What to mix with Gin
Wondering what goes with gin? Let us walk you through 13 different delicious options to try at home when you're not sure which mixer to use.
Gin mixers
Author:
Reading time: 6 minutes
No home should be without a few bottles of gin to make classic cocktails such as the Tom Collins, Dry Martini, and don’t forget the good old Gin & Tonic. But gin’s distinctive juniper flavour doesn’t go with everything. Furthermore juniper isn’t the only botanical in gin. Most will have coriander, angelica, and some form of citrus like lemon, orange, or grapefruit. From there you might have all kinds of other flavours like cardamom to liquorice to more outlandish ones like chocolate.
So when thinking about what to mix with gin, bear in mind what kind of gin you are using. Is it a classic juniper-led London Dry? That’s the most adaptable kind. But perhaps your gin is big and spicy, or it might be light and floral. All of these matter when thinking about what to mix with gin. That’s before we get on to fruit-flavoured gins like orange or strawberry which are great for long drinks or oak-aged gins which bring an interesting twist to alcohol-forward cocktails like the Dry Martini.
So here are 13 great mixers for gin with all the why, what and how you need to start whipping up appropriate serves and drinks.
Gin and tonic
We’re kicking off with a stone cold classic. The Gin and Tonic was originally created as a way of making a bitter antimalarial quinine tonic more palatable - stick some gin in it! It’s since transcended its medicinal origins to become one of the most popular drinks in the world. One thing to remember is that tonic has a strong taste, both sweet and bitter, so it can overpower more delicate floral gins. Then there’s the sheer number of different tonics out there from citrus-flavoured to tinged with rosemary. There’s a tonic for (almost) every occasion.
How to make a Gin and Tonic
- 60cl London Dry Gin
- Tonic water
Chill everything, except the garnish. Fill a tumbler with ice, add the gin and stir, top up with tonic, stir again and garnish with a piece of lemon or orange (and rosemary if you like).
Gin and elderflower
Elderflower and gin go together like peaches and cream. Only better. That English hedgerow flavour is so appealing particularly with floral gins. You could use an elderflower cordial or liqueur in a long drink with gin and soda water.
How to make an Elderflower Collins
- 40ml Elderflower liqueur
- 20ml Floral Gin like Hendrick’s
- 20ml fresh lemon juice
- 10ml sugar syrup
- 100ml sparkling water
Fill a Collins glass with ice and add the sparkling water. Shake the first four ingredients quickly with ice (you don’t want too much dilution), strain into the glass on top of the fizzy water, and garnish with a piece of lemon rind.
Gin and vermouth
Say the words gin and vermouth and most people will reply ‘Martini.’ For many the Dry Martini is the greatest of all cocktails. Make it as strong as you like from just a drop of vermouth to a half and half Martini. But it’s not the only gin and vermouth drink out there. There’s the could-not-be-simpler Gin & It - equal parts gin and sweet vermouth served on the rocks with a twist of orange - or something more complicated like a Martinez which works particularly well with a barrel-aged gin.
How to make a Martinez
- 50ml London Dry Gin
- 50ml Sweet vermouth
- 5ml Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
Stir all the ingredients in a shaker with lots of ice for a minute or so. Strain into a chilled coupe or Martini glass and garnish with a piece of lemon peel.
Gin and champagne
It sounds like it’s going to be a dog’s dinner combining gin and champagne but they’re actually a match made in heaven. Try the pair in a French 75, a classic cocktail that dates back to the 1920s and features in Casablanca.
How to make a French 75
- 35ml London Dry Gin
- 15ml fresh lemon juice
- 5ml sugar syrup
- 100ml Champagne
- Dash of Fee Brothers Orange Bitters
Shake the first three ingredients with ice and strain into a Champagne flute. Top up with chilled Champagne, stir, add a dash of bitters and garnish with a lemon twist.
Gin and lemon
Gin and lemon go brilliantly together. Think of cocktails like the Gin Fizz or the Tom Collins which combine gin, lemon juice, sugar, and soda water. Or you can take a shortcut by using a lemon soda, cloudy lemonade or bitter lemon.
How to make a Silver Fizz
- 50ml London Dry Gin
- 25ml lemon juice
- 10ml lime juice
- 20ml sugar syrup
- Half an egg white
- Soda water
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
Shake the first five ingredients hard in your shaker. Then add some ice and shake some more. Shake really hard and really long. Shake a bit more. Double strain into a Highball glass and top with a splash of fizzy water and a slice of lemon to garnish.
How to make a Silver Fizz
- 50ml London Dry Gin
- 25ml Lemon juice
- 10ml Lime juice
- 20ml Sugar syrup
- Half an egg white
- Soda water
- 1 Dash Angostura bitters
Chill everything, except the garnish. Fill a tumbler with ice, add the gin and stir, top up with tonic, stir again and garnish with a piece of lemon or orange (and rosemary if you like).
Gin and lime
Gin and lime is another unbeatable combination. Just a squeeze of fresh lime will lift a citrus-forward gin. Or you can make the ultimate gin and lime cocktail, the Gimlet, which combines Rose’s Lime Cordial with fresh lime juice.
How to make a Gimlet
- 40ml London Dry Gin
- 10ml Rose’s Lime Cordial
- 10ml fresh lime juice
- ½ teaspoon sugar syrup
Add all the ingredients to a shaker, shake with lots of ice, double strain into a chilled coupe, and serve with a slice of lime.
Gin and soda
Gin and soda is the connoisseur's choice as you can really taste the complexity of your gin when you serve it just with sparkling water. It might be a little too dry for some palates but you can always add a teaspoon of sugar syrup and a squeeze of citrus which will turn it into a Gin Rickey.
How to make a Gin Rickey
- 45 ml London Dry Gin
- 15 ml lime juice (freshly squeezed)
- 15 ml soda water
- 5 ml sugar syrup (optional)
Shake your gin and lime juice (and sugar syrup if you like things sweeter) with ice and strain into an ice-filled glass. Then top it off with your soda and garnish with a length of lime peel.
Gin and ginger
Ginger beer works particularly well with spicy gins, heavy on the cardamon, cinnamon, and coriander. Add a squeeze of lime for a gin take on the Moscow Mule. Or when the weather takes a turn for the chilly, perk up your hot ginger drink with a splash of gin.
How to make a Gin-Gin Mule
- 60ml London Dry Gin
- 180ml ginger beer
- Juice of half a lime
Fill a Mule cup or Highball glass with ice, add all the ingredients and give it a good stir. Garnish with a lime wedge and a sprig of mint.
Gin and grapefruit
We love grapefruit-flavoured gins here at Master of Malt. Add some freshly-squeezed pink grapefruit juice, and a splash of soda water for an instant Gin Spritz.
How to make a Grapefruit Gin Spritz
- 50ml Freshly-squeezed ruby grapefruit juice
- 15ml Sugar syrup
- Soda water
Add the first three ingredients to an ice-filled tumbler, stir, and taste. Add more sugar or gin if necessary. Top up with soda, stir, and garnish with a grapefruit wedge.
Gin and orange
Orange is a commonly found botanical in many gin, so you can bet that orange and gin is a great combination. You can simply mix gin and orange juice for an easy delicious drink or you can make something more elaborate like The Bronx which is basically a sweet Martini made with orange juice.
How to make a Bronx
- 50ml London Dry Gin
- 25ml Italian vermouth
- 15ml Noilly Prat Original Dry
- 30ml freshly-squeezed orange juice
- Dash of Fee Brothers orange bitters
Gin and pineapple
Gin and pineapple go so well together that Snoop Dogg wrote a song about it called ‘Gin and Juice’ which appears on his debut album ‘Doggy Style’. Snoop mentions Tanqueray but any classic London Dry Gin will work here.
How to make a Gin and Juice
- 35ml London Dry Gin
- 60ml fresh orange juice
- 60ml fresh pineapple juice
Add all the ingredients to an ice-filled shaker. Shaker, and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass and add a wedge of lime.
Gin and Pimm's
Pimms is a gin-based summer fruit cup that is everywhere as soon as the sun shines. If you want something a bit stronger, however, add a measure of gin to two measures of Pimm’s. And while it tastes great with the traditional lemonade, it’s even better with a good ginger beer.
Or you can make your own Summer Fruit Cup as in the recipe below:
- 50cl London Dry Gin
- 50cl Martini Rosso vermouth
- 25cl Bols Orange Curaçao
- Lemonade or ginger beer
Add the first three ingredients to an ice-filled Highball glass. Stir and top up with lemonade or ginger beer. Stir again and garnish with a slice of cucumber, orange, strawberry, and a sprig of mint.
Gin and tomato juice
When mixing tomato juice most people automatically reach for the vodka, but did you know there is a gin-based version of the Bloody Mary called the Red Snapper? This spicy, fruity concoction particularly suits boldly-flavoured spicy gins including ones flavoured with chilli or black pepper.
How to make a Red Snapper
- 50ml London Dry or spiced gin
- 100ml tomato juice
- 10ml lemon juice
- Worcestershire sauce, celery salt, black pepper and Tabasco.
Start with all the ingredients chilled. Add the first three to an ice-filled Highball glass, stir and then add the seasoning ingredients to taste. Garnish with a lemon wedge and stick of celery.
Gin mixing toolkit
Grab a gin or two and some other essentials to explore your favourite combinations with.
More gin guides
Keep reading all about gin, the different types of gin available, what to mix it with and more...
