Rob’s finally back with another one of his cocktail creations. This one is a perfect summer refresher perfect for a warm night on your porch or by the pool: a Watermelon-Basil Gimlet.
The Gimlet is a very classic gin-based cocktail. It ultimately boils down to gin and lime juice as its base, add seltzer and you get a Gin Fizz. See pretty simple. Whats great is its a nice tart drink without a lot of sweetness. Now that simplicity can make it a little boring, so time to mix it up a bit.
We have what is now basically an overgrown bush of a basil plant in our AeroGarden. I love the thing, but basil really grows like crazy and sucks up water like nothing else. We are probably adding a liter of water a day at this point. So Rob took a bunch of that to go in the cocktail.
As for the watermelon? It is Rob’s all-time favorite summer fruit. He could probably eat an entire quarter melon on his own. I have to say it is good in a cocktail because it adds just the slightest hint of sweetness without going over the top. The limes still provide that touch of tartness I love.
Rob also decided not to filter the cocktail this time. Normally he really likes to filter out the pulp from a cocktail, but with the watermelon it wasn’t really necessary.
Watermelon-Basil Gimlet
Ingredients
- 4 oz Gin
- 4 oz Lime Juice
- 1/2 Cup Watermelon
- 4 Large Basil Leaves
- Ice
Instructions
- Combine the basil and watermelon in a cocktail shaker. Muddle them together until well broken down.
- Add the gin and lime juice.
- Fill the shaker with ice.
- Shake for 30 seconds.
- Strain off the shaking ice and pour the drink into a glass with fresh ice and a small basil leaf.
