Southside Cocktail
There is a time and place for short, alcohol-forward cocktails like this one, and we think the perfect combination is in the garden in the early evening when you’re hiding from the expectations of the world. Between the intoxicating smell of your garden’s tomato vines and the full 2 ounces of gin in the cocktail, the heart rate lowers and the evening light softens.This drink has a flavor profile similar to a mojito, yet its presentation is more similar to a daiquiri. It’s a great example of how in cocktails, very small swaps result in highly varying drinks. Swapping a mojito’s lime for lemon, rum for gin, and omitting the club soda creates a different drink experience in the Southside. It should be finished fairly quickly so it doesn’t get warm, and so that no one comes and asks you what’s for dinner while you’re in your happier hour.
Ingredients
- 3 fresh mint leaves
- 2 ounces new American or botanical gin
- ¾ ounce Blackberry and Mint Syrup (recipe link in notes)
- ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ½ ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
- For garnish: 1 sprig mint and Mojito Berries (recipe link in notes)
Instructions
- Clap the mint leaves between your hands to release the fragrant oils, and drop into a cocktail shaker. Add the gin, syrup, lemon and lime juices, and 1 cup of ice and shake until the outside of the shaker is very cold, about 25 seconds. Fine strain into a coupe (to strain out all small ice shards) and garnish with a sprig of mint and mojito berries on a toothpick, resting on the rim of the glass.
Notes
Recipe (adapted slightly for Edible Seattle) from Drink Your Garden: Recipes, Stories, and Tips from the Simple Goodness Cocktail Farm by Belinda Kelly and Venise Cunningham (Countryman Press, W.W. Norton & Company, 2025 ). Recipe and image used with permission.
Find the recipe for Blackberry and Mint Syrup here.
Find the recipe for Mojito Berries here.