The Gimlet Remains One of the Best co*cktails Ever Invented (2024)

The classic Gimlet co*cktail is a three-ingredient masterclass in simplicity and balance. Composed only of gin, lime juice, and sugar, it helped pave the way for countless co*cktails to follow, from the Margarita to the Daiquiri and the Sidecar.

Over a century later, the Gimlet remains an icon of what's now referred to as the sour category of drinks. It's given rise to variations like the Vodka Gimlet, and its basic template has become so intertwined in co*cktail culture that certain drinks, like the Daiquiri, could just as easily be described as a "Rum Gimlet."

The History of the Gimlet

The Gimlet dates to the 19th century. At the time, British sailors had come to be provided lime rations in an effort to combat scurvy. The juice was often mixed with smaller quantities of neutral spirits to preserve it for long voyages, until a a ship provisioner named Lachlan Rose created a technique to fortify the juice with sugar rather than alcohol. Rose's creation allowed for a shelf stable product which he believed would also open an additional market for those seeking preserved lime juice without alcohol included. He would eventually brand his product Rose's Lime Juice Cordial.

As for who first combined Rose's cordial with navy rations of gin, the story gets murkier. Many like to credit Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette, a British naval doctor, for popularizing the co*cktail. Others say it was named after a tool used to bore holes on ships. Like most pre-20th-century co*cktails, particularly one that come from such a simple a template—spirit, sugar, and citrus—it's hard to pin down a single point of origin.

What we do know is that by the 1940–50s, the classic Gimlet was codified in both popular culture and many co*cktail books as a simple 50/50 mix of Rose's Lime Juice Cordial and gin. However, much as the Whiskey Sour rebounded from the "sour mix era" to once again use fresh ingredients, the Gimlet also began to revert back to what the Rose's version only tried to approximate: a combination of gin, fresh lime juice, and sugar.

Why the Gimlet Works

The Gimlet follows the basic sour template of spirit, citrus, and sugar. This combination features prominently in so many drinks throughout history because of how flexible it is, and how well it works.

Sugar and citric acid act on opposite ends of the sweet-to-sour spectrum, and effectively balance each other out. This creates a drink that, when mixed appropriately, is neither sweet nor sour (despite what we call the category), but simply tart and refreshing. Once both side of these two flavor profiles are in sync, the base spirit is able to reflect the best of both worlds, while shining through on its own without being overpowered.

Many cite the "golden ratio" of sour drinks as 2:1:1—this means two parts of base liquor, one part sweet, and one part sour. This is often used as shorthand, particularly for drink novices, as it will almost guarantee a decent drink across a wide range of ingredients. But part of the reason the style persists is that it's easy, and often preferable, to tweak the balance to individual tastes.

Modern tastes tend to favor more spirit-forward combinations, particularly as the quality of distillates around the world has risen dramatically since many of these classic co*cktails were first created. With the Gimlet, we've opted for an even balance of simple syrup to lime juice in an effort to capture the original intent of the drink, but slightly reduced the amount of each while increasing the volume of gin, to reflect an era of fresh ingredients and lower-proof gin than those found on British naval vessels.