Bramble
Gin, lemon and sugar over crushed ice, with blackberry liqueur trickled over the top.
- Time
- 5 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Glass
- Rocks glass
- Strength
- 2.2 UK units
How to make a Bramble
- Fill the glass with crushed ice. Pack a rocks glass to the top with crushed ice. It should look like a small snowdrift.
- Shake gin, lemon and syrup. Add the gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup to a shaker with regular ice. Shake hard for about 10 seconds, until the tin is cold enough to sting your hand.
- Strain over the crushed ice. Strain into the glass. The ice will settle a little, so top it up if it has sunk below the rim.
- Drizzle the liqueur. Pour the crème de mûre slowly over the top so it runs down through the ice in streaks. Do not stir.
- Garnish and serve. Add the blackberries and a lemon slice. Serve with a short straw.
- Glass
- Rocks glassNo rocks glass? Any short tumbler or a stubby water glass.
- Ice
- Crushed ice
- Garnish
- Two blackberries and a lemon sliceOr: A lemon slice on its own.
What you need to make a Bramble
Kit
JiggerA double-ended measure, usually 25 ml and 50 ml.
Cocktail shakerA two-piece Boston tin is the easiest to use and clean.
StrainerA Hawthorne strainer fits over the tin or glass.
Citrus squeezerFresh juice makes the biggest difference of anything.
Bottles we'd use
- Crème de mûreLook for one that tastes of real blackberries: Mathilde or Giffard are good and easy to find.Find it on Amazon
- London dry ginA classic juniper-led gin such as Beefeater or Tanqueray stands up to the lemon.Find it on Amazon
Links to Amazon are affiliate links: if you buy through them, Bar Bandol may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
The Bramble story
Most accounts credit Dick Bradsell, who made the first Bramble in London in the 1980s. It is one of the best-known modern British classics, and it was built to taste of the blackberries he picked as a boy.
The trick is the finish. The liqueur is poured last, so it bleeds down through the ice in purple streaks and the drink gets sweeter and fruitier as you work through it. If it is too sharp, add a touch more syrup; if it is too sweet, add a little more lemon.
Bramble: your questions answered
What is in a Bramble?
A Bramble is made with 50 ml London dry gin, 25 ml fresh lemon juice, 12.5 ml sugar syrup and 15 ml crème de mûre. Garnish: two blackberries and a lemon slice.
Is a Bramble shaken or stirred?
A Bramble is shaken, not stirred. Shaking hard with ice chills it quickly and helps mix the juice in properly, which stirring cannot do. Shake until the outside of the shaker feels very cold.
How strong is a Bramble?
Made to this recipe, a Bramble contains about 2.2 UK units of alcohol per drink. That is worked out from typical bottle strengths, so it changes with the bottles you use. UK guidelines advise not regularly drinking more than 14 units a week.
What glass do you serve a Bramble in?
Serve a Bramble in a rocks glass over ice. No rocks glass? Any short tumbler or a stubby water glass.
