One of my favorite flavors to add zing to foods and drinks is lime. We always have fresh limes on hand (thank you Costco) to squeeze over and into just about everything – pork, chicken, guacamole, and cocktails. This gin gimlet uses fresh lime juice, gin, and Truvia simple syrup. It’s the perfect cocktail on sultry summer evenings in the South, or anywhere else when temperatures rise.

To incentivize officers to drink lime juice as an anti-scurvy medication, British Royal Navy Surgeon, Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Gimlette, added gin to make lime juice more palatable. It proved to be the perfect medicinal cocktail. Sailors only had access to rum, so the mixture of lime juice and rum was known as grog, a precursor to the modern-day daquiri.   

The first known recipe for Gin Gimlets was printed in Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails (1922) and calls for equal parts of gin and Rose’s lime juice cordials, a popular staple in the cocktails long history. Rose’s, commercially available since 1868, contains high fructose corn syrup, preservatives, and dyes. 

As one of the most natural distilled spirits, gin is infused with juniper berries, resulting in its characteristic flavor profile. Juniper berries are chocked full of antioxidants that inhibit the production of free radicals. They also contain flavonoids, which may help prevent heart disease and improve blood circulation. Who knew gin could be so medicinal?   

A traditional gin gimlet includes some type of sugary add-in. Husband Mike, a long-time lover of gin, substitutes Truvia simple syrup instead, and of course, only freshly-squeezed lime juice will do – no added ingredients like you find in Rose’s. With only 3 ingredients and 2 net carbs per serving, it’s a perfect blend of pure flavors, resulting in a refreshing, botanical, cocktail.  It’s a snap to make when guests drop by unannounced.  

You can vary the flavor profile of this cocktail by using different gin types.Our favorite, Hendrick’s, has a slight cucumber flavor.  Bombay Sapphire has a light floral flavor, and Tanqueray has a more traditional juniper taste.