Drink Inventor

Inspired by the classic English cocktail that’s a summer staple at Wimbledon and parties across the UK, this Pimm’s Cup recipe is a great adaption.  Traditionally, a Pimm’s Cup is made with lemonade soda found in the UK, which is kind of like England’s version of Sprite or 7-up, perhaps a little zestier.  In any case, it’s hard to find in the US which is why our recipe uses San Pellegrino Limonata, which is the closest we’ve found.  You could also use lemon Perrier.

This recipe designed for serving your guests by the pitcher, and looks so pretty with the fruit and cucumber slices.  You’ll love this awesome thirst quencher for summer parties, it has a refreshing, fruity flavor and it’s easy to make!

Pimm’s Cup Cocktail Recipe

Serves: 8  Prep: 10 min, plus 2 – 3 hrs chilling time

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups Pimm’s No 1
• 1 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
• 1 Meyer lemons, thinly sliced
• 1 orange, halved then thinly sliced
• 6 strawberries, thick slices
• 1 sliced apple or peach (optional, sliced in thin wedges)
• 1 3-inch long piece of fresh ginger, thinly sliced like a matchstick
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• 1 1/2 cups San Pellegrino Limonata or
• ice cubes
• english cucumber spears (for garnish)

Directions: Combine sugar with 1/2 cup boiling water, and stir until sugar dissolves to make the simple sugar syrup.  Combine Pimm’s and the next 6 ingredients in a large pitcher.  Mix in 1/2 cup of the sugar syrup after it cools slightly.  Mash up the fruit and mint leaves slightly to release flavors.  Cover, and chill for 2 – 3 hours.

Stir 1 1/2 cups club soda into the pitcher.  Fill 8 old-fashioned glasses with ice, then the cocktail.  Garnish with cucumber spears.

Pimm’s Rangoon: Make another version of the classic English Pimm’s Cup by substitute ginger ale for the club soda, making a Pimm’s Rangoon cocktail.

A Brief History on the popular Pimm’s Cup

If you haven’t had Pimm’s No. 1 before, it’s a blend of gin, liqueurs and fruit extracts, and available at some specialty food stores and most liquor stores.  Pimm’s No. 1 is a brown-burgundy-colored, gin-based, semisweet, fruity liqueur.  This liqueur is so strongly associated with the Pimm’s cocktail that the cocktail is often called the Pimm’s cup, the Pimm’s No. 1 cup, or Pimm’s and lemonade. Pimm’s No. 1 Cup (the liqueur) is often simply called Pimm’s.

The Pimm’s history begins in London almost 200 years ago, at the Pimm’s Oyster Bar. It was owned and operated by James Pimm, who served oysters alongside his personally concocted “house cup” called Pimm’s Cup No. 1, a gin cocktail with a secret mixture of liqueurs and fruit extracts.  The drink became enormously popular, and Mr. Pimm bottled the secret formula and sold it to other taverns. Over the years, there grew to be six variations, with different hard liquors as the base.   the gin-based Pimm’s No. 1—and No. 2, 3, 3, 4, 5 and 6 spin-offs based on other hard liquors—is still sold.  Today, the brand is owned by liquor giant Diageo, and the original gin-based No. 1 Cup is the only version available in the United States.  In the United Kingdom, the vodka-based No. 6 Cup, brandy-based No. 3 Cup (now labeled Pimm’s Winter No. 3) are also available.

We love the history behind this classic drink, and the fact that in 2010, a cocktail that was popular almost 200 years ago is still a favorite summer drink.

Popularity: 84% [?]