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Treat yourself to a festive Cranberry Gin and Tonic (or two, or three) this holiday season! You know that you deserve it.
To be honest, I've always thought that (some) gin and tonics sometimes taste like a Christmas tree. Or at least taste the way that a Christmas tree smells. Know what I mean? Maybe? No? Agree to disagree.
Either way, we have taken a standard (and perfectly tasty) G&T recipe and made it even more delicious and festive with the addition of cranberry juice and fresh cranberries.
Need more festive holiday co*cktails? Try my White Christmas Margarita or Loaded Christmas Ale! Sous Vide Eggnog is a great choice if you're looking for a nonalcoholic holiday drink.
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🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
💭 What is a Cranberry Gin and Tonic?
📝 Ingredients
❓ Recipe FAQs
🔗 Other holiday co*cktails
✨ Recipe
🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
It's very festive. Red cranberry juice, the juniper flavor of the gin... this drink screams "Christmas." It is so easy to make. This drink is so easy to make. All you need to do is pour a few ingredients into a glass! It tastes great. Cranberry, gin, and tonic flavors all play very well together.
💭 What is a Cranberry Gin and Tonic?
A regular gin and tonic is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: it's gin, tonic, and lime juice served over ice.
A Cranberry Gin and Tonic has all of those ingredients plus some bright red cranberry juice. It adds some sweet-tart flavor, beautiful color, and holiday festiveness.
📝 Ingredients
Cranberry juice: You can use either cranberry juice or cranberry juice concentrate. Whatever floats your boat.
Tonic water: Tonic water is a carbonated beverage, in which quinine is dissolved. Quinine, in addition to having a bitter flavor, has been used as a prophylactic against malaria. Use whatever tonic you favor!
Garnishes: As always, garnishes aren't mandatory. But I recommend garnishing your G&T with cranberries (fresh or sugared) and/or a lime wedge.
👩🏻🍳 How to make Cranberry G&Ts
Truthfully, it couldn't be simpler.
Fill your Old Fashioned (or rocks) glass with ice, then pour the cranberry juice over the ice. Squeeze the lime gin and cranberry juice over the ice. Squeeze the lime over the ice, too, before adding your gin
After that, just top everything off with some tonic water. Et voila. You have yourself a very delicious Cranberry Gin and Tonic.
Please don't forget to garnish with some cranberries (fresh or sugared cranberries!) and a lime wedge if you're feeling fancy. And you know that you are.
❓ Recipe FAQs
Can I make a bigger batch of these drinks?
Sure, you can make a big batch of the cranberry, lime, and gin. Once you pour the drinks into individual glasses, top them off with some tonic.
Should I use cranberry juice or cranberry juice concentrate?
Either one will work. Keep in mind that pure cranberry juice will be more tart, while cranberry juice co*cktail will be sweeter.
What kind of gin should I use?
In short, whatever you like! There's really no wrong answer here. However, if you use a gin that's colored with butterfly pea flower (think Empress gin), it will obviously alter the color of this drink.
Earthy gin with hints of juniper pair beautifully with tangy cranberry juice, tart lime, and sweet and spicy ginger beer in this spin on traditional moscow mule recipes! A cranberry co*cktail is perfect for the holiday season!
Earthy gin with hints of juniper pair beautifully with tangy cranberry juice, tart lime, and sweet and spicy ginger beer in this spin on traditional moscow mule recipes! A cranberry co*cktail is perfect for the holiday season!
Use a bit more tonic than gin for the best gin and tonic.
For one (strong) co*cktail, I combine 3 ounces of gin with 4 ounces of tonic water, which tastes crisp, refreshing, and not too boozy. I always add lime to my gin and tonics, both a squeeze of fresh lime and a wedge or slice in the glass itself.
If you like herbaceous, floral notes then you'll probably enjoy gin more. If you want a neutral alcohol that will seamlessly blend into your mixer or co*cktail, then vodka is right up your alley. While they can be used in similar applications, each drink is wonderful in its own way.
To craft the perfect G&T at home, simply fill a highball glass up to the top with ice cubes (a pre-chilled glass is an added bonus). Then, pour in your gin, top with tonic water and lift with drinks stirrer or long spoon from the bottom to mix without disrupting the fizz. Garnish with a wedge or twist of fresh lime.
Gin is a distilled alcoholic drink flavoured with juniper berries and other botanical ingredients.
Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe.
Use tonic water to give fruit juices sparkle and offset their sweetness. It even works with lemonade. Herb-infused syrups are excellent with tonic water when you want a sweeter, floral drink. Try 1 or 2 ounces of homemade lavender syrup topped with tonic, adding a squeeze of lemon juice for brightness.
The most classic combination of gin and tonic is the perfect example of this: tonic's sweetness enhances gin's herbaceous flavor and its bitterness calms its alcoholic kick. Anything mixed with tonic can easily be mixed with club soda, and vice versa, but club soda offers a subtle flavor desired in many situations.
The ideal amount of gin to add varies according to taste but we suggest that a healthy ratio of gin-to-tonic is 1 part gin to 3 parts tonic will suit most people.
THE ICE. As previously mentioned, it is essential that your gin and tonic is served ice cold. Whilst we advise chilling the gin first to make your drink cooler, you must also get the glass as cold as possible. To do this, simply add lots of ice - and we mean A LOT.
Scenting and garnish with rose pepper is the perfect way to prepare a special Gin Tonic enjoying a particular and astonishing flavour. Rose pepper provides notes of sweetness and a bit spicy that your guests will love. Step 1 We recommend to chill the gin as a previous step.
The Butterfly Pea Gin shifts from blue to purple, and their Scottish Bramble shifts from red to orange. It's not often you see a colour changing gin that isn't made with butterfly pea, but Ellis Gin has pulled it off with their Scottish Bramble!
You can't go wrong with a juniper-forward London dry gin, which works with nearly any juice you can source, from lemon and lime to orange and grapefruit. Softer gins can work great, too, but depending on their botanical makeup, they may pair better with sweeter OJ or more sour grapefruit.
You can't go wrong with a classic! Otherwise known as a "vodka cran," the Cape Codder co*cktail is as simple as it gets: vodka and cranberry juice with a lime wedge for garnish.
Though you can't go wrong with this Cape Cod pairing, the easiest way to upgrade your next vodka cranberry is to use a citrus-infused vodka like lemon or lime. Cherry vodka also pairs well with cranberry juice and gives the co*cktail a dark, moodier color appropriate for an autumnal or winter gathering.
What are the best mixers for gin? Beyond the obvious tonic water, try soda water (let the taste of gin shine through), lemonade, ginger beer, ginger ale, orange juice and even co*ke - they're all nice mixers for gin.
Introduction: My name is Kerri Lueilwitz, I am a courageous, gentle, quaint, thankful, outstanding, brave, vast person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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