Gin Rickey Recipe
This tall, tart cooler is one of the great joys of summer.

[Photo: Paul Clarke]
If you look at the gin rickey and think it's nothing but a gin and tonic without tonic's bittersweet bite, you'd be mostly correct. Dismiss it as a G&T wannabe, however, and you're missing out on one of the great joys of summer. Created in a Washington, D.C., bar called Shoemaker's during an especially brutal heat wave in the 1890s—before the advent of air conditioning, you'll note—the gin rickey is like an effervescent Frigidaire. Refreshingly bubbly and pleasantly bitter, this Gilded Age cooler demonstrates how your great-grandparents made it through the summer alive.
Read more: Rediscovering the Rickey
- Yield:makes 1 cocktail
Ingredients
- Half a well-washed lime
- 2 ounces London dry gin
- Chilled club soda
- Optional: splash simple syrup
Directions
-
1.
Fill a 10-ounce Collins glass with ice. Squeeze lime into the glass, getting as much juice out of it as you can. Toss in the lime shell, then add gin. Top off glass with club soda. The rickey doesn't need it, but if you like a sweeter drink, add splash of simple syrup.
This Recipe Appears In
Rediscovering the Rickey Hendrick's Gin: An Old Standby in the New Generation of GinsThis post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.
Comments
Hello Eater!
Want to comment? Sign In or Register
ADD A COMMENT
PREVIEW YOUR COMMENT