This is the gin & tonic to end all gin & tonics. So, I have this thing where I don't really love G&Ts, but they just have such pleasant memories associated with them (see this post for more information re: happy times + G&Ts) that I still kind of have to drink them.
Hopefully, you find this fun combo with fennel, black pepper, and grapefruit to be an easy and delicious cocktail recipe.
This cocktail was inspired by a recent Happy Hour excursion with two of my favorite people. We went to a HH not knowing it was a gin only night. I was not the *most* thrilled about that, but there was this one that listed whole black peppercorns in the description. I ordered it just because I thought it sounded weird.
Guess what? It's weird! But in that kind of awesome way.
Also, how pretty are the grapefruit pieces in these photos? It was such a pretty grapefruit. Sometimes, I like to congratulate fruit for being so good looking.
The first time I had grapefruit was at my grandma's house. I was eight years old and was there visiting on my own. I'd gotten to fly as an unaccompanied minor on American Airlines and they gave me a set of wings (probably, plastic) and I was pretty darn cool...as you can imagine. So, my grandma serves me this grapefruit, cut in half, with a maraschino cherry in the middle. I thought it was an orange. I was wrong. I did not like the grapefruit, but I decided to eat it anyway (certainly not out of politeness), because my other option was Grape Nuts. My brother told me that Grape Nuts doubled in your stomach, so I was pretty sure Grape Nuts were going to be the death of me.
Enjoy this cocktail, friends! It's the start of the week and you deserve it.
This recipe was inspired by a happy hour find at the Market restaurant in the W Hotel Doha.