If you know me, you know that I am a fan of classic cocktails, and I’m a little hesitant when it comes to more modern cocktails. This is primarily because I don’t like intensely sweet drinks. In fact, if the drink has a fruit flavor, I’d rather it be a little tart. Because of this, I’ve always frowned on sloe gin because almost every drink that uses it is sickly sweet and they all have names that would make your mother wash your mouth out with soap.
Enter the sloe gin fizz.
The sloe gin fizz is a variation on the gin fizz, which is considered a New Orleans specialty and had its hey day between 1900 and 1940. Fizzes of any variety were so popular that New Orleans bars would hire massive numbers of bartenders who would take turns shaking fizzes from open to close.
This is a cocktail that balances the sweet flavor of sloe gin with the sting of lemon juice. Combine that with the effervescence of soda water and you have a light, flavorful cocktail that you can picture yourself drinking with a late Sunday brunch.
The sloe gin fizz is a very simple cocktail with a simple and delicious flavor. At some point, sloe gin manufacturers in the U.S. started producing sloe gin using the cheaper grain alcohol as opposed to gin and high fructose corn syrup instead of real sugar. To save money, U.S. manufacturers have altered the flavor profile of sloe gin making this cocktail less appetizing. So if you want to try this cocktail, buy an imported sloe gin. I would recommend Gordon’s or Plymouth.
Recipe
- 3 parts sloe gin
- 2 parts lemon juice
- 1 part simple syrup
- 5 parts soda water
- egg white (optional)
Shake ingredients and serve over ice in a highball glass.