Summer Gimlet

My brother and I were at Grendel’s Lair, a club off South Street in Philadelphia, to see a local band. We sidled up to the bar and took a seat. We ordered and waited for the bartender to mix our drinks…two Shirley Temples. It was the early 1970s and we might have been 6 and 8 years old. As far as I know, it was my first time at a bar.

From time to time, our parents took us to see the local Philadelphia band Duck Soup. My father went to high school and was close friends with the band’s keyboard player and main songwriter Richard Grossman, who was primarily known as an improvisational jazz pianist. But Duck Soup was a rock band, trying to make it big.

We saw them a number of times in the Philadelphia area; at small clubs in town and out on the Main Line, at music festivals, and at private parties to which my brothers and I were almost certainly not invited. However, my parents brought us anyway, and in that era, no one seemed to care. We would dance and cheer until we were exhausted. I’m sure it was well past our bedtime.

My parents probably had a cocktail or two at these concerts, although I was oblivious at the time. I have no idea what they were drinking. Growing up, my father mostly drank cheap scotch and gin. To this day I hate both, probably a result of them being such poor quality and my pilfering of small amounts when my parents went out for the evening and I was too young to drink.

Around the time I was in college, we were all at a cousin’s wedding and they both ordered gimlets – simply gin and Rose’s lime juice on ice. I couldn’t stand the gin yet I quickly learned that gimlets could be made with vodka in its place. It quickly became my drink of choice, with a splash of Sprite added to take off the edge.

About 10 years ago I was at a backyard party in the middle of the hot summer. There was no band, but a friend of the hosts was mixing up fancy drinks. I asked for a vodka gimlet with a splash of Sprite. He apologized that he couldn’t comply, however, he offered me what he deemed a more traditional substitution in its place. He squeezed limes into a glass and added vodka and a bit of simple syrup. He shook it up and served it to me on the rocks. It was the most refreshing drink I had ever had, the tart lime and sweet simple syrup quenching my thirst on that warm summer evening. Even better than the somewhat cloying Rose’s.

My parents still drink gimlets, and I still order them when I’m looking for a cocktail, with Rose’s lime juice and a splash of Sprite – always vodka, never gin. But my favorite drink on a hot day is this homemade summer gimlet, sweet and tart at the same time, and undeniably refreshing. If it just had a touch of grenadine and a maraschino cherry thrown in for good looks, it wouldn’t be too different – other than the alcohol – from that Shirley Temple I ordered so long ago.

Summer Gimlet

The proportions here are perfect for me, although there are people who like their drinks stronger or will find this too tart or sweet. The solution is simple…add a little more of one component or less of another until it is right for you. A different option is adding a little carbonated water. I sometimes call my summer gimlet a Lime Rickey, even though that technically refers to a similar concoction with seltzer, tonic, or soda water, and it may contain alcohol or not. But if you want to dilute the alcohol a bit so as to make it more hydrating on a hot summer day, a little fizzy water might not be a bad idea.

Some people prefer their gimlets strained, with no ice. However, I prefer mine on the rocks. The ice keeps it refreshingly cold in the heat of the summer.

makes 1 drink, about 5 minutes

ice

2 oz. vodka (or gin)

1 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice

1 oz. simple syrup (made from a 1:1 ratio of sugar to water)

lime wedge for garnish, optional

1. Fill a rocks glass or cocktail shaker with ice. Add alcohol, lime juice, and simple syrup.
2. Stir or shake until well combined. If you use a cocktail shaker pour into a rocks glass, with the ice.
3. Add garnish and enjoy.

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