Fresh Ginger Syrup

Store in a sealed glass bottle in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. The heat and freshness fade quickly — make small batches frequently for the most vibrant cocktails. Keep refrigerated.

There is no need to peel ginger before making syrup — simply scrub the root clean; the thin skin contributes minimal flavor and the blending or straining removes all solid material. Young, smooth-skinned ginger (harvested before the skin becomes thick and papery) produces a brighter, more floral syrup than older ginger with wrinkled skin. For maximum heat, use the cold-process method: blend raw ginger with sugar and water and strain without cooking — the heat of cooking softens and rounds the bite. Straining through a fine-mesh strainer and then through cheesecloth produces a clearer, more refined syrup.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the oldest cultivated spices in the world, originating in South Asia and documented in Indian and Chinese medicinal texts over three thousand years ago. Arab traders spread ginger throughout the ancient world, and it became one of the most important spice trade commodities in medieval Europe. Ginger's entry into Western cocktail culture came primarily through ginger beer — a fermented ginger beverage popularized in Britain in the 18th century — and through ginger wine, a spiced fortified wine made in the UK since at least the 19th century. The Moscow Mule, created in 1941 as a marketing collaboration between a Smirnoff vodka importer and a ginger beer producer, cemented ginger as a foundational cocktail flavor. Fresh ginger syrup — more vibrant and pungent than ginger beer — became a staple of the craft cocktail movement and is the defining sweetener in Sam Ross's Penicillin cocktail, created at Milk & Honey in New York in 2005.

A black pepper ginger syrup can be made by adding one teaspoon of coarsely cracked black pepper to the ginger during simmering, producing a more complex, warming heat that works well in whiskey cocktails. A ginger-lemon syrup suited to gin and tequila drinks can be made by adding the zest of two lemons to the finished hot syrup and steeping for ten minutes before straining. For a Thai-inspired ginger syrup with galangal character, add one inch of fresh galangal root alongside the ginger during simmering.

No common top-eight allergens. Naturally vegan and gluten-free. Ginger allergies are rare but documented. Those with aspirin sensitivities should be aware that ginger contains natural salicylates.