Rhubarb Ramos Gin Fizz

There is so much to be excited about for spring, but my favorite is the start of my local farmers’ market. For those of you that live in climates that allow you to have them year round, trust me, I’m jealous! There is something special about having ingredients specific to the season you’re in, and it is one of the top things I think about when I am creating cocktails. When I saw rhubarb this week while grocery shopping, my heart went BOOM!

I decided to do a spin on one of my favorite New Orleans-born classics, The Ramos Gin Fizz. This drink is a mix of gin, citrus, orange blossom water, cream, and we will be replacing the simple syrup for rhubarb in this recipe. The Ramos Fizz is sweet, tart, refreshing and is topped off with soda that makes a frothy, booze soaked puff of meringue that towers over the top of the glass. Historically this drink should be shaken for around 15 minutes, but I’m going to show you some tricks on how to make the perfect one at home.

Rhubarb Ramos Gin Fizz, serves 1

1 1/2 oz. gin
1 oz. heavy cream
3/4 oz. rhubarb syrup
1/4 oz. lemon juice
1/4 oz. lime juice
egg white
3 drops of orange blossom water
club soda

First, let’s make the rhubarb syrup. Add one cup of water and one cup of sugar to a pot and stir on low heat until all sugar has dissolved. Add 4 cups of freshly chopped rhubarb and let simmer for 20 minutes.

Let cool and strain into a bowl using a fine mesh strainer. You can bottle this syrup and keep it refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. I even kept the leftover rhubarb from the syrup and stored it in a jar. Perfect for spreading on toast!

You will need a shaker with two sides to build this cocktail. In the larger side, separate your egg white and then add your heavy cream. If you’re building a cocktail that has dairy or egg in it, you want to keep that separate from your citrus to prevent curdling. In the smaller side of your tin, add your gin, citrus, rhubarb syrup and orange blossom water. Add your small tin to the larger side of your tin and dry shake (meaning no ice). The idea here is to shake it and get as much air in it as possible. After this, add your ice. You don’t have to add a lot, a few cubes will work, just enough to make this cold. Here is where you are going to shake, shake, shake! The key here is to shake until there’s no more ice left or until your biceps can’t stand it anymore. Gently pour your cocktail into a highball glass and top with soda. Your hard work has finally paid off! Sip and enjoy!

This rhubarb syrup is seriously delicious! It would be great to use in a mocktail too. Simply add it to club soda with a little bit of lemon for those that are not imbibing. I love reimagining old drinks and putting my own spin on them, and this Rhubarb Ramos surely doesn’t disappoint! If you decide to make this at home, comment below to let me know how it turns out and don’t forget to tag your pics #ABMhappyhour. Happy shaking! -xo Natalie

Credits // Author and Photography: Natalie Jacob. Photos edited with the NEW A Beautiful Mess actions.