The Rambler’s Ruby – A Tiki Cocktail

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Last Updated on August 14, 2024 by Leah Hall

A fabulous Tiki drink with gin and mezcal Cocktail, that takes away the winter doldrums!

When you hear the word Tiki, you typically think of being served a sweet rum soaked cocktail full of fruit (and we love those!) but as more folks explore the world of Tiki, all kinds of drinks are being created using more than just rum! This has opened up lots of new opportunities for what might be the king of summer spirits, gin!

Refreshingly crisp and full of refreshing citrus flavors, gin offers a great flavor canvas to start layering lots of tropical flavors on to create a myriad of Tiki drinks! For the Rambler’s Ruby we combine the herbal citrus of gin with the smokey bite in this mezcal cocktail. This creates a delightful spiced sipper that is sure to open your mind up to the world of gin Tiki drinks!

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Tiki Mugs

A Gin and Mezcal Cocktail?

Gin isn’t your typical spirit you turn to when you think of paradise, but in reality it has long had a history of being found in tropical locales thanks to being required provisions on the ships of the Royal Navy as they headed out on their voyages to far flung corners of the world. Long thought of as part the cure for scurvy and malaria, Royal Navy sailors carried their gin to their port of calls and soon gin was the spirit to turn to in summery weather where it inevitably found its way into cocktails!

What Other Flavors to add?

We combined the gin with a nice Oaxacan mezcal. Mezcal and Gin is a fun flavor combination, as the hints of fruit, spice and smoke of the mezcal is brought out by the bright hints of citrus and botanicals from the gin.

If You Are Looking for More Grapefruit Cocktails, Try These!

• Rosemary’s Blush
• Grapefruit Smoked Salt London Mule
• Strawberry Paloma
• Honey Bourbon and Pear Cider
• Red Hound
• Hibiscus Salty Dog
• French Tart
• Pink Pear
• Rio Rose
• Rosemary Grapefruit Mule
• Rosada
• Shipwreck

Add in a splash of Allspice dram (Hey we have our own Homemade Allspice Dram right here!) to layer in a rich layer of warm baking spice and a slight hint of bitterness, and the combination of spirits makes for a flavor sure to tease your tongue!

Garnish Picks / Paper Straws / Flamingo Napkins

Tiki Flavors

No Tiki drink is complete with out some fresh fruit juice, and for this we went with some fresh squeezed Ruby Red grapefruit and lime juices. Grapefruit is a great juice to use with gin (in fact, not only are the flavors very complimentary, but many gins use some form of grapefruit to impart one of those citrus flavors that make gin so special!)

Add in a bit of fresh lime that pairs well with this gin and mezcal cocktail (ever hear of the Gimlet?) and you have a whole bunch of flavors that make great playmates. One of the real secrets of tiki is layering in lots of flavors, and this combination of sweet tart grapefruit and lime brings for a rich layered citrus flavor that totally makes that famous Tiki flavor.

What Ingredients are Needed for the Rambler’s Ruby Cocktail?

• Rambler’s Ruby Cocktail
  • Gin
  • Brulee’d Grapefruit wheels
  • Allspice Dram
  • Angostura Bitters
  • Lime juice
  • Grapefruit juice
  • Mezcal
  • Cinnamon simple syrup
  • Brandied cherries
  • Orgeat
• Cinnamon Simple Syrup
  • Sugar
  • Water
  • Cinnamon Sticks

We need a little sweetness to bring everything into balance, so we add a little cinnamon syrup and orgeat. The rich warmth of the cinnamon syrup adds just the right amount of sweet and spice to balance out the tartness of the fresh squeezed juice and the bitterness of the allspice dram. We wanted to kick up the tropical flavor, which is where the orgeat comes in.

If You are Looking for More Gin Cocktails, try These!

• Blood Orange Gin Sour
• Mountain Pine Gin and Tonic
• Lavender Lemon Gin and Tonic Granita
• Pink Pear
• Rosemary’s Pear

The toasted nutty sweetness of the orgeat adds a real mellow tropical note to the Rambler’s Ruby, plus adds a little silky smooth richness. A few dashes of Angostura Bitters and a dash of Scrappys Orleans Bitters rounds out the cocktail with a little more of that warm baking spice and complexity!

If You Are Looking for More Orgeat Cocktails, Try These!

• Nene Bird
• Grindelwald’s Goblet

Full of delicious layers of flavors, sweet, smokey and spicy, full of fruit and a crispness from the gin, the Rambler’s Ruby might just inspire you to take up a journey of your own into the world of Tiki! You should also try our Coconut Rum Painkiller!

Cheers!

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Like this recipe? Try these below, too!

Fall Into Paradise Tiki Cocktail

The Nene Bird Cocktail

Other Tiki Cocktails

• Mezcal Mai Tai – Oh So Beautiful Paper

Continue to Content

Yield: 1

The Rambler's Ruby - A Tiki Cocktail

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

This fantastic tiki cocktail has a lot of ingredients, but is a lovey combination of gin and mezcal, which are unusual in a tiki cocktail.

Print

Ingredients

Rambler's Ruby

• 2 ounces gin
• .50 ounce mezcal
• .50 ounce Allspice Dram
• .50 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• .50 ounce freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
• .50 ounce cinnamon simple syrup
• .50 ounce orgeat
• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
• Brulee'd Grapefruit wheels
• crushed ice
• Brandied cherries

Instructions

For the Cocktail

Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice.

Shake and strain over crushed ice.

Garnish with a brandied cherry and grapefruit wheel.

Cheers!

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

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  Liber & Co. Almond Orgeat Syrup (17 oz)
• 
  Professional Lewis Ice Bag and Mallet by Viski
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  Rodelle Cinnamon Sticks, 8 Ounce
• 
  Angostura Bitters Set
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  Luxardo, Gourmet Cocktail Maraschino Cherries 400G Jar
• 
  4 Tiki Tumblers Ceramic Hawaiian Luau Party Mugs Glasses

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

1

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 370Total Fat: 0.1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 14mgCarbohydrates: 36.4gFiber: 0.2gSugar: 24.2gProtein: 0.1g

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