A common wisdom in this age of reborn cocktails is to fix your drinks with the finest, freshest ingredients, eschewing premade liquids and powdered mixers. One drink that may pose the exception to that rule is the Gimlet—essentially gin and lime cordial—as it was not invented with fresh fruit in the first place.
The romantic picture is of British naval officers inventing the drink with fresh fruit to ward off scurvy in the 19th century with the lime’s vitamin C content. (The drink’s etymology is disputed, but one claim is that it was named for a Royal Navy doctor, Sir Thomas Gimlette, who encouraged the practice.) But the image of sailors squeezing limes while decks pitched at sea may be countered with the idea that British ships were already stowing…
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Cigar Aficionado (Digital) - 1 Issue, March/April 2025