gin and vermouth to a cocktail shaker with ice; shake until well-chilled. Strain into a pre-chilled martini glass and garnish with a lemon twist. Raw egg cocktails aren't for everyone (especially in an egg-flation economy) but if you can stomach it, the White Lady is an underrated, iconic gin cocktail that's more likely to be found on a British menu than it is stateside. The texture of the egg white topping the gin sour-like base makes for a rich mouthfeel. Ingredients: 1.5 oz gin, 0.75 oz orange liqueur (like Triple Sec), 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice, one egg white Method: Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake well. Strain out the ice then add the ingredients back to the shaker for a vigorous dry shake to help build a rich foam. Strain again, this time into a coupe glass and garnish with a lemon twist. Sparkling, sweet and tart, this gin and Champagne cocktail is equally perfect as an aperitivo as it is with brunch. If you're in the mood for a more evident gin profile, try playing with the ratio of the spirit to the bubbles. Ingredients: 1 oz gin, 3 oz, Champagne 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice, 0.5 oz simple syrup; lemon twist for garnish Method: Combine the gin, simple syrup and lemon juice into a cocktail shaker with ice; shake until chilled then strain into a Champagne flute. Float in the Champagne to the top of the glass and garnish with a lemon twist. Ramos gin fizz. getty This drink may require a little extra preparation, but it's worth it for the velvety, flavorful result. It's a New Orleans favorite and some bartenders have even been quoted to say that it outsells the Sazerac. Give it a try for yourself, but be warned, it may take some time to perfect. Ingredients: 1.5 oz gin, 0.75 oz simple syrup, 0.5 oz heavy cream, 0.5 oz fresh lime juice, 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice, 3 dashes orange flower water, 1 egg white, club soda Method: Combine all ingredients, except the club soda, to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously for at least 15 seconds. Strain out the ice and add ingredients back to the shaker for a dry round of shaking for 15 seconds. Strain into a highball glass, while simultaneously adding the club soda together in one slow stream to achieve the fluffy, towering fizz. As previously mentioned, a more complex gin can really change the profile of a negroni. Personally, I love more of an herbal quality in my negronis, so I tend to reach for a gin that showcases this on its own, but is even more prominent when mixed with an herb-forward sweet vermouth. Ingredients: 1.5 oz gin, 1.5 oz Campari, 1.5 oz sweet vermouth Method: Combine all ingredients in a cocktail glass with ice; stir until well-chilled. Strain into a low ball glass with one large cube. Garnish with a rosemary sprig or olive. A name as fun as it sounds, this gin-based cocktail combines the brambly notes of crème de mûre (a blackberry liqueur) for an elegant take on summer fruit. If you don't have pebbled or crushed ice on hand, add some cubes to a ziplock bag and use a heavy object to break up the larger pieces as crushed ice definitely adds to the draw of this drink. Ingredients: 2 oz gin, 0.6 oz lemon juice, 1/4 oz simple syrup, 0.6 oz crème de mûre Method: Add the first four ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Pour in the crème de mûre over the ice; garnish with a cocktail pick of fresh blackberries.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
Safe route past man-made weir created for eels
A project to allow eels and other fish to safely bypass a man-made weir has been completed. The concrete weir, created by Essex and Suffolk Water in the River Blackwater, near Maldon, Essex, was preventing fish from completing their natural migration upstream. The route is particularly important for eels, which travel from the Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic. They mature from glass eels to elvers to yellow eels in the River Blackwater and other places in the UK before heading back to the North Atlantic to lay eggs. Project manager Kerri Russell, of Essex & Suffolk Water, said: "We take a great deal of care to make sure the work we do isn't to the detriment of the local environment. "It's a bespoke design, with peg tiles for the eels to weave through and baffle tiles for the fish, to slow the flow of water and allow them to rest if they need to. "We've had a lot of interest from local groups, so recently our teams carried out visits to the site, which is on private land, to explain the work that has taken place and why it is important." The Environment Agency has set up a camera to monitor the fish that pass through the new structure. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. River Blackwater Essex & Suffolk Water Sargasso Sea Commission
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
'Damp forced us to live in bedroom for four years'
A woman has said she and her husband were forced to live upstairs in their home in Leeds for four years after the council failed to solve an issue with damp. Melanie Town said the damp, from a flood under her council-owned home, caused appliances to break down, destroyed furniture and led to further health concerns for her husband, who was recovering from a serious illness. Mrs Town said: "It destroys you, knowing the council knew the condition we were living in and that we lost everything downstairs, and did nothing to address it." A council spokesperson apologised for not fully resolving the issue, but said multiple repairs had been carried out and the house had remained "habitable". Mrs Town said the repairs to the property in Thorpe on the Hill, where she had lived for 12 years before moving to East Yorkshire at the end of last year, had included replastering the living room five times after it kept becoming damp. "We lived in the bedroom for four years. The mental health [impact] from doing that in your late 40s and 50s – it's no good at all," Mrs Town said. "I'm not upset, I'm angry. They wouldn't live like that, so why did they expect me to?" Mrs Town said it had become a "running joke" with builders, plasterers and plumbers when they repeatedly visited the property to fix the same issues. "The council was sending plasterer after plasterer to rip off the walls and re-do them, without getting to the root cause of the damp and the mould," she said. She explained that the damp had caused the oven and fridge-freezer to break down and work surfaces to come away from the wall in the kitchen. Meanwhile, the carpet had begun to smell and it eventually had to be removed, leaving bare floorboards, she said. Mrs Town said she and her husband had to take their clothes to the laundrette and they had lived on takeaways and air fryer food - even having Christmas dinner in their bedroom. "It's enough to take a toll on anybody," she said. Mrs Town said that despite being in the top priority band for council housing and bidding for a new property every week, trying to downsize from their three-bedroom home, they were never able to secure one. She said they had taken things into their own hands in December and had moved to Hornsea in East Yorkshire, which she said was "not ideal" and had been an "upheaval". "I was suffering with chest infection after chest infection, and I just said I couldn't do it anymore. Anchor Homes offered us this one, so I took it," Mrs Town said. "We have lovely neighbours, but it is quiet, and I feel out of place at times. "Without a car here, you are cut off. Both our families [are in Leeds], and my friends are there." Mrs Town said the move had also meant the couple had to pay for further travel and accommodation when Mr Town had hospital appointments in Sheffield which he still needed to attend following a bleed on the brain eight years ago. She said Leeds City Council had been aware of Mr Town's health issues, which included a small stroke, loss of hearing and chest infections since the brain haemorrhage. "Any council should not get away with making people live like that. I am really angry with them. I want them to acknowledge what they've done," she said. Responding, a spokesperson for Leeds City Council said repairs were carried out on several occasions in an attempt to resolve the issue at Mr and Mrs Town's home. "Unfortunately, the root cause was not addressed, and the issue returned when there was heavy rainfall," they said. "The property remained habitable during the tenancy, although Leeds City Council apologise for not being able to resolve the matter fully." Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North Leeds City Council
