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Spanish Gin & Tonic

In Spain, the classic gin &tonic gets more relaxed, more creative, more sippably refreshing, with more garnishes and lots of ice.
Course Drinks
Cuisine Spanish
Servings 1 cocktail

Ingredients

  • 5 or 6 dried juniper berries
  • 1 star anise, optional (see Kitchen Notes)
  • 1 slice of lemon (see Kitchen Notes)
  • sprig of fresh rosemary or other herb garnish (see Kitchen Notes)
  • 2 ounces gin (see Kitchen Notes)
  • 4 ounces tonic water (see Kitchen Notes)

Instructions

  • Fill a stemmed glass with ice (I used one of our red wine balloons). Add the juniper berries, star anise, lemon slice and rosemary sprig. Add gin and stir gently. Add tonic, stir gently again and serve, with a straw or not.

Kitchen Notes

Star anise, yes or no? If you have it on hand, do use it. If you don't, consider buying it—there are so many Asian dishes you can cook with it. If you really dislike a very faint licorice flavor, give it a skip. Like I said, this is something I only heard about thanks to Kevin—but also like I said (and as the photo bears out, I think), it adds a nice exotic touch that will impress your guests.
Pick your citrus. Lemon? Lime? Use whichever you like, but do use some citrus for the freshness it adds, either slices or peels. I like lemon because it further distances this drink from the British classic. I also like the summery splash of yellow.
Pick your herbs. I only used one, the rosemary you see. Besides rosemary, many recipes use basil, mint or thyme—and even a combination of a couple of them. Here's another place you can get creative.
Be picky about your gin. For this drink, you want London Dry Gin. That's not a brand, but a specific style with very specific rules for its distilling. For a gin to be called London Dry Gin, according to The Gin is In, "the base spirit must be distilled to a completely neutral spirit of 96% ABV, must add all flavors through distillation in presence of 'natural plant materials,' and can have nothing added after distillation save water and a trivial quantity of sugar." It is quite juniper-forward in flavor—that classic evergreen tree taste.
Fortunately, some of the best London Dry Gins are also quite affordable. We used Bombay Sapphire. We've been indulging in so many small batch craft gins over the past few years that I'd forgotten just how good Bombay Sapphire is. Beefeater and Tangueray are also quite good.
Pick a good tonic, while you're at it. But don't go crazy. Some swear by artisanal tonics that are out there, but brands like Schweppes are perfectly fine. In fact, according to Kevin, Schweppes is used almost exclusively in Spain. Just skip the store brands.