8 of the World's Best Gin Cocktail Recipes

Currently enjoying a moment centre-stage on the cocktail scene, gin is the go-to drink of the 2020s, beloved of mixologists everywhere for its versatility. But why is it so popular? As aficionados know, it’s a light spirit usually distilled from wheat or barley, and must contain juniper to be defined as gin. Its multitude of flavours come from the addition of botanicals such as herbs, spices or seeds, making it a very adaptable ingredient for cocktails – and often just a splash is required to make a cocktail burst with flavour, so gin is also an affordable addition to drinks. Many classic gin cocktail recipes are easy to recreate at home too, so you don’t have to be an expert bartender to enjoy its fresh, delicate taste. 

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Try a few simple gin cocktail recipes to begin with, then move on to timeless classics and possibly the most famous cocktail in the world. 

As we’re not all professional mixologists, here are three super-easy-to-make gin cocktails to get you started, using familiar ingredients found around the house. If you don’t have a shaker, use a jug to mix your drinks.

When you’re only using four simple ingredients, every element has to be exactly right – in a perfect G&T, the bitterness of the tonic must balance with the aromatics in the gin. 

What you’ll need

• Gin – a London dry gin like Beefeater is ideal
• Tonic water
• 4 ice cubes
• Slice of lime or lemon to garnish

Method

• Using 1 part gin to 2 parts tonic, mix with the ice in a glass.
• Stir 4 times and then add the citrus without squeezing, as it can drown the flavour of the gin. 

This classic pink gin cocktail recipe couldn’t be simpler to make, and should not be confused with ready-mixed pink gins like Gordon’s Pink, which is infused with raspberries and strawberries – and incidentally makes a great summertime drink when served with ice. 

What you’ll need

• 60ml gin
• 3 dashes of Angostura bitters
• Twist of lemon to garnish 

Method

• Mix the gin with the bitters in a jug/cocktail shaker and stir.
• Pour into a chilled glass.
• Add the lemon.

Add in a few more ingredients for a refreshing gin fizz cocktail recipe invented at a New Orleans bar in 1888.

What you’ll need

• 50ml gin
• 25ml lemon juice
• 2 teaspoon sugar syrup (100ml water and 100g caster sugar heated slowly until the sugar dissolves)
• Plenty of ice cubes
• Sparkling/soda water
• Twist of lemon to garnish

Method

• Mix the gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup in a jug/cocktail shaker and add the ice cubes. 
• Shake until the jug/cocktail shaker feels chilled.
• Pour into a tall glass, add more ice and top up with sparkling/soda water.
• Add the lemon.

The sophisticated Negroni cocktail was created in Florence back in 1919, and now graces the aperitivo-hour tables of practically every bar and café in Italy. 

What you’ll need

• 25ml gin
• 25ml sweet vermouth
• 25ml Campari
• Plenty of ice cubes
• Slice of orange to garnish

Method

• Pour the spirits and half of the ice into a jug. 
• Shake until the jug feels chilled.
• Strain into a tall glass and add the rest of the ice.
• Add the orange.

Made famous by the James Bond film franchise, the Martini is a surprisingly straightforward gin cocktail recipe to follow, requiring just four ingredients. The secret is in chilling the glass and mixing the vermouth and gin together thoroughly.

What you’ll need

• 50ml gin
• 1 teaspoon dry vermouth
• Plenty of ice cubes
• Olive or lemon twist to garnish

Method

• Put a stemmed, triangular cocktail glass in the fridge to chill.
• Pour the spirits into a jug of ice cubes and stir until the jug feels chilled.
• Taste to ensure the Martini is diluted to your preference.
• Strain into the chilled glass and add the garnish.

In the mood for a gin cocktail mixed by experts? Find your perfect location, whether that’s a chic sky-high bar with exceptional city views or a relaxed terrace bathed in warm sunshine.

Gin is easily adapted for use in light, citrusy cocktail recipes for summer, or warming options to brighten the colder months of winter. 

This tangy gin cocktail recipe combines lemon with mint and takes minutes to create; it’s wonderfully thirst-quenching for picnics on sunny days.

What you’ll need

• 50ml citrus-based gin like the artisan Mermaid Zest
• Juice of a lemon
• 10ml sugar syrup
• 8 mint leaves
• Plenty of crushed ice
• Sparkling/soda water
• Mint leaves and lemon to garnish

Method

• Tear up the mint leaves and place them in a tall glass. 
• Add the gin and syrup.
• Squeeze in the lemon juice and stir.
• Fill the glass with crushed ice. 
• Top up with sparkling/soda water and garnish. 

Pick your blackthorn berries (forage responsibly, taking only what you need) and make this Christmas gin cocktail recipe in autumn. It will mature in time for you to celebrate the festive season with a deliciously rich and fruity cocktail. 

What you’ll need

• 1 litre gin
• 500g ripe (purple and squashy) sloes
• 250g caster sugar

Method

• Rinse the sloes, dry and prick each one with a cocktail stick/fork.
• Tip into a large glass jar. Add the sugar and gin, and seal the jar.
• Shake well every day for a week, then store the jar in a cool place for at least a month.
 

• Strain the sloe gin through a sieve and decant into a glass jar.
• Serve in shot glasses as an aperitif on Christmas Day.

The most famous cocktail in the world has to be the Singapore Sling. This emblematic cocktail was developed in 1915 by Ngiam Tong Boon, the renowned bartender in the legendary Long Bar at the equally legendary Raffles Singapore. 

What you’ll need

• 30ml gin
• 7.5ml Bénédictine
• 7.5ml Curaçao or Cointreau
• 1 dash of Angostura bitters
• 100ml pineapple juice
• 15ml lime juice
• 10ml grenadine
• 15ml cherry liqueur
• 4 ice cubes
• Sparkling/soda water
• Slice of pineapple and a cherry

Method

• Pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker/jug and mix them up.
• Put 4 ice cubes in a tall glass and pour the mixture over them.
• Top with soda water, put the fruit on the cocktail stick, garnish and serve.

The following six tips will help you make a standout gin cocktail. Your friends and family will love visiting…

Choosing glassware may appear to come down to personal taste, but there’s good reason for using the correct glass for gin cocktails. The most popular shape is the traditional, tall and narrow highball, which has room for the botanicals to swirl around, drawing out their flavours. Alternatively, use a balloon glass with a wide bowl, which will enhance the gin’s aroma.

A frosted glass is also one of the keys to making a successful gin cocktail, so chill your glass in the fridge.

The slower the ice melts, the less dilution there will be in your cocktail, so fill the glass to the brim with ice before adding your mix. 

Always choose the right flavoured or dry gin for the job. 

Likewise, select your mixer carefully; the amount of quinine and sugar in tonic waters varies and effects its taste. Pour mixers like tonic, bitter lemon and ginger beer from single-serve bottles or cans rather than large bottles so they don’t go flat. There are many artisan brands available in supermarkets and specialist drinks shops, so experiment and find your favourite mixer.  

The usual recommendation is 1 part gin to 3 parts tonic or mixer. Use a jigger measuring cup to proportion your cocktail accurately. 

Garnish is added to enhance the flavour of your cocktail; use fresh fruit and add edible flowers to floral-based gins. Hendrick’s Gin is flavoured with cucumber so adding a slice into your cocktail really enhances the taste. 

Stir with a long-handled bar spoon to get a distribution of flavour and icy temperature in your cocktail.

Did you know gin has its own special annual event? Celebrate on World Gin Day – the second Saturday in June – by discovering your favourite gin cocktail recipe!