Summer Bartending and Barr Hill Gin
Summer days in Brooklyn start early and last long into the night. Thousands of Nathan’s hot dogs hit the grill as the rising sun kisses the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island. This same heat is trapped within the sidewalk pavement as families drag their coolers and children to their local pools and parks. Others yearn to be melting on the sand as they instead sit trapped inside a freezing office building swaddled in a chunky cardigan. This disparity of climate change is shaken loose by the evening hours when the streets release their grip of the sun: it is again pleasant to utilize the outdoor seating that was once a sidewalk annoyance and in 2020 forever changed how we access common spaces.
This is why I love New York the most in the summer: the infamously crowded streets empty out and you can gleefully skip down the avenues and grab a seat at even the most exclusive tables. If you’re lucky enough to have 20 minutes to yourself and a drink at the end of a summer’s day, you have a lot of options to consider: rosé, frosé, Aperol Spritz, any number of imported beers and of course, a smart cocktail that is the right combination of clean and crisp to cool you off and excite your palette. And for this, we need to start with a great spirit, like Barr Hill Gin. And the most exclusive table in this neighborhood is my empty, clean kitchen with a shaken Gin + Lime Tonic.
Barr Hill is located in Vermont and makes what I consider to be one of the most accessible gins: it’s not so herbaceous and ‘junipery’ to make you feel like you’ve time traveled back to 1921, and the subtle raw honey notes help to ease (or enhance!) the botanicals depending on how you are mixing your gin. It’s no surprise that they’ve racked up a fair number of awards. I love a great gin cocktail like a Gin Fizz or a Bee’s Knees, and for a hot summer’s day when you may only have a few minutes to yourself between the heating up and cooling down of the day’s activities, I reach for a tried-and-true Gin + Tonic with plenty of lime and a great spirit like Barr Hill.
Barr Hill Gin + Lime Tonics
Makes 2 cocktails or a single strong drink
_________________________________________________________________________
3 parts Barr Hill Gin
Ice for shaking
1 whole lime, sliced for squeezing (wedges are best) and for garnish (this post features rounds)
Top with tonic or lime seltzer for a spritz
Shake gin and squeezed lime wedges with plenty of ice for 30 seconds. This will dilute the gin slightly and help you make it to your second cocktail. Strain into your glass (add a new piece of shaped ice if you want even more cushioning) and top with tonic water or lime seltzer. Add additional lime wheels for a festive spin on a classic cocktail!
Cheers FoodFam,
Meredythe
