Basil Gimlet Cocktail Recipe

The Basil Gimlet is an herbaceous spin on the three-ingredient classic featuring gin, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, and muddled basil leaves. The botanical-forward cocktail was an early example of using fresh herbs and ingredients to modernize pre-Prohibition classics at the start of the cocktail revival. The simple verdant upgrade transformed a 19th-century gin cocktail into a contemporary classic.

In the early 2000s, while visiting Boston restaurant Via Matta, sommelier and bar owner Shelley Lindgren tried a Vodka Gimlet made with basil. The drink made such an impression that, after sharing details with her husband, Greg Lindgren, he was inspired to create a gin variation and placed it on the opening menu of Rye, the San Francisco bar he co-owns with Jon Gasparini. 

In 2006, the San Francisco cocktail scene had fully embraced revitalized classic gin cocktails and the use of fresh produce in its drinks. The Basil Gimlet became an instant hit throughout the city and soon popped up on menus across the country.

Why the Basil Gimlet works

The traditional Gimlet cocktail, with roots in the 19th-century British Royal Navy, is a simple three-part sour cocktail that follows the golden ratio, a formula calling for two parts spirit, one part sweet, and one part tart. The harmony of all three ingredients is crucial to balance a sour cocktail. 

Though early versions of the cocktail contained Rose’s Lime Juice, a shelf-stable cordial that combined lime juice and sugar, contemporary Gimlets often feature fresh lime juice and a separate simple syrup to control that precise tension between sweet and sour. The Basil Gimlet hews slightly more tart than a classic build but can be altered to taste. 

Fresh, lightly muddled basil leaves are the featured player in this simple drink. The fresh herbs add a slight pepper quality and savory aromatics to the drink, while showcasing the botanicals in the gin. Lightly muddling the leaves before shaking will also provide the cocktail with a vibrant pale green color that pops against the dark green basil leaf garnish.