Let me be upfront: this is my favourite summer cocktail. Full stop.
In August, when the markets overflow with freshly-picked fruit and the terrasses are at their most optimistic, you need a cocktail that delivers every time. This one does. It is foolproof, versatile, and vibrant with freshness in a way that most gin cocktails simply are not.
Two versions: served in a chilled coupe for elegance, or in a highball with sparkling water and ice for the kind of long, lazy afternoon drink that makes you forget you have responsibilities.
Summer Smash
A raspberry, cucumber and basil gin cocktail. Bright, fresh, and dead simple to make. Serve in a coupe for elegance, or long in a highball with sparkling water.
Ingredients
- 5 ripe raspberries
- 15 ml lime juice (or half a lime)
- 40 g cucumber (about 5 cm in length)
- 5 large basil leaves
- 80 ml gin
- 10 ml simple syrup
- sparkling water (optional, to taste)
Equipment
- cocktail coupe or highball glass
- shaker
- fine mesh sieve
- cocktail strainer
- large bowl
- muddling stick
Method
- Chill your glass with ice and cold water.
- Cut the cucumber into 1 cm dice.
- Add all ingredients except the sparkling water to the shaker. Muddle firmly to extract the juice from the lime, cucumber and raspberries, and the aroma from the basil.
- Add a large handful of ice, close the shaker and shake for 12 seconds.
- Set the fine mesh sieve over a large bowl and pour the shaker contents through it. Press the solids to extract every last drop.
- Discard the ice from your chilled glass.
- Pour the strained cocktail through a cocktail strainer into the glass.
- Garnish with a lime wheel, a raspberry and a cucumber wheel. For the highball version, top with sparkling water and a large ice cube.
Notes
The double-strain is not optional. A cocktail strainer alone leaves too much pulp. Pour through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl first, press the solids, then strain into the glass. Twenty extra seconds, completely worth it.
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