Cool Hendricks Gin and Fever Tree Bitter Lemon Memories

Years ago (many), one of our favorite summer cocktails was a simple, cool, refreshing, not-too-sweet, gin and Schweppes Bitter Lemon over ice. No matter how blasted hot it was in the scorching heat and humidity of a Baltimore summer, our gin - or sometimes Campari -  & bitter lemon would somehow seemingly transport us to a cool, breezy island of respite. Ahhhhh. And then Schweppes stopped making Bitter Lemon. Boo.  

Flash forward to last weekend. Wwhhoooosssshhh. 

Walking through the aisles of Wexford's Market District, Mark and I spotted a lovely woman stationed at a display table handing out samples of Fever Tree BITTER LEMON! Be still my heart. I smiled, I nearly giggled. I picked up 6 4-packs and headed straight for the Wine & Spirits Shop across the parking lot and bought Hendricks gin. 

I think you know the rest of this story. Yes, the afternoon most certainly did feature a gin & bitter lemon on the rocks with just a tiny squeeze of lime. So simple, yet so elegant. 

So what if the temps out there were in the 60's? So what if it was too cold to sit on the deck? This time instead of the liquid transporting us to a cool island, it magically sent us time-traveling back to hot summers and very cool memories of Maryland, friends, and of summer days gone by. Here's to summer, friends. Cheers!

Hendricks Gin and Bitter Lemon

• 2 ounces gin - use your very own favorite gin
• 1 bottle Fever Tree Bitter Lemon
• ice
• just a squeeze of lime

Add ice to a glass, pour the gin over the ice and add the bottle of bitter lemon. Give it just a squeeze of lime and stir ever so gently. Serve with a garnish of lime.