This sophisticated rosemary cocktail is the perfect way to elevate your happy hour. Light, fizzy, and refreshing, this perfect cocktail marries fresh citrus to fragrant rosemary.
Rosemary might sound an odd choice to add to a cocktail, but it pairs effortlessly with oranges, grapefruits, and lemons. While rosemary has a woodsy, piney scent, it also has a citrusy undertone to the flavour.
I love the way they play together so much, we add rosemary flavor in two forms; rosemary syrup and a sprig of rosemary garnish.
The piney aroma of the rosemary wakes up your sense of smell and adds something special to our jewel-toned, extremely sippable beverage. And happily, it takes mere moments to shake up this delicious cocktail that’s reminiscent of a fizzy rosemary gimlet or a rosemary gin fizz.
Yes it is festive looking with it’s ruby red blood orange and deep green rosemary, but it isn’t just for holiday season. I love to serve our rosemary cocktail for any occasion from a dinner party to a quiet night at home.
Let’s break down a list of the ingredients and equipment we need to level up our cocktail game with a fabulous rosemary cocktail. It doesn’t take much, and you have options!
Ingredients
- Blood oranges, navel oranges, red grapefruits, limes, or meyer lemons
- Gin, bourbon, or vodka
- Excellent tonic water or club soda
- homemade Rosemary simple syrup
- Ice
- Sprigs of rosemary for garnish
Equipment
- Double old fashioned glass or a copper mule mug
- Cocktail shaker or quart jar with a tight fitting lid
- Fine mesh strainer
- Liquid measuring cup
Blood Orange Cocktail
In peak citrus season, I love to make this a blood orange cocktail. In addition to lending a beautiful deep blush to the cocktail, find blood oranges to be slightly sweeter and more perfumed than navel oranges.
If blood oranges are nowhere to be found, you can switch it up a bit and use a red grapefruit in its place. That will make this drink into a rosemary greyhound cocktail recipe.
It doesn’t have to be a strictly seasonal cocktail recipe, though. Make it year round, keeping it fresh with limes, lemons, meyer lemons, or whatever citrus fruit you can lay your hands on.
I’m keen on gin, so my rosemary bevvy is almost always takes the form of a gin cocktail. And when it comes to gin, I am Team Hendricks botanical gin all the way.
Please, though, make it with whatever gin makes you happy! If you’re a Bombay Sapphire, Beefeater, or small batch gin fan, by all means use that! Just be sure you’ve chosen a gin you love to sip.
If gin isn’t your jam, feel free to swap in vodka or bourbon. Any which spirit you choose, it’s a show-stopper of a cocktail.
Nobody will be sad with a bourbon lemon rosemary cocktail. Make this unique drink your own!
Keep in mind that if you opt for bourbon, though, you may want to let club soda pinch hit for the tonic. This is my own personal preference, but if you dig tonic with bourbon carry on!
Whichever of those you use, you’ll want to be sure it has lots of bubbles. The carbonation aids in delivering all that aromatic rosemary goodness to your nose which makes the whole experience.
Rosemary Cocktail
Fill a double old fashioned glass or a copper mule mug and a cocktail shaker or jar with a tight fitting lid each with plenty of ice.
Add the blood orange juice, gin, and rosemary simple syrup to the cocktail shaker or jar. Fit the lid tightly in place and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Strain into the prepared glass or mug, pour in the tonic water, and stir gently to combine.
Stir with fresh rosemary sprig and add the blood orange slice. Sip happily!
Notes:
If you cannot find blood oranges or prefer to, feel free to swap in a navel orange, red grapefruit, or a lemon for both the juice and the garnish. It will be different, but equally delightful.
If you’re not a gin aficionado, please switch it out for bourbon.
If you do replace the gin with bourbon, please substitute club soda for the tonic water.
Rosemary Cocktail
Equipment
- Double old fashioned glass or a copper mule mug
- Cocktail Shaker or Jar with a tight fitting lid
- liquid measuring cup
Ingredients
- ice
- 1 blood orange juiced (See Notes)
- 2 ounces good gin like Hendricks (See Notes)
- ½ ounce Rosemary Simple Syrup
- 2 ounces good tonic water like Q or Fever Tree (See Notes)
- 1 sprig rosemary for garnish
- 1 slice blood orange for garnish (See Notes)
Instructions
- Fill a double old fashioned glass or a copper mule mug and a cocktail shaker or jar with a tight fitting lid each with ice.
- Add the blood orange juice, gin, and rosemary simple syrup to the cocktail shaker or jar. Fit the lid tightly in place and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Strain into the prepared glass or mug, pour in the tonic water, and stir gently to combine.
- Garnish with the rosemary sprig and blood orange slice. Sip happily!
