Two ingredients, and one of them is only a few drops. Angostura swirls through ice-cold gin, turns it the colour of a pale rosé and adds clove, cinnamon and a bitter edge that wakes up the appetite.
2 oz
Plymouth or London dry gin chilledBuy on Amazon →
3 dash
Angostura bitters 3 to 4 dashesBuy on Amazon →
Garnish: Lemon twist · Ice: Served up, no ice
Pink Gin
Bone dry and aromatic, with juniper up front and warm spice and bitterness on the finish. Strong and clean, with no sweetness at all.
Pink Gin is tied closely to the British Royal Navy of the 19th century. Angostura bitters were first made in the town of Angostura in Venezuela as a remedy for stomach complaints, and naval officers took them for the same reason. Gin, especially the Plymouth style made in the navy's home port, was already on board, and mixing the two made the medicine far easier to swallow.
In the wardrooms and colonial clubs of the Empire the drink became a fixed ritual before dinner. In Malaya it was known as the gin pahit, pahit being the Malay word for bitter, and the name turns up in the short stories of W. Somerset Maugham. Traditionally the glass is rinsed with bitters and the gin poured in at room temperature; modern bars usually stir it over ice.
Very strong. It is essentially a measure of chilled gin, so treat it like a Martini and sip it slowly.
Angostura is the classic, but any aromatic bitters will work. Orange bitters give a lighter, citrus version, while Peychaud's makes it redder and more anise-led.
No. The bottled pink gins sold today are fruit-flavoured spirits. The classic Pink Gin is plain gin coloured and seasoned only with bitters.
The perfect sound
A naval officers' wardroom with stiff upper lips and bitters.
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