As with so many old cocktails made with a base spirit and lime, the Gimlet is said to have been introduced as an easy distributed cure for scurvy.

The cocktail was invented sometime during the 19th century, possibly by Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette. Being a doctor in the navy, he started to administer gin with the lime to smooth out the bitterness of the anti-scurvy drink. The British navy were required by law to keep barrels of lime on the ships and give a daily ration to the sailors. It is for this reason the sailors got nicknamed ”Limeys”.

Another explanation for the cocktail being called Gimlet is that it got its name from a small hand drill called a gimlet, used to drill into barrels of spirits that were kept on the ships.

Traditionally a classic Gimlet is made with Rose’s Lime Cordial. Invented by Scottish entrepreneur Lauchlan Rose in 1867, Rose’s Lime Cordial was the first ever fruit concentrate. Luckily for Mr. Rose later in 1867 the law about lime juice on navy vessels was passed and his sugary product was perfect for this.

Since Rose’s Lime Cordial of today is made with high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors and artificial colors it is preferable to use lime and sugar syrup instead. 

The silver cocktail glass was designed by Swedish silver smith Wiwen Nilsson in 1947.

Product information

This is one in a series of illustrations of classic cocktail recipes with a selection of the most beautifully designed glasses.

The size 40x50 cm (approx 16x20”) are signed and printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Bright White 310g archival paper and are sold in a limited edition of 50 prints.

The size 30x40 cm (approx 12x16”) are printed on Hahnemühle Fine Art Studio Enhanced 210g archival paper.