Properly Sauced: Rosemary G&T

By Anthony Todd in Food on Apr 9, 2008 3:00PM

Welcome to the first installment of “Properly Sauced,” our column about cocktails and fancy drinks at home and around Chicago. If you have any suggestions of recipes, or if your favorite bar has something unique and tasty, send us a tip and we might feature it here!

As you might have gathered from some of our other recipe-features here on Chicagoist, we’re all about simple ways to make things taste better. In this case, we were cursed (or blessed, depending on your point of view) with a massive amount of rosemary by our produce delivery, and when we happened to catch sight of a fresh bottle of gin at the liquor store, we ran to our bookshelf. The flavor of the rosemary mixes perfectly with the herbal notes in the gin, and creates a cocktail that’ll let you pretend it’s already summer. I like Bombay Sapphire for this mixture, because it has a relatively mild flavor and allows the rosemary to shine.

Rosemary Gin and Tonic
(inspired by Georgeanne Brennan)

Tonic Water
Gin
1 Sprig of Rosemary
Lime Juice (optional)

Fill a large glass with ice. Pour in a mix of 1 part gin to 3 parts tonic water - if you make it too much stronger, the flavor of the gin drowns out the rosemary. Bruise the rosemary so it releases some flavor. We hit it with a cast iron pan, but perhaps we were being a bit dramatic. Use the rosemary sprig to stir the drink, adding a splash of fresh lime juice if you like. Let it sit for about 5 minutes and then enjoy!

Thanks to Rob for the title!