This recipe is part two of my New Orleans Mixology Monday post. For the complete story behind this drink, please click here.
¾ oz Wild Turkey rye
¾ oz Clear Creek apple brandy
¾ oz Carpano Antica Formula vermouth
¼ oz Strega
2 dashes cinnamon tincture*
1 large strip orange peel
Stir ingredients over cracked ice. Strain into an ice-filled old fashioned glass and garnish with orange peel.
*To make cinnamon tincture, soak 4 ounces whole cinnamon sticks in 16 oz grain alcohol for three weeks. Strain solids and bottle.
One question I'm often asked is "Do you have any drink-related book recommendations?" Well, funny you should ask, I've compiled a list of the ten books every professional bartender or home mixologist should own. I keep every one of these close at hand and have read most of them several times. I suggest you do the same.
It's always mojito season somewhere, so this advice is timely in your area about half the year. Wether you're making them or simply enjoying them, this advice will help you look like a pro in no time at all.
The flavors of the Richmond Gimlet are imbued with sunshine. Fresh mint mingling with the herbaceousness of gin and the tartness of lime have made this drink a Eugene classic for many years now.
You'll get a lot of snarky advice on this site about how to make a proper drink, but if you ever need to know what not to do, this is the video for you.
The world of booze can be mystifying to people that don't work in bars or around alcohol all the time. I hear a lot of assumptions about the industry I'm in that are - much like 90% of what you hear in bars - completely false. Here are a few you've probably heard yourself.
The debate rages on: Should we try to look cool and crack open the Boston shaker or be tidy professionals and use the Hawthorne strainer the way God intended? Be sure to leave your two cents in the comments section.
The traditional garnish for a Pisco Sour is a couple of drops of bitters in the foam, but I've never been particularly impressed with the way these few paltry drops of bitters sat in their little egg-white mattress and didn't play along with the rest of the drink. I envisioned a Pisco Sour with a uniformly-distributed bitters-scorched foam: slightly crisp as the fire burnt the sugars, and slightly warm as the foam insulated the rest of the frosty cocktail from the heat. A pisco creme brulée in a glass!
I get so many visitors looking for tips on how to write a bartending resume that I thought I should finally post a tutorial on how to write your own. Click the headline to read more.
I always love showing up to a party with a gallon jug of pre-mixed margaritas, so I've decided to share my recipe. This margarita recipe is the perfect blend of strong, sweet, and sour. But be warned: this recipe packs a serious punch.
There isn't much I can say about this video that hasn't been said already. If you've read anything I've written about cocktails, you'll understand why this video symbolizes everything wrong with the state of bartending in America today. Watch and learn, but be warned: this one isn't for the feint of heart.
About Me
My name is Jeff Morgenthaler and I'm the head bartender at Bel Ami in Eugene, Oregon.
I'm 36, I've been tending bar for 12 years and writing about it for 5. Mixing drinks has become something of a passion for me in recent years, and I strive to elevate the experience of having a drink from something mundane to something more culinary.
The writing I do here is intended as a work in progress. My recipes are like my opinions: they are constantly being revised and refined as I work them through my mind and my fingers. Comments and participation are encouraged, so please don't feel the need to tread lightly here.
Ah, the Richmond Gimlet, one of the best summer drinks ever.. Its soft flavors imbued with fresh mint mingling with the herbaceousness of gin and the tartness of lime have made this drink a Eugene classic for many years now. It was created for Daniel Richmond, a waiter at Marche restaurant in Eugene, Oregon, by me, at Bamboo, in 2001. It’s a simple drink, but crisp and refreshing. Tanqueray Ten has a really nice, soft flavor due to the fact that they use fresh botanicals instead of dried. A crowd pleaser, and an easy introduction to gin for people who shun the spirit.
2 oz Tanqueray No. 10 gin
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz simple syrup
large sprig mint
Shake ingredients well over ice and strain into a chilled 9-ounce (at least) cocktail glass.
in 2007, Gary Regan was kind enough to include the Richmond Gimlet in his story on gin cocktails for Wine Enthusiast magazine. Click here to read the article »
[…] So, if you’ve been thrilling to Richmond Gimlets or knocking back Bourbon Lancers or Green Ghosts ever since you read about them online, let’s hear about it. Just get your post up by the close of Monday, July 16, toss a note in the comment section of this post, and tune in to see the roundup. […]
[…] I’d seen Jeffery Morgenthaler’s Richmond Gimlet when first getting into cocktails so-many-months ago, but I was a bit skeptical of combining gin and mint. It seemed to me that the juniper and minty flavors were too strong to play well together. I’ve since gotten over my connection of gin to bug repellent, so it’s a bit easier to enjoy now. […]
[…] Phil at Lamb Martini arrived and realized he was wearing the same Richmond Gimlet that I’d mentioned in the MxMo announcement. Undeterred, he mixed up the drink using different gins, and wound up the life of the party. […]
[…] My farmers market had non-early tomatoes for the first time this week, so it’s BLT time. Along with some Asian cukes in yuzu vinegar and a Richmond Gimlet, this has to be the perfect summer meal. « MxMo XVII: Richmond Gimlet | […]
[…] All right, now that the introspective portion of our program has concluded, let’s get on to the real reason you’re here. For this challenge, we’ve been asked to pick a drink that was posted or created by a fellow blogger and spread the love around a little. My first inclination was to make the Richmond Gimlet, something that I’ve been meaning to do ever since I laid eyes on Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s recipe æons ago. Doubts overcame me though, and I stopped myself. While everything about that drink screams “delightful!” to me, it seemed like a cop-out to pick the drink from Jeffrey’s blog for this challenge. I wanted to dig a little deeper. Use a liquor that I don’t feature very often. Grab a recipe from another blog that I admire, since I’ve already heaped lavish praise on the Nacional and adding more praise for the Richmond Gimlet would be pretty biased. […]
26 Feb 2008 at 6:48 pm 7. Michaelg
I don’t mean to sound like a broken record (I’ve said this before in this site), but substituting a shot of limeade for the simple syrup is easier, and dare I say it…better?
15 Jun 2008 at 9:00 pm 8. Mike S.
I’ve been reading here on this site for a while now, and posting a comment here and there, but tonight I finally got around to making myself a Richmond Gimlet. It’s absolutely wonderful, and one that I’ll make again and again. Thanks much for posting the recipe.
Jeff,
I tried the Richmond Gimlet and really enjoyed it. Had some friends try –they too loved it.
A friend had me bartend a pool party specifically requesting the drink—- made about thirty in a 2 hour period. Ran out of gin. Big hit!!!
Thanks so much for the recipe.
Bill G.
Bill - So glad you and everyone at the party enjoyed it!
07 Aug 2008 at 3:05 pm 12. Evan M.
This is a great refreshing drink, although I just ran out of Tanq 10 So I used Hendricks which had good results but I could imagine Tanq 10 would work even nicer. I’ve made a drink similar to this but has a much different flavor, but still light and refreshing.
1 1/2 oz. vodka 1/2 oz. lime juice 1/2 oz. Ginger syrup and 1 mint sprig. For other mint/gin combinations everyone must try Audrey Saunder’s Gin Gin Mule or even better: a Ginger Rogers which I think is a better version of the Gin Gin Mule.
Make exactly like a mojito but use ginger syrup, gin, and ginger ale in place of simple syrup, rum, and soda. And then of course the Southside Cocktail.
Things are really starting to ramp up for the 75th anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition on December 5th! Today I received a package from the folks at Old Forester bourbon, who are showing their support of my favorite day by releasing a limited edition Repeal Day bottling of their whiskey.
From the press release:
“Repeal […]
27 Jun 2007 at 2:16 pm 1. Jeffrey Morgenthaler » My Top Ten Favorite Drinks
[…] The Richmond Gimlet » […]
04 Jul 2007 at 10:44 pm 2. The Cocktail Chronicles » Blog Archive » MxMo XVII: Bring on the Blog Love
[…] So, if you’ve been thrilling to Richmond Gimlets or knocking back Bourbon Lancers or Green Ghosts ever since you read about them online, let’s hear about it. Just get your post up by the close of Monday, July 16, toss a note in the comment section of this post, and tune in to see the roundup. […]
15 Jul 2007 at 4:53 pm 3. MxMo XVII: Richmond Gimlet » Lamb Martini
[…] I’d seen Jeffery Morgenthaler’s Richmond Gimlet when first getting into cocktails so-many-months ago, but I was a bit skeptical of combining gin and mint. It seemed to me that the juniper and minty flavors were too strong to play well together. I’ve since gotten over my connection of gin to bug repellent, so it’s a bit easier to enjoy now. […]
17 Jul 2007 at 3:06 pm 4. The Cocktail Chronicles » Blog Archive » The Mushiest MxMo Ever
[…] Phil at Lamb Martini arrived and realized he was wearing the same Richmond Gimlet that I’d mentioned in the MxMo announcement. Undeterred, he mixed up the drink using different gins, and wound up the life of the party. […]
19 Jul 2007 at 8:12 pm 5. BLT + Cukes + Richmond Gimlet = Summer » Lamb Martini
[…] My farmers market had non-early tomatoes for the first time this week, so it’s BLT time. Along with some Asian cukes in yuzu vinegar and a Richmond Gimlet, this has to be the perfect summer meal. « MxMo XVII: Richmond Gimlet | […]
24 Jul 2007 at 9:52 pm 6. SLOSHED! » Blog Archive » Tropical Fix
[…] All right, now that the introspective portion of our program has concluded, let’s get on to the real reason you’re here. For this challenge, we’ve been asked to pick a drink that was posted or created by a fellow blogger and spread the love around a little. My first inclination was to make the Richmond Gimlet, something that I’ve been meaning to do ever since I laid eyes on Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s recipe æons ago. Doubts overcame me though, and I stopped myself. While everything about that drink screams “delightful!” to me, it seemed like a cop-out to pick the drink from Jeffrey’s blog for this challenge. I wanted to dig a little deeper. Use a liquor that I don’t feature very often. Grab a recipe from another blog that I admire, since I’ve already heaped lavish praise on the Nacional and adding more praise for the Richmond Gimlet would be pretty biased. […]
26 Feb 2008 at 6:48 pm 7. Michaelg
I don’t mean to sound like a broken record (I’ve said this before in this site), but substituting a shot of limeade for the simple syrup is easier, and dare I say it…better?
15 Jun 2008 at 9:00 pm 8. Mike S.
I’ve been reading here on this site for a while now, and posting a comment here and there, but tonight I finally got around to making myself a Richmond Gimlet. It’s absolutely wonderful, and one that I’ll make again and again. Thanks much for posting the recipe.
Cheers!
Mike
17 Jun 2008 at 12:22 pm 9. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Mike S. - Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed the drink.
07 Jul 2008 at 10:51 am 10. Bill
Jeff,
I tried the Richmond Gimlet and really enjoyed it. Had some friends try –they too loved it.
A friend had me bartend a pool party specifically requesting the drink—- made about thirty in a 2 hour period. Ran out of gin. Big hit!!!
Thanks so much for the recipe.
Bill G.
07 Jul 2008 at 10:58 am 11. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Bill - So glad you and everyone at the party enjoyed it!
07 Aug 2008 at 3:05 pm 12. Evan M.
This is a great refreshing drink, although I just ran out of Tanq 10 So I used Hendricks which had good results but I could imagine Tanq 10 would work even nicer. I’ve made a drink similar to this but has a much different flavor, but still light and refreshing.
1 1/2 oz. vodka 1/2 oz. lime juice 1/2 oz. Ginger syrup and 1 mint sprig. For other mint/gin combinations everyone must try Audrey Saunder’s Gin Gin Mule or even better: a Ginger Rogers which I think is a better version of the Gin Gin Mule.
Make exactly like a mojito but use ginger syrup, gin, and ginger ale in place of simple syrup, rum, and soda. And then of course the Southside Cocktail.