Berry Grapefruit Bramble

There are 2 primary components you can work with to balance any cocktail, or any drink for that matter, and they are citrus and sugar. Whenever I’m looking to make a drink that isn’t straight alcohol I like stray from just adding simple syrup and find different syrups that add to the overall flavor of the cocktail. Usually I will just make something from the ingredients I have and sometimes I grab one of the Monin Syrups I have on my back bar. Once I have that flavor component figured out I will usually go with a subtle lime juice or punchier lemon juice depending on what I need. Then again, sometimes a different citrus component can make all the difference in the end product and for this cocktail I found the additional flavor from the grapefruit really worked well with the blueberry syrup. I wanted to go straight grapefruit juice but the cocktail called for a little more “oomph” so I instead went with a 50/50 blend with lemon juice to add the extra citrus mouth feel. Finally for a clean, fresh berry hit and a little texture, I threw in some chopped strawberries, and voila, a delicious, balanced cocktail for all to enjoy!

Recipe:

• 2 ounces Citadelle Gin
• ¾ ounce grapefruit juice
• ¾ ounce lemon juice
• 2 fresh strawberries (chopped)
• ¾ ounce Monin Blueberry Syrup

Method:

1. Combine all but the Monin in a cocktail shaker with ice
2. Shake hard to chill and combine ingredients
3. Strain into your cocktail glass over crushed ice
4. Float Monin Blueberry Syrup over the top
5. Garnish & Enjoy!