Earl Grey Gin and Tonic

[The Chandos]

I've been having a few of these lately at one of my local watering holes. They are absolutely delicious, but they stopped serving them - I didn't ask why - but I perused the web and found lots of recipes for Earl Grey infused Gin (steep 1/4 c. earl grey tea in 1 L gin for 2 hours, agitating periodically).

So, I have my infused gin ready now but I'm wondering if I need any special tonic or if there's a specific garnish I might use like orange wedge or something.

Any thoughts on this to complete the ideal Earl Grey G&T?

[djh]

I have never tried one (although that does sound terrific). Why not ask the barman who made them for you in the past? Tonics do vary considerably- buy a few different ones and see which you prefer. As far as garnish goes, I would probably stick with lemon or lime rather than orange slices.

Bottom's up!

[JM]

Never tried the Earl Grey and Gin but have done Rooibos and Gin.

High ball glass filled with ice
2 shots of Gin
Fill with cold Roobios a little muddled mint

[TheShaun]

I will be monitoring this thread closely. Sounds yummy

[The Chandos]

I have never tried one (although that does sound terrific). Why not ask the barman who made them for you in the past? Tonics do vary considerably- buy a few different ones and see which you prefer. As far as garnish goes, I would probably stick with lemon or lime rather than orange slices.

Bottom's up!

I'll ask the barman next time I go, but I won't be able to get back as soon as I'd like. I'll be heading out later this afternoon for some supplies and thought I'd grab whatever suggestions might sound good. There's only one place I know that has really good tonic water - otherwise, the rest are all Canada Dry, Scheppes, or worse - all high fructose corn syrup concoctions, which are ok for the basic G&T but not in this case - I want to do it up right. Alternatively I might just use club soda and work from there to see what I can do to improve it between now and my next visit to the Owl.

Never tried the Earl Grey and Gin but have done Rooibos and Gin.

High ball glass filled with ice
2 shots of Gin
Fill with cold Roobios a little muddled mint

That sounds very nice! I have some peach tea from the Charleston Tea Plantation that I thought might make a good infusion as well. Recently had a cocktail with 3 parts gin, 1 part club soda, and a splash of Fernet Branca, and it was fantastic! But I think it would be better with bourbon or some other dark liquor.

Thanks for the comments, folks, keep them coming. I think just need a primer on tonics, bitters, and garnishes.

[The Chandos]

So I made my first infusion and have had a few variations to see how I like it. I steeped a 1/4 cup of tea in 1L of gin for two hours, shaking every now and then, then strained the tea out without pressing. I used Gordon's gin and Charleston Tea Plantation Governor Grey tea. There are other earl grey teas that I think would be better, namely Fortnum & Mason's Governess Grey or Williamson's Earl Grey, both of which have very bright citrus notes. A different gin might also be an option but I worked with what I had on hand. I also used standard Schweppe's tonic water and tried club soda a few times.

My favorite version was with lemon juice, believe it or not. Lime was just not right, grapefruit too much, orange was good but like lime not perfect, ... , but lemon was the ticket. I even tried adding some triple sec and/or some angostura just to play around with it but the ultimate earl grey gin and tonic I've constructed was not with tonic at all but with club soda and lemon. Fantastic!

Next I'm going to try some tea infusions using lapsang souchong ... !!!

[JM]

Lapsang sounds good. The fella on Whiskey Review suggested adding mesquite liquid smoke to your gin if you want a change. Smoky Lapsang or Russian Caravan sounds like a good choice.