I am very familiar with the flavour of bergamot, being an avid Earl Grey fan, but I had never seen or tasted the bergamot lemon itself. A mystical fruit that I thought was confined to tea makers and lucky Mediterranean gardens. Then I found I could order some beautiful organic ones along with my veg box; it would be rude not to. My first thought when I got them was to add a slice to some hot water, just to smell and taste them. But then I remembered I had some gin, and, you know, why not? Hello bergamot gin and tonic.
You will need (for two drinks):
- 1 bergamot lemon
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 75ml gin
- Tonic (a good quality one)
- Bergamot peel to decorate, if you’re so inclined
Squeeze the juice from the lemon into a small saucepan. Considering they are slightly larger than limes they hold an amazing amount of juice.
Add the sugar to the lemon juice then place the saucepan on a medium heat and warm the juice and sugar together. Stir and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved and you have a thin syrup. Leave to cool.
Mix the gin and syrup together then divide between two glasses. Top each glass with tonic and add a swirl of peel if you like.
In a world where you can get your hands on almost any flavour or ingredient, certainly not a bad thing, it is a genuine treat to try something new for the very first time. An excuse to celebrate simplicity. I took this slight twist on a gin and tonic to my favourite chair in the afternoon sunshine and enjoyed every sip. The jury’s out on whether bergamot is a lemon or an orange (I’m team lemon) and the taste is just exquisite; acidic and very distinctive. I love citrus at this time of year especially and, to make the most of this delicious ingredient, there are a few more bergamot themed recipes coming up.
This used to be one of my top favourite cocktails :-))) Love those juicy bergamot lemons.
We have Earl Grey tea for breakfast many mornings, so I’m familiar with bergamot (the flavor) too. But not bergamot (the fruit) — never have come across one. Sounds like just the thing for a G&T! Really nice — thanks.
I adore Earl Gray tea but never knew there was a specific bergamot lemon! Love learning that. This drink looks fabulous.
Looks delicious! I love lemon so this is perfect for me! Plus, it’s Friday so a great time to try 🙂 YUMMY!
Ooh I’ve never tried the fruit either! How wonderful to be able to order some to try it. Now I’m on the hunt to look for bergamot lemons here 😀
Hi Caroline, never heard of bergamot lemons before, they sound heavenly, just like this drink, a home run for sure.
There are times when nothing else but gin will get the job done! And this was certainly one of those times what a refreshing sounding cocktail I love it 🙂
I have never heard of a bergamot lemon before. They sound like they would be wonderful. The cocktail sounds delicious!
I’ve never seen a bergamot lemon, but I know I’d love this drink. It sounds perfect!
I love cocktails! This one sounds interesting and so delicious!
what a classy drink! too sophisticated for the likes of me, i’m afraid… 🙂
Oh, this drink sounds fantastic! I’ve never heard of the bergamot lemon before, so I loved reading about it. learn something new every day!
That’s truly yummy. Loving it.