Blood & Sand's "No Rain": Gut Check's Hump-Day Cocktail Suggestion

By Evan C. Jones Wed., Mar. 20 2013 at 2:30 PM

Categories: Booze, Hump-Day Cocktail Suggestion

Continued from page 1

Evan C. Jones

The "No Rain" cocktail at Blood & Sand.

"Gin gets a bad rap because most people's first experience was with tonic...and probably too much of both," he says. "That tends to leave a bad impression when you're younger."

Fortunately, Pellegrino's creation is an olive branch to those negatively influenced by gin-and-tonics. Agave syrup is crucial to beverage's success, he says, because "it adds more weight and depth that pairs perfectly with the bubbles."

And weight and depth are what this cocktail is all about. Pellegrino had Gut Check at gin with fresh-squeezed lime and grapefruit juices; the other ingredients make the drink sing a new song with each sip from the Champagne flute.

"What most people don't realize is how much variety exists within the gin family," Frager says. "There is London Dry gin, Plymouth, Old Tom, Genever and several new gins that don't fall into any category. Hendrick's exemplifies the type of wonderful complex flavor you get from gin. It's distilled with traditional and nontraditional botanicals, like cucumber and rose petals. This was another great choice by Jayne to use."