The Ingredients

50 ml Gin, 1/2 Lime, dash of Sparkling Mineral Water

How To make a The Rickey

Combine the gin, lime and shell in a highball glass. Add ice, stir and then add sparkling mineral water.

Social and Cocktail says:

A fairly simple cocktail to make but also simply delicious. The Rickey is perfect as a refreshing summertime cooler and is also a good alternative to the classic gin and tonic, for those who want to get a little more adventurous with their drink choices. We recommend using a premium gin for this drink if possible, with Tanqueray and Sipsmith being our personal choices for this drink.

The Rickey used bourbon in its very original recipe but this was later to be replaced with gin over time.  The actual origination of the drink goes back to an American named Colonel Joe Rickey who was a well-known figure in political circles at the end of the 19^th Century. He mainly worked as a lobbyist and was known as a man-about-town. The story goes that Joe Rickey was a much revered authority on mixed drinks and even bartenders would look to his steer on whether a new concoction was worth serving or not. The original Rickey was apparently first prepared by a bartender in a bar called the Shoemakers in Washington DC, which was popular with Congressmen at the time. At the time, the bartender was working to the Colonels precise instructions and hence the drink was named in his honour.

An interesting fact about the Rickey is that it is a relative to the hugely popular Mojito cocktail, which itself originated in Cuba.

Did You Know?

In 2011 The Rickey was declared Washington DCs official native cocktail.