Gin Hound

I promise this will be my last Death & Co recipe for at least a few posts! Obviously there are tons of impeccable recipes in that book, and a few more are definitely going to show up here, but I'll try not to overdo it. When I first got the book, I tried out many of the more summery recipes, and I wanted to share a few before it got too cold. Today it warmed up a bit in Boston just in time for the Gin Hound.

One of the ingredients in the Gin Hound - and one that shows up in a few other Death & Co recipes as well - is celery. My knee-jerk reaction to celery is that I don't particularly like it. The only time I'd really like to be gnawing on a raw piece of celery is when I finish my Bloody Mary before brunch arrives. No amount of ranch dressing or peanut butter and raisins is really going to make me excited about eating celery. But it occurred to me that I do like it when it's used in a supporting role. I love it in tuna salad, and of course it's one third of the Cajun Holy Trinity. So maybe me and celery are cool under the right circumstances.

So what about in a cocktail? I've enjoyed using celery bitters, particularly in the Means of Preservation. So when I saw this riff on the Gimlet made with celery juice in the Death & Co cocktail book, I thought it was definitely worth a try.

The result was a pleasant surprise. The celery in this cocktail isn't as in-your-face as you might expect; it works so well that it would probably take you a while to guess what you were tasting. It's not that the flavor doesn't come through, it's just that it's used in a way I'm entirely unused to. With the gin, lime, and honey, it provides a vegetal flavor that isn't really savory - think of cocktails that use cucumber or basil and how well they blend with gin and lime. Surprisingly, celery is in the same category.

Speaking of the changing seasons, head over to Hooch to read a guest blog I wrote rounding up eight of my favorite fall cocktails!

History: The Gin Hound was invented by Joaquín Simó at Death & Co in 2009.

Gin Hound

2 oz. gin (Tanqueray recommended)
1/2 oz. lime juice
1/2 oz. celery juice*
1/2 oz. honey syrup**

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with some celery leaves, if desired.

*There are several ways you can make your celery juice. If you have a juicer, you're set. If not, you can puree several stalks of celery in a food processor or blender and then strain the pulp through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth. You can also use a grater and strain the grated celery the same way.

**For honey syrup, combine two parts honey and one part water in a saucepan and simmer, stirring, until honey is dissolved. Let cool completely before using. Note that in other recipes on this site, I've used a 1:1 ratio of honey and water, but Death & Co calls for 2:1.

Recipe from The Death & Co Cocktail Book.