Classic Gimlet Cocktail Recipe

The gimlet is a classic cocktail known for having the perfect balance of sharp, tangy sweetness with an ice-cold slap of dry gin. According to legend, the gimlet gets its name from a nineteenth-century Surgeon Admiral of the Royal Navy, Sir Thomas Gimlette KCB, who, when faced with an outbreak of scurvy on his ships, added lime cordial to the stores of gin on board in hopes of boosting his sailors’ intake of vitamin C.

A gin gimlet easily becomes a vodka gimlet if the latter spirit is more your preference. When made with rum, a gimlet becomes a daiquiri. A gin rickey is a bubbly gimlet with a float of carbonated water. However you take it, a gimlet is traditionally served in a chilled coupe, martini glass, or over ice in a rocks glass.