As the world reopens you may want to put your home bar development on hold and start heading over to “real bars” again. But lockdown lifting also means being able to host friends again, now or soon—please check your local laws and recommendations. Whether you’re celebrating the end of lockdown or the beginning of the shorts season, these are three refreshing and very simple recipes to make for your guests, or simply enjoy in your backyard.
Blueberry Gin & Tonic
One evening during last summer I was looking around in the kitchen for things that’d be good to infuse in my G&T, and thought to try out frozen blueberries. Frozen blueberries are a staple in my freezer, as I like them in my protein smoothies. Strawberries work notoriously well in G&Ts, so this one was worth a try. Goes without saying, I made it more than once.
- 2 ounces (60ml) gin
- 6 ounces (180 ml) tonic water
- 5-10 frozen blueberries
- optional: a slice of lemon
Pour the gin in your favourite glass. Add the blueberries and break them with a muddler. Fill in with ice, add the tonic water, stir, and garnish with the lemon slice.
Campari & Tonic
Keeping it extremely simple here. Some recipes suggest to pour Campari and then top off with some tonic water, but I like precise ratios so that I can reproduce cocktails in the future. Some websites (including Campari‘s) recommend a 1:3 Campari/tonic ratio, but then it’s too bland for me. My favourite Campari/tonic ratio is 1:1.
- 2 ounces (60ml) Campari
- 2 ounces (60ml) tonic water
- a slice of orange
Pour Campari and add slice of orange in an old fashioned glass. Add ice and tonic water, and stir.
Negroni Del Capo
Most Negroni variations involve gin—use prosecco instead and you’ve made a Negroni Sbagliato, with vodka you get a Negroski, bourbon makes it a Boulevardier, etc. Replacing Campari with another bitter may irritate purists, but Vecchio Amaro Del Capo contributes to an excellent Negroni-ish drink, which is obviously called “Negroni del Capo”.
- 1 ounce (30ml) Vecchio Amaro del Capo
- 1 ounce (30ml) vermouth rosso
- 1 ounce (30ml) gin
- a slice of orange
Combine the three spirits in an old fashioned glass. Add ice, the orange slice, and stir.