The Gin Daisy – Three Ways
The Gin Daisy is a cocktail that goes back eons – and over the years, lots of twists and turns have been taken with the recipe.
The Gin Daisy is a riff on the Tom Collins – a super light and fizzy gin drink. It’s what I would call “boat gin” – so fresh and light you can barely taste the gin, which is perfect for sipping all day long while hanging out on your boat. Or porch. Or sofa.
The Gin Daisy is a great drink for those of you that want HINTS of flavors. Like you woke up and said to youself – what is the La Croix of alcoholic drinks? It’s this drink.
These versions of the Gin Daisy show just how versatile this drink can be. Go nuts and experiment!
The Gin Daisy #1
Ingredients
- 2 Oz. Gin
- .75 Oz. Lemon juice
- .75 Oz. Orange liqueur Try Cointreau
- Soda or seltzer To top off
Instructions
- In a shaker, combine your gin, lemon juice, and orange liqueur.
- Add ice and really mix things up.
- Pour into your Collins glass, which already has ice.
- Top off with something fizzy – like club soda or seltzer.
- Garnish with anything. Like something dehydrated.
You can also make a different version of this Daisy, replacing the Cointreau with some grenadine. This makes for different tastes and a bit less alcohol content.
This also turns your soda looking drink into a pink soda looking drink, which may or may not be right up your alley.
The Gin Daisy #2
Ingredients
- 2 Oz. Gin
- .5 Oz. Lemon juice
- 2 Tsp. Grenadine You can make your own!
- Soda or seltzer Finish it off!
- Mint For garnish
- Lemon For garnish
Instructions
- In a shaker, combine your gin, lemon juice, and grenadine syrup.
- Pour over some ice, in your Collins glass.
- Garnish with some mint, and/or lemon.
- You can give it a stir, too.
If you find that the #1 and #2 just aren’t cutting it for you in the flavor department, try this more concentrated Gin Daisy #3. Just make the #2 and forget the soda and ice.
Ditching the ice and soda makes this drink much more fancy and delicious, but it’s still fairly light. Add more grenadine for more color and a bit more sweet flavor.
The Gin Daisy #3
Ingredients
- 2 Oz. Gin
- .5 Oz. Lemon juice
- .5 Oz. Grenadine Make your own! It's better.
- Mint For garnish
- Lemon twist For garnish
Instructions
- Chill your coupe glass with some fresh ice or stash it in the freezer.
- In your shaker, combine your gin, lemon juice and grenadine with ice.
- Shake.
- Strain into a coupe glass.
- Garnish with a twist of lemon and mint.
Pro tips for adding flavors to light drinks:
Use ice made from some of the flavors in the drink. Love orange and want to add flavor without more orange liqueur? Use frozen OJ cubes instead of regular ice.
Use dehydrated garnishes. These little powerhouses of flavor add much to the “nose” of a drink, and look pretty spiffy, too.
Skip subtle flavors and substitute in something more powerful. Love lemon flavor but want more taste AND more alcohol? Try this with Limoncello, which will also make things a bit more colorful, too.
Make your own grenadine syrup. This lets you have fresh flavor, and no artificial stuff in your drink.
Cheers!