Vodka Gimlet
Vodka, lime, and simple syrup — the British Navy scurvy remedy given vodka, Rose's 1867 lime cordial immortalized in Chandler's The Long Goodbye.
- 2 ozvodka
- ¾ ozfresh lime juice(freshly squeezed)
- ¾ ozsimple syrup
- lime wheelgarnish
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The Gimlet traces its origins to the British Royal Navy of the 19th century, where ships' surgeons mixed gin with preserved lime juice cordial to prevent scurvy among sailors on tropical voyages. Rose's lime juice, the concentrated sweetened cordial developed by Lauchlin Rose in 1867, provided a shelf-stable lime component that became the classic Gimlet ingredient. Some accounts attribute the name to Surgeon General Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette, who reportedly recommended the combination to make medicinal lime more palatable. Raymond Chandler immortalized the gin version in his 1953 novel The Long Goodbye: "A real gimlet is half gin and half Rose's lime juice and nothing else." The Vodka Gimlet emerged in the 1950s and 1960s as vodka replaced gin in many American cocktail templates, with modern craft versions typically using fresh lime juice rather than the sweetened cordial.
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