Sam Spade loved 'em. So will you!
As we move into porch-sitting weather, the utterly divine combination of gin and citrus always comes to mind. The two were simply made for each other. And the thought of gin and citrus natually leads us to the Gimlet.
This cocktail has a distinguished history, going back to the mid-nineteenth century. And hardboiled detective Sam Spade extols the Gimlet in Raymond Chandler's The Long Goodbye.
A small issue here is that Sam Spade - and perhaps a bartender near you - recommends using Rose's Lime Juice, a lime-flavored syrup that tastes artificial and chemical-ish, and really Not Good! So don't go there. Use lime juice you squeeze yourself, out of real limes. It's the only way to go. And if you go that way, you'll thank yourself. Especially on the porch on a warm afternoon.
Gimlet
- Two parts gin.
- One part lime juice. Must be fresh-squeezed.
- One part simple syrup. You can buy this stuff, but it's really easy to make. Put equal amounts of water and sugar in a pan, bring it to a rolling boil, stir a few times and you're done. The whole process takes about 3 minutes.
Combine the ingredients, shake with ice until freezing cold and strain into a cocktail (martini) glass. Or serve on the rocks. Delicious and refreshing either way.