Aviation
45 ml Gin, 15 ml Maraschino liqueur, 15 ml Lemon juice, 7.5 ml Crème de violette, 1 Maraschino cherry
Dr Pimpers
Pimm's and Dr Pepper, one to three. Trust us, and then trust us again.
Contemporary
Easy
3 min
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 300 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 300 ml line. Pimm's No. 1 - One part - Pimm's No. 1, straight from the fridge
- 900 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 900 ml line. Dr Pepper - Three parts - cold, and poured gently to keep the fizz
- 30 ml Jigger One small side (25 ml) of a standard jigger, plus a teaspoon. Lime juice - A small squeeze, which keeps the sweetness in its place
- 6 ribbons Cucumber ribbon
- 6 slices Orange slice (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- 300 ml Pimm's over ice, 900 ml cold Dr Pepper, a squeeze of lime, cucumber in.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 1.23 l of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Fill a highball glass with ice and let it chill for a minute.
- Pour in the Pimm's, then the squeeze of lime juice.
- Top with the cold Dr Pepper, pouring down the inside of the glass so the bubbles survive.
- Stir once - once - and coil a ribbon of cucumber against the glass.
- Add a slice of orange on the rim if you like, and drink it while it is still fizzy.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Dr Pimpers
This is the cabin's own drink, made the way a good idea usually happens: two things in the fridge that had no business being near each other, and one curious evening. Pimm's is bittersweet, herbal and full of orange and cucumber; Dr Pepper is sweet, spiced and tastes faintly of cherry and almond. Put together, they do something neither does alone - the spice of the soda meets the herbs in the cup, the cucumber keeps it fresh, and the whole thing ends up tasting like a long, cheerful, faintly medicinal summer drink.
Getting it right
The proportion is the recipe, so here it is plainly: one part Pimm's to three parts Dr Pepper - 300 ml of Pimm's, 900 ml of fizzy pop, in a glass full of ice. At one to two it is too sweet and the Dr Pepper runs over the top of the Pimm's; at one to four the fruit cup disappears and you have paid for a soft drink. One to three is the sweet spot.
Two small things matter. Squeeze in a little lime - about 30 ml - which lifts the sweetness just enough to keep the drink from being a dessert. And cool both bottles properly before you start: this is a fizzy drink, and warm Pimm's with cold soda is a flat drink by the second sip. Cucumber is not decoration here either; it is the same cucumber that makes a Pimm's Cup taste like a Pimm's Cup, and it is doing the same job.
Tasting notes
Cherry and cola first, then the orange-and-herb bitterness of the Pimm's arriving underneath, then cool cucumber and a long, spicy, gently sweet finish. There is nothing else quite like it, which is rather the point.
Serve it in a tall glass, with plenty of ice, to somebody who says they do not like Pimm's.
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