Cucumber Gin Spritzer

This Cucumber Gin Spritzer is a refreshingly light and easy to make cocktail! Lime and seltzer go perfectly with the cucumber and gin, and it has a touch of sweetener to bring it all together. It's perfect for any hot afternoon.

This drink is great for the late spring and summer months, which is cucumber season. You'll get the best tasting cucumbers at this time of year. Plus, cucumbers just make a cold drink taste colder for some reason!!

For another drink with a similar cucumber and lime combination, but with fresh mint, try out the Eastside Cocktail (which becomes a Southside Cocktail without the cucumber). You'd also enjoy this low-alcohol Cucumber Gin cocktail.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you'll need to make this cocktail:

• Gin - I used Hendrick's Gin here, since it has cucumber and rose flavors that go perfectly in this drink.
• Fresh cucumber - look for a dark green cucumber with no soft spots.
• Lime juice - preferably freshly squeezed.
• Simple syrup - I used my homemade simple syrup recipe, but you can also use store bought syrup.
• Lime bitters - this is optional, and I'd suggest only adding it if you have lime bitters already. It definitely adds a little something, but the drink is great without it too! I used these lime coriander bitters by The Bitter Housewife.
• Seltzer - any sparkling water will work great in this drink. Try to use a freshly opened seltzer for the best bubbles!

Substitutions

Some substitutions you can make in this drink are:

• Gin - try using vodka, citrus-flavored vodka, or tequila blanco in this cocktail for a different flavor.
• Lime juice - lemon juice would also be delicious in this cocktail.
• Simple syrup - you can use pure maple syrup in this cocktail instead of simple syrup for a more natural sugar.

Variations

Here are some variations on this cocktail that would be just as delicious!

• Non-alcoholic - make this drink a mocktail by omitting the gin and using more seltzer. You can also use a non-alcoholic gin, like Monday Zero Alcohol gin, for a similar flavor profile without the booze.
• Sparkling wine - if you want to go in the opposite direction and increase the booze factor, you can use Prosecco, Champagne or another sparkling wine instead of the seltzer. I suggest reducing the gin to 1 ounce (30 ml) or less if you decide to try this one out.
• Tonic - instead of the seltzer, you can add tonic to this drink. If you want to add tonic, you can reduce the simple syrup to about a ¼ ounce, since it already has sweetener in it. You can also omit the lime bitters, since tonic is naturally bitter. This makes it more like a cucumber and lime G&T.
• Reduced sugar - if you're watching your sugar intake, you can use a non-sugar sweetener. This allulose liquid sweetener is the best tasting, IMO!

Equipment

To make this recipe, you'll need a few things to make it super easy. The first is a muddler to smash up the cucumber slices. You'll also need a cocktail shaker and strainer, a jigger or small measuring cup, and a citrus juicer if you're using fresh limes. If you want to make the cucumber garnish, a vegetable peeler or this cheese slicer work perfectly.

For the serving glass, I've used a stemmed copa glass, also called a gin and tonic glass. It looks like a big, round balloon red wine glass. You can also use a spritz glass (like this Viski spritz glass).

Side Note: grab 10% off your A Bar Above purchase using my discount code, LKDrinks. They carry two kinds of muddlers, plastic and wooden, for all of your cucumber smashing needs!

Instructions

Start out by making your cucumber and lime garnishes. Use a cheese slicer or vegetable peeler to get a long, thin strip of cucumber, and then place it inside the serving glass. Also cut a slice of lime and set it aside while you make the drink.

Cut up some slices of your cucumber and add them to your cocktail shaker. Use a muddler to smash up the cucumber pieces.

Add in the lime juice, simple syrup, gin and bitters.

Then, fill the cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Also, add ice to your serving glass.

Seal your cocktail shaker and shake well, about 15-20 times. Then, strain the drink into the serving glass.

Top the drink with seltzer, garnish with the slice of lime you had set aside earlier, and serve.

Hint: if you don't want to run the risk of getting any cucumber seeds in the drink, you can double strain as you pour it into the serving glass. Double straining just means that you use two strainers together, one a regular strainer and one a fine-mesh strainer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Top tip

This is a fun drink to serve at a party! You can set up a drinks station for people to make their own. A great way to do this is to have all of the cucumber garnishes in the glasses, ready to go. About an hour before the party, use a blender or food processor to chop up the cucumbers, and add the lime juice, simple syrup, gin and bitters.

Mix everything together and strain the mixture through a cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer into a pitcher. Chill the pitcher in the fridge until you're ready to serve it.

Have a big cooler of ice with an ice scoop set up so your guests can add ice to their glass. You can have a measuring cup ready for them to measure 4 ounces of the pitcher mixture to add to their glass, and a bottle of seltzer for them to top it off before enjoying!