Six Great Cocktail Recipes Using Hendrick’s Gin

Thanks to infusions of roses and cucumbers—yes, really—Hendrick’s is one of those gins with its own distinctive, booming bouquet. Bartenders like it because it lends notes of juniper, elderflower, and citrus to a cocktail, and its old-timey bottle (even though it hit the market in 1999) doesn’t hurt, either. Here are a few ways barkeeps love to use this spirit around America.

Gordons Cup

Jim McCourt, Prohibition, Charleston, SC

Talk about a drink that’s fabulous with oysters: This sour-and-salty concoction mingles floral gin with cucumber, bright lime juice, a crack apiece of salt and pepper, and a splash of simple syrup.

3 slices cucumber, divided (reserve 1 for garnish)

.5 simple syrup

2 oz Hendrick’s gin

.75 oz fresh lime juice

Cucumber slice, to garnish

Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Muddle together two cucumber slices and syrup in cocktail shaker tin. Add gin, lime juice, and ice, and shake well for 10 seconds. Fine-strain cocktail into a glass filled with ice cubes. Garnish with cucumber slice, a pinch of salt, and a twist of pepper.

Colorado 75

Chad Michael George, The Way Back, Denver, CO

A pear-inflected twist on the classic French 75, this simple, balanced drink is ideal for autumn.

1 oz Hendrick's gin

.5 oz Peach Street Pear Brandy

.5 oz lemon juice

.5 oz simple syrup

1.5 oz Infinite Monkey Theorem Pear Cider

Pear slice, for garnish Add first four ingredients to a cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously with ice for 10 seconds. Strain over fresh ice in a Collins glass. Top with pear cider and garnish with a slice of pear.

José’s Gin & Tonic

José Andrés, Bazaar Meat, Las Vegas, NV

Food world celebrity José Andrés is very fond of the gin and tonics so popular in his native Spain, and dots his restaurants’ menus with them. This juniper-forward variation highlights the notes of juniper in the gin itself, and citrus elements keep the drink complex and quaffable.

1 ½ oz. Hendrick’s gin

1 bottle Fever-Tree tonic water

Lime wheel, for garnish

Lemon peel, for garnish

3 juniper berries

2 kaffir lime leaves, for garnish

Edible flower petals, such as marigolds, for garnish (optional)

Pour gin into a glass containing one large ice cube. Add one full bottle of Fever Tree tonic water. Garnish with lime, lemon, juniper, lime leaves, and flower petals, if desired.

Ruby Ruby

Aquavit, New York, NY

This riff on a classic Vesper martini—James Bond’s drink—is strong, complex, and slightly fruity, with a slight savory bite thanks to mole bitters.

1.5 oz Hendrick’s gin

1 oz Lillet Rouge

.5 oz Absolut vodka

1 dropper of molé bitters

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until very cold and strain into a coupe glass. Serve neat.

The Garden Party

Casandra Salazar, Leo’s Oyster Bar, San Francisco, CA

Rosemary is surprisingly fabulous when combined correctly with gin or tequila, and this herbaceous gin sour benefits from both “wet” and “dry” shakes of the herb (with and without ice), adding a delightful savory note to the finished product.

1 oz Hendrick’s Gin

2 oz Jardesca

1 oz lemon juice

1 oz simple syrup

1 sprig rosemary

1sprig thyme

1 egg white

4 drops Angostura bitters, to garnish

Rosemary and thyme sprigs, to garnish

2 mini rose buds, to garnish (optional)

Combine first seven ingredients in a cocktail shaker without ice, and shake for 30 seconds. Add ice to shaker; shake for 45 seconds. Fine-strain into chilled coupe glass, to serve neat. Drop in bitters. Place herb sprigs in palm of one hand, and slap with the other to release bouquet. Garnish drink with herb sprigs and rose buds, if desired.

Cucumber Collins

Shayna Cott, Insa, Brooklyn, NY

Vegetal, light, and wonderfully aromatic, this cucumber collins highlights the vegetable’s presence in the gin itself—in the best way.

In a Collins glass with ice:

2 oz Hendrick’s gin

1 oz fresh cucumber juice (from 1/2 blended cucumber, strained)

1/4 oz lemon juice

1/2 oz simple syrup

Sparkling water

Lemon twist, for garnish

Cucumber slice, for garnish

Combine first five ingredients in chilled Collins glass with ice. Pour into cocktail shaking tin. Pour back into Collins glass. Top with sparkling water, garnish with a twist of lemon and cucumber slice.