Cocktails · Drinks · Recipes

Parisian Summer

Seth Jovian
Print Recipe
A refreshing summer cocktail
Prep Time2 minutes
Total Time2 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: gin, lime juice, simple syrup, watermelon
Servings: 1 cocktail

Equipment

  • jigger
  • shaker
  • highball or rocks glass
  • muddler (if you're using watermelon chunks)
  • double strainer (if you're using watermelon chunks)

Ingredients

  • 2 fl oz Hendricks gin
  • 2 fl oz watermelon juice (roughly the juice of 3-4 wt oz of watermelon; about 3 medium chunks)
  • 1 fl oz lime juice (roughly the juice of a lime)
  • ½ fl oz simple syrup
  • 4 drops hops bitters (or 1 basil leaf)

Instructions

  • If you're using a higball glass, mostly fill it with ice
    If you're using a rocks glass, put a big ice cube in it
  • If you're using watermelon instead of juice, put 3-4 wt oz of watermelon (about 3 medium chunks) into the shaker and muddle it well
    2 fl oz watermelon juice
  • Put ice in the shaker
  • If you're using watermelon juice, add 2 fl oz of it to the shaker
    2 fl oz watermelon juice
  • Juice 1 lime into the shaker, or add pre-squeezed juice
    1 fl oz lime juice
  • Add the simple syrup
    ½ fl oz simple syrup
  • Add the gin
    2 fl oz Hendricks gin
  • Shake well
  • Strain into the glass; if using watermelon chunks, use double strainer to catch more pulp
  • Garnish with 4 drops of hop bitters or 1 basil leaf
    4 drops hops bitters

Notes

From Locale Market, in St. Petersburg, FL — unfortunately, now closed.
If you can’t find watermelon juice, or if you want it to be fresh, you can make your own with a little hassle. At least some Trader Joe’s carry a 12 oz bottle of cold-pressed watermelon juice.
The hop bitters are hard to find. The original recipe called for Bittercube Hop Bitters, which even the Bittercube website doesn’t sell. Alambika does sell them, as of late 2024, along with Dillon’s Hop Bitters. But you can also substitute with hopped grapefruit bitters, or even Angostura or orange bitters.