If spring were a cocktail, it would be this elderflower gin and tonic, a refreshing mix of gin, elderflower liqueur, maple syrup, tonic, and lemon. Easy to make and even easier to sip while you enjoy spending time back out in the sun.
The trees are finally blooming in my little Vermont neighborhood and I'm ready to get back to eating fresh foods from our garden. Recipes like my rhubarb oat breakfast cake, green pea pasta, and chamomile cookies are high on the list.
Honestly, I'm always a bit surprised anything is able to survive the harsh winters here, so I'm always excited to see things like fresh herbs and flowers popping back up and can't wait to find a use for them in the kitchen. Last summer we added a few elderberry trees to our growing collection of fruit plants, and I'm happy to see they've sprouted plenty of healthy green leaves this spring.
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🌸What is Elderflower?
Elderflowers and elderberries are part of the same plant. Both the flowers and the berries are useful in cooking and for medicinal purposes.
Maybe you've taken elderberry syrup or another elderberry product for its ability to combat and prevent colds. The berries are super high in antioxidants. However, they are also great for making things like jam and pie. Just make sure to cook them before eating!
The flowers of the elderberry plant, on the other hand, are just as useful. Elderflower liqueur is made with these flowers, and it's excellent in cocktails. Elderflower tastes a bit more floral than the berries, and I find there's also a hint of sweetness and citrus.
Unfortunately, I won't be able to make my own elderflower liqueur quite yet. The new plants typically don't put out too many flowers or fruits in their first full year, and cutting off what flowers we do get means fewer berries later on.
Fortunately, elderflower liqueur is readily available. St Germain is a popular French elderflower liqueur brand, but it's not the only one. I recently picked up a bottle of St. Elder, an American-made natural elderflower liqueur, and it's also delicious.
Another spring gin cocktail recipe you might like to try is my Ginger Rhubarb Gin. And during the warm summer weather, try a Cherry Whiskey Sour, Elderberry Cordial, or Cucumber Gin Cocktail.
📋Ingredients
This simple cocktail is essentially an elderflower gin and tonic. It's a refreshing, easy-to-drink cocktail that brings to life that happy feeling you get when you see the first signs of life sprout back up in the sunny days of spring. I've added some maple syrup and a splash of lemon juice to complement those sweet and citrus flavors of the elderflower liqueur and gin.
- Elderflower liqueur such as St. Elder or St. Germain for the fresh floral notes that make this cocktail extra interesting.
- A dry gin with fresh citrus and botanical notes. One Vermont gin you should give a try is from the St. Johnsbury Distillery. This craft distiller located in northern Vermont ferments, distills, bottles, and barrels all of their products on-site from scratch. I also just noticed that they have an elderflower rum that I'm thinking would be perfect in place of the elderflower liqueur. For another tasty gin cocktail, try my Smoked Negroni.
- Lemon juice, freshly squeezed.
- Maple syrup from Vermont, of course. I love making drinks with Baird Farm syrups.
- Tonic water to top off the drink and add some fizz.
- Lemon slices and peel to garnish as desired.
See the recipe card below for the complete list of ingredients and quantities.
🍋Substitutions & Variations
- Make it a mocktail. If alcohol isn't an option for you, leave out the gin and liqueur, and try using an elderflower tonic water instead. Fever-Tree elderflower tonic water is wonderful. Keep the lemon juice and maple syrup as they are.
- Sub the tonic water - If you're not a fan of tonic water, use seltzer or club soda instead. I often use seltzer made in my Soda Stream for drinks like this.
- Use lime in place of lemon - Lime juice and a lime wedge are a great variation to this gin and elderflower tonic.
- Add some ginger. Ginger is another good flavor to pair with elderflower and gin. Try using ginger tonic water or add a couple of slices of fresh ginger as a garnish.
🍸Instructions
Making this gin and elderflower tonic cocktail is really just a matter of combining ingredients in a glass with ice and stirring. You can't go wrong. But here's the breakdown.
Add 1 ounce of gin to a cocktail mixing glass with ice.
Add 1 ounce of elderflower liqueur.
Pour in the maple syrup and lemon juice.
Stir the glass to combine.
Strain into a fresh glass with ice.
Top off with tonic water or seltzer.
Garnish with rolled lemon peel.
Serve and enjoy.
Tip: It's essential to pour the drink into a glass filled with fresh ice to prevent it from becoming diluted by the melted ice used during stirring.
🗨️FAQs
A clean-tasting gin without additives, like a London Dry, is a good choice. I enjoyed it with St. Johnsbury Distillery's gin. I've also enjoyed it with a gin with more botanical flavors (such as Bar Hill gin), as these complement the elderflower flavor rather well.
Elderflower has a citrusy and floral flavor that goes well with many fruits (like pears, peaches, apples, and berries), honey, and herbs such as rosemary, lavender or mint.
Aside from other gin cocktails, you could also pair it with vodka, champagne, and white wine. Or add a splash of elderflower liqueur to a fruit salad or other desserts where you want to add a fresh, lightly floral taste.
✨Try this
To make this an extra elderflower-forward cocktail, try using Fever Tree's elderflower tonic water in place of regular tonic water. I mentioned it as a mocktail substitution, but I think it also works perfectly in the cocktail.
🍹Other Drinks to Try
📋Recipe
Print📖 Recipe
Gin and Elderflower Tonic
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 cocktail 1x
Description
If spring were a cocktail, it would be this gin and elderflower tonic, a refreshing mix of gin, elderflower liqueur, maple syrup, and lemon. Easy to make and even easier to sip.
Ingredients
- 1-ounce gin
- 1-ounce elderflower liqueur
- 1-ounce maple syrup
- ½ ounce fresh lemon juice
- 1 slice of lemon
- tonic water
- ice
Instructions
- Add a couple of handfuls of ice to a cocktail mixing glass. Pour in the gin, elderflower liqueur, maple syrup, and lemon juice.
- Stir well. Strain into a fresh glass filled halfway with crushed ice.
- Top off with tonic water. Garnish with the lemon slice or peel and serve.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Drinks
- Method: Stirring
- Cuisine: American
Steve says
A refreshing cocktail for warm weather and a great way to experiment with elderflower liqueur.