Rhubarb Gin and Tonic

The only thing hard about this Rhubarb Gin and Tonic is waiting 24 hours for the rhubarb to infuse into the gin. This drink is part of the “How to Make Brunch” YouTube video I made with my friend Marion Ringborg. We felt like it’s not brunch without a cocktail, and since this brunch’s inspiration was spring, we knew we wanted to do something easy, fun, and, well, springy.

Nothing says spring in the Nordics more than rhubarb! Its arrival is eagerly anticipated by everyone, marking the end of winter. That, plus its beautiful pink color, made it an easy choice for use in a cocktail.

The Easy Way

We also wanted the cocktail to be easy. We decided against a batch cocktail but wanted something that would be easy to make for each person as they came. Neither Marion nor I are bartenders or have much cocktail knowledge, so we decided to stick to the classics and go for a gin and tonic. I love gin and tonic, especially when made with good ingredients like Stockholm’s Bränneri Gin and Ekobryggeriets Rhubarb Tonic.

Garnish

I wanted to make a cute garnish as well, so inspired by the slice of cucumber often found in G&Ts, I poached strips of rhubarb and swirled those in the glass. Poaching rhubarb is very simple. I like to make a simple syrup and simply pour it over the rhubarb while it’s still hot. This cooks the rhubarb without turning it to mush. For the garnish for this cocktail, I cut really long, thin strips of rhubarb and poached them as described above. They sat overnight in the fridge in the syrup and were perfect the next day. I used that simple syrup to sweeten up the drinks a bit.

You could, of course, skip the garnish if you’d like, but it just makes it more fun, and it’s a cocktail! It’s supposed to be fun! This recipe is quite adaptable, making it sweeter, weaker, stronger, or whatever based on your preference!