🥃 Bramble

The Bramble is one of the best-known modern British cocktails: gin, fresh lemon juice, sugar syrup and the blackberry liqueur crème de mûre, served in a short glass over crushed ice. It was created by the London bartender Dick Bradsell in the mid-1980s. The International Bartenders Association (IBA) lists the Bramble in the "New Era" category.

History. According to Bradsell's recollections, quoted by Difford's Guide, he worked as a bartender at Fred's Club in Soho and wanted to invent "a truly British drink". Lemons and sugar are not British, so the Britishness came from the blackberry: the taste of the French blackberry liqueur reminded him of picking blackberries as a child on the Isle of Wight. The English word "bramble" means a blackberry bush.

Recipe. The IBA recipe: 50 ml gin, 25 ml lemon juice, 12.5 ml sugar syrup and 15 ml crème de mûre. The first three ingredients are shaken with ice and strained into a glass of crushed ice, and the liqueur is poured slowly on top in a circle, so it drips through the ice in dark streaks. Garnish with a lemon slice and a blackberry.

Ice and relatives. Bradsell took the crushed ice from a neighbouring restaurant; it dilutes the drink and makes it longer. Structurally the Bramble is a sour cocktail, like the Aviation: gin, lemon and liqueur. The Bombay Bramble is a flavoured gin brand, not a cocktail.

Why it matters to you. The fruity sweet-and-sour taste and plenty of ice make the Bramble look light, but one serving contains 50 ml of gin, about 15% ABV by Difford's Guide's calculation. WHO reminds us: there is no safe amount of alcohol.