The perfect gin and tonic

How do you make the perfect gin and tonic? It’s all about the details in this classic cocktail. 

Thank you to Uncommon Goods for sponsoring today’s post on the perfect gin & tonic. 

When it comes to wine, there are lots of rules about when to drink a red and when to drink a white. The only problem is white wine never hits the spot for me. Occasionally on hot days, I’ve been persuaded. Inevitably, I find myself one or two sips in wishing that I had a glass of red instead.

Still, the days have been hot and muggy here. It feels like someone soaked a flannel blanket and then threw it over the state.

So when I’m in the mood for something cool and refreshing, I turn to a crisp gin and tonic. With fresh mint and a squeeze of lime, it has just enough sweetness to put you in a lounging on the patio mood, but without coating your mouth with a layer of syrup.

The perfect gin & tonic

Since the two main ingredients are right there in the name, making a classic gin and tonic is easy. However, the magic is in the details.

For the perfect gin and tonic, you start with fresh mint leaves. Add a couple of clean leaves to a glass and muddle them in the bottom. Then toss in two or three ice cubes and a shot of gin.

Add to that a tonic that’s sweetened with sugar, not high fructose corn syrup.

Finally, finish off the drink with two wedges of lime. Squeeze both of them into the drink, and give the rim a swipe with the fruit of the lime. That way with the first sip, you get an extra hit of lime.

Uncommon Goods

Here, my perfect gin and tonic is served in etched city map glasses from Uncommon Goods.

Uncommon Goods is an online retailer that sells the work of artists and small manufacturers. They are environmentally and sustainably minded.

I often enjoy looking through their unique offerings for birthdays, holidays, and anniversaries.

They reached out to me about sponsoring a post, and it seemed like a timely fit since David and I recently celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary. I looked through their anniversary gifts (here) and picked something that fit us.

One of the things David and I love most in the world is traveling. Seeing places big and small and getting to share that with each other is probably my ultimate happiness.

When I look back on our ten years of marriage and three years of dating before that, many of the strongest memories are from traveling together.

We’ve seen the world from the Hollywood sign, Statue of Liberty, Eiffel Tower, London Eye, Space Needle, and Willis Tower.

From the selection of etched map glasses, it was hard to pick.

I chose New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago, because we’ve had really special times in all of those places.

(You can see more of Uncommon Goods’ personalized gifts here and wedding gifts here.)

Now whenever I drink a cool gin and tonic, I can toast to warm summer days, happy memories, and dreams of trips to come.

The perfect gin and tonic

It's all about the details. Muddled fresh mint leaves, a squeeze of lime, plus lime juice around the glass rim makes for the perfect cocktail.

5 from 1 vote

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Course: Drink

Cuisine: Alcoholic

Keyword: cocktail, gin

Prep Time: 3 minutes

Total Time: 3 minutes

Servings: 1 people

Calories: 147kcal

Author: Cadry Nelson

Ingredients

• 2 fresh mint leaves
• 2 to 3 ice cubes
• 1 shot gin
• 4 to 6 ounces tonic water
• 2 lime slices

Instructions

• Muddle two fresh mint leaves in a rocks glass or highball glass.
• Add 2 to 3 ice cubes and a shot of gin. Fill the glass the rest of the way with 4 to 6 ounces of tonic water.
• Squeeze in two lime slices. Before putting the last lime slice in the drink, swipe the fruit around the rim of the glass.

Nutrition

Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Sodium: 25mg | Vitamin A: 85IU | Vitamin C: 4mg

Tried this recipe?Tag @cadryskitchen on Instagram and hashtag it #cadryskitchen!

This post was sponsored by Uncommon Goods. The thoughts and opinions are totally my own. Thanks for reading about brands that support my work!