3 ways to spruce up your gin and tonic

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Fancy garnishes

Move over lemon slices, there's a new garnish in town. We're talking orange and lime slices, as well as cucumber ribbons and fresh berries to give your G&T a whole new look. You could even add dried citrus, or whole spices, such as pink peppercorns, juniper berries or whole cinnamon quills. Play around with fresh herbs, too. Rosemary, thyme and lavender all work exceptionally with gin's fresh notes.

 

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Flavoured syrups

Simple or sugar syrups are a common ingredient in cocktail kits, as they're used to balance flavours in more complex drinks. But that's not all they can do. They're a great vehicle for other flavours, too. By adding fresh fruit and herbs to the syrup, you can infuse another layer of flavour into your gin and tonic. Essentially, this is a cordial, so good to have on hand for non-alcoholic options, too. Cherries and berries, citrus and dried spices all shine through wonderfully in a simple syrup. Make a large batch of whatever seasonal fruit you've got to hand and keep it in the fridge, reading to gussying up a G&T at a moment's notice.

Get the recipe for blueberry cordial here.

Interesting ice cubes

You already know that edible flowers make for beautiful additions to cocktails, but why not take it a step further and make ice cubes with them for an extra chilled garnish? Fresh herbs and small spices would also work, too so feel free to play around with the notes in your gin.

When it comes to choosing a gin, look no further than Bloedlemoen. The award-winning gin was conceptualised in 2015 by three food and drinks industry specialists, focused on bringing a liquid to life that is refreshing and delicious, yet layered with the warmth of selected spices. Using fruit sourced locally in the Western Cape of South Africa, Bloedlemoen is a contemporary, London dry-style gin distilled using 10 botanicals through a combination of maceration and vapour infusion. The result is a premium, small-batch gin that cuts no corners when it comes to quality and consistency. It contains no less than ten natural botanicals: juniper, blood orange, orange peel, grains of paradise, coriander, cassia bark, nutmeg, liquorice root, Angelica root and cardamom. When pouring the perfect serve for any gin, it’s best to start at the ingredients themselves as partners – in our case a slice of orange (fresh or dried) and a cinnamon stick (or piece of cassia bark) does the trick perfectly. But most importantly, a premium tonic. Expect citrus and juniper on the nose, nutmeg and cassia on the palate and a lingering blood orange aftertaste, from where it got its name.

bloedlemoengin.com