5 ICE CUBE HACKS TO UP YOUR GIN GAME

by Little Gin & Rum Co | Jul 12, 2021 | General

The weather has had us all kinds of confused recently! However, this week is set to see the return of summer with a scorcher of a weekend coming up! Get your ice trays ready – you’re going to need them!

If you’re yet to experiment with ice hacks, we’re on hand to give you a few ideas to jazz up your gin. Not only will these simple ideas keep your gin super cool, they’ll also look damn pretty and are a sure-fire way to impress your friends at your next garden party!

FROZEN RASPBERRIES

Love yourself a pink gin? These are super easy – grab your favourite berry garnishes (think red fruits such as raspberries and strawberries), pop them into your ice cube tray, top up with water and freeze. Not only will these look great, but as the ice and fruit dissolve, your gin will infuse with the berry flavours. These little babies make the perfect garnish to a floral and fruity gin,

Lemon & lime WEDGES

If you’re anything like us, you hate waste. So many times we find half a mouldy lime or lemon sitting in the back of the fridge that could have had a home in our scrumptious gin! To cut down on waste, simply cut your lime or lemon wedges into small wedges and freeze with boiled water in your ice trays. You can also simply slice your limes and lemons and freeze them without water – the perfect garnish and drink cooler in one!

EDIBLE FLOWERs

Guaranteed to get lots of ‘ooohhs’ and ‘ahhhhs’ as you serve up to your friends – these beautiful floral ice cubes are super simple, yet so beautiful! They work really well in floral gins (try elderflower) and not only do they look gorgeous, but will add flavour to your gin, too.

CRYSTAL CLEAR ICE

There’s nothing better than being served an ice cold G&T with crystal clear cubes. You’ve probably wondered how your favourite bars and restaurants get their ice so clear – us too. It’s actually pretty simple. Boil the kettle (twice) to get rid of all the gas from your water – let it cool, then freeze. Your gin game just got so much cooler.

HERBY CUBES

Love a gin basil smash but never have any basil in the house? Enjoy a rosemary garnish with your London Dry but never seem to have any in your garden?! Grab a packet of fresh herbs from your local supermarket and freeze them using cooled boiled water. Elevate your cocktails in seconds!

Enjoy these quick ice hacks and share your creations with us on Instagram or Facebook. Let us know your favourite using #littleginandrumco.

Need a gin that works with your fantastic cube-creations? Check out the Queen Cleo range.

What better way to celebrate Pride month than with a deliciously boozy rainbow cocktail!

Wolverhampton Pride loved this cocktail. Lots of you asked us to share the recipe…..so here it is.

TASTE THE RAINBOW

The trick to this cocktail is getting the layers which takes a little bit of technique but mainly patience.

you’ll need

Ice
A tumbler
A metal spoon
A small jug

INGREDIEntS

25ml white rum (we used Morvenna)
25ml blue curacao (we used De Kuyper)
100ml pineapple juice
25ml Grenadine (we used Monin)

STEP 1

Add 25ml of grenadine to an empty tumbler. Make sure that you don’t get any on the sides of the glass as you pour it in.

STEP 2

Add ice to the tumbler. This works best if you use a few cubes that will stack on each other which helps the different ingredients to stay separate.

STEP 3

Slowly pour 100ml of pineapple juice over the ice. Pouring it slowly will help to keep it separate from the grenadine so only a small amount mixes giving you an orange colour.

STEP 4

Mix 25ml white rum and 25ml of blue curacao in a small jug.

STEP 5

Take your metal spoon and very slowly pour the rum and curacao mix over the back of the spoon and into the glass. The trick is to make sure that the edge of the spoon touches the edge of the glass and to keep the spoon at an angle so that it the mix pours over the back of the bowl of the spoon. If you pour it slowly only a small amount will mix with the pineapple to give you a green colour.

STEP 6

Decorate! This doesn’t add to the flavour but does add to the fun and who doesn’t love a paper parasol?

STEP 7

CELEBRATE!

You can find our other cocktail recipes here.

HERE’S OUR STORY

After 4 years of being together we never thought that we would one day be in business together. Who knew where a simple text message could lead….

It all started with a conversation with Nicola at one of The Little Gin and Rum Company’s events in Leeds. Amy sent a message to Ian saying “Do you fancy buying a gin and rum company?” and the wheels were set in motion.

OUR BACKGROUND

IAN:

“As a sales professional travelling the UK and the world, I have made travelling and alcohol my thing. With over 20 years experience supplying the hospitality industry with software and e-learning, I can’t wait to start sharing Queen Cleo Spirits with the industry I love. You’ll usually find me with my favourite Queen Cleo Rum with ginger ale.”

AMY:

“Where Ian loves sales, I love marketing and as a digital marketing trainer and professional public speaker, I always have a lot to say. When Nicola and Emma started virtual events in lockdown, I jumped at the opportunity to talk about gin and rum and nearly 200 events later, I still love it. Old Tom is my favourite tipple and I’ll even drink it neat with just a cube of ice and a squeeze of lime.”

THE FUTURE

Nicola and Emma have created a gin and rum legacy and we are honoured to take it into the future.

We can’t wait to share our plans with you and we promise to make Queen Cleo proud.

You know our favourite Queen Cleo drinks and we’d love to know yours. Share them with us on Instagram #littleginandrumco.