Grape Ape Collins
A printable recipe may be found at The Crepes of Wrath
This is probably the last gin recipe for a while - I'm sorry to overwhelm you with them! Can you blame me, though? Gin makes for the most delicious summer cocktails, if you ask me (next to a cold seasonal summer ale from your favorite brewery, of course). You can dress it up, as I've done in this recipe, or you can just mix it with some tonic and a squeeze of lime or some muddled cucumber for a simple, crowd pleasing drink. I have never added grapes to a cocktail before, but I had some in the fridge, so it seemed they were just begging to be muddled together with some cool cucumber, crisp apple, and refreshing mint. There's just a slight fruity flavor in this drink, so if you think it's too much for your taste, I beg to differ. I don't think there's anything I'd rather drink than one of these on one of New York's hot, humid summer days. It's pretty, too, isn't it? Plus, you have a little snack when you're finished. What's better than that?
Your ingredients.
Slice your apple and cucumber.
Place the cucumber, apple, mint, and grapes in your mixer.
Muddle and add in the lemon juice, simple syrup, gin, and ice. Shake for 30 seconds.
Fill your glasses with ice.
Strain into your glasses, garnish with a mint sprig, a slice of apple, a slice of cucumber, and some grapes, top off with a little club soda, and drink up!
Grape Ape Collins
A printable recipe may be found at The Crepes of Wrath
Yield: 2 cocktails
7 cucumber slices
7 red apple slices
7 red grapes
4 sprigs mint
6 ounces gin
1.5 ounces fresh lemon juice
1.5 ounces simple syrup
splash of club soda
2 cucumber slices, 2 apple slices, 6 grapes, 2 mint sprigs - for garnish
1. First, make your simple syrup. Combine 1 cup of granulated sugar with 1 cup of water in a small pot. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the syrup into a heat-proof container and place in the fridge (or freezer) until cool or at least room temperature. You can keep this simple syrup in a container in your fridge for at least a month, but I doubt it will last that long.
2. Slice your cucumber and apple as thin as possible. Place in the bottom of a shaker and muddle together with the grapes and mint. Pour in the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Fill the shaker the rest of the way up with ice and shake for 30 seconds. Strain into two glasses filled with ice, top with a splash of club soda, and garnish with a slice of cucumber, a slice of apple, a few grapes, and a mint sprig.
A printable recipe may be found at The Crepes of Wrath