Is the Strawberry Bearcat a tiki drink? I think so – it certainly tastes like one. It also has orgeat syrup in it, which doesn’t make it officially tiki, but it’s close. Up for debate.

What makes this drink so unique is that the gin is really a background player here. The fresh berries, the barely perceptible tart and bitters, and the creamy orgeat take center stage. For this recipe, a plain and non-assuming gin is your best bet, to really let the other textures and flavors shine. I used a London Dry from Seagram’s, and while not super posh, is quite good on it’s own.

Strawberry Bearcat with Garnish in Rocks Glass

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Strawberry Bearcat Gin Cockatil

The Strawberry Bearcat Gin Cocktail pairs gin, orgeat, strawberries, and lemon with a smidgen of bitters for some sharpness.

Ingredients

3 Strawberries, you can leave the tops on.
2 Oz. Gin
.75 Oz. Lemon juice
.75 Oz. Orgeat syrup
2-4 Dashes Aromatic bitters

Instructions

Start by chilling your rocks glass.
Combine your strawberries and liquid ingredients (except the bitters) in your cocktail shaker.
Smash up your berries in the shaker.
Then add ice to the shaker and go to town.
Double strain into your rocks glass.
Bitters on top if you like! You can also add bitters when you are shaking.
Garnish with a fresh berry and/or lemon.

Tips for making the Strawberry Bearcat cocktail.

Start with some really ripe strawberries. I used three medium-ish sized ones, obvi the bigger they are the more strawberry bang you are going to get. I also used berries that were too ripe to eat. You will strain out the tops so you can just leave them on when you muddle.

Use the aromatic bitters to your taste. I prefer only a dash, they really stand out against the berry flavors.

Use more lemon (and make it fresh squeezed!) to add some tartness to this drink.

The orgeat syrup will give your Strawberry Bearcat some foam when you mix it up.

Double up the recipe if you want to fill a large tiki tumbler, or use the recipe as is for smaller tiki cups or a rocks glass. There is no shortage of fun tiki stuff that you can add to your bar’s collection.