This week we’ve been exploring the wonderful world of gin cocktails but not just any gin cocktails. We’ve dug deep into the new Sipsmith book, 100 Gin Cocktails to find easy, three ingredient cocktails that will amaze your friends and influence others.
Now while the book covers a range of different drinks, we’ve been looking specifically at the drinks included in the New Takes section, which explores drinks that may already be or could perhaps could eventually be classics in their own right.
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Aside from pointing out that all these drinks are great for impressing your dinner guests, the intro of this section also points out an interesting cocktail fact. They say a mathematician (who they do not name), once calculates (by a method they do not explain) how many possible combinations of ingredients there could be in a bar.
Now if you already thought there were too many classic drinks to keep track of, then hold onto your shaker because Sipsmith tells us the mathematician estimated that combination could be up to seventeen million.
Luckily though, Sipsmith has only listed their favourite one hundred in this book. And easy and simple are the watchwords of this guide. The appeal of this book is that it sees the beauty in simplicity and outlines that stunning drinks don’t have to be complicated.
Now while some of us might be inclined to fat-wash, oak-smoke, clarify and throw together a myriad of ingredients, most of us simply do not have that sort of time or dedication. Most of us just want a well-made drink, with great ingredients that is as easy to drink as it is to make.
In fact in the main introduction of the book, the Sipsmith trio point out that when it comes to making drinks at home, nine out of ten of us will lose the inclination to continue if there are more than three ingredients.
It seems that three is, as De La Soul once stated, the magic number. For Sipsmith, the number also has special meaning. There are three elements of distillation – heads, hearts and tails. And through history, both in nature and in literature, things have come in threes.
There is always the beginning, middle and end. Additionally, you’ll also get the past, the present and the future and at Sipsmith themselves we have their three founders – Sam, Fairfax and Jared, who started their gin journey with the Sipsmith brand back in 2009.
But today we are looking at simple ways that you can progress your own gin journey. Sure, with gin, ice and a glass, you have three elements that create a drink or even with gin, tonic and ice (in this case not counting the glass but trust us that you’ll need one) you also have a cocktail.
But what Sipsmith are trying to show with their book is that there are a variety of flavours that can be created with just a little more thought. But as anyone who has explored gin past the martini or the G&T knows, the simple addition of a Raspberry, an once St Germain or even the bubbles of Prosecco can make all the difference to the enjoyment for both yourself and your guests.
You see the one things that Sipsmith points out is that the majority of classic cocktails do themselves only have two or three ingredients – and that is why they have become classic. Easy to replicate is always the key. And no statement is more true than their point that “good spirits and one or two good modifiers is all it takes to make a great drink.”
So if you are looking for a little variety in your gin cocktails and an easy way to impress your guests, the Sipsmith book is a rewarding go-to, worthy of any home bar. It will show a variety of drinks, both classic and modern, that will not only tempt your curiosity but also satiate your palette.
