The best homemade rhubarb and ginger gin recipe:
Apr 11, 2024
This gorgeous rhubarb and ginger gin recipe gives you a beautiful rhubarb gin liqueur that’s sweet, tart, zesty, and fruity in all the right places.
And, with only 10 minutes of preparation time, it could not be easier to make at home.
Give it a go!
This beautiful, pink rhubarb gin is made using just four ingredients: fresh rhubarb, fresh ginger, London Dry gin, and sugar.
The rhubarb and ginger flavours are infused into the gin through maceration.
This involves chopping the rhubarb and ginger into smaller pieces to maximise the amount of surface area in contact with the alcohol and therefore maximise the amount of flavour the finished gin liqueur can have.
The chopped-up rhubarb and ginger are left in the gin for up to three weeks to allow as much of their flavours to infuse into the gin as possible.
Pro tip: if you think the gin isn’t tasty enough after three weeks leave the rhubarb and ginger pieces in for longer. Just keep tasting until you have your desired flavour profile.
Sugar is used in this recipe to help balance the tart rhubarb and punchy ginger tones of the other ingredients.
The sugar also helps to draw out the juices from the ginger and rhubarb through osmosis.
This, again, helps to maximise the amount of flavour you are getting out of your ingredients.
If you just want to make a standard homemade rhubarb gin, you can still use this recipe, just leave out the ginger.
This recipe produces a wonderfully balanced rhubarb and ginger gin that is rich and sweet yet bright, zesty and fruity.
On the nose, expect to find those quintessential earthy juniper flavours you would expect from a London Dry gin along with fragrant, inviting, sweet-tart rhubarb.
Take a sip and those flavours should develop further while being joined by the almost-citrusy ginger tones and a sumptuous, candy-like sweetness.
The finish should then be complex and dessert-like, with flourishes of bright ginger.
Pro tip: once you've made one batch of this gin, note down the flavour profile and how all the above flavours interact.
That way, when it comes to your second batch, you can more easily adjust the quantity of each ingredient to match your personal taste.
That is the major perk of making your own rhubarb and ginger gin at home, after all - you can really make it your own!
So what are you waiting for? Let’s get started!
1kg rhubarb stalks
2-3 cubes of fresh ginger (unpeeled is fine)
400g caster sugar
800ml of your favourite gin (get your favourite here)
1) Wash, sterilise and dry the bottle or jar you want to use to make the gin. Wash and trim the stalks to get rid of the base and any leaves.
2) Cut the rhubarb stalks into roughly 3cm lengths and put them in a large jar with the ginger and sugar. Give the rhubarb and sugar a good shake, seal the lid tightly and leave overnight.
3) After 24 hrs, add your favourite gin, seal the jar back up and give it another good old shake. Leave in a cool dry place for 2-3 weeks and give it a try - if you want a stronger flavour and colour, leave it to steep for a few more days.
4) If you want your pink gin to be nice and clear, strain the liquid through a muslin cloth or water filter jug a few times.
There you have it, your very own rhubarb and ginger gin. It makes for a great gin gift for your favourite gin fans when bottled up and given a nice handwritten label.
And it is perfect for serving up in G&Ts and gin cocktails.
This homemade rhubarb and ginger gin is a really versatile tipple.
It makes for a magnificent cocktail ingredient (see below) and it is lovely in a simple gin and tonic recipe with a premium tonic and a garnish of either orange and mint or a wedge of lime, like so...
50ml Rhubarb & Ginger Gin
200ml premium tonic of your choice
Slice of fresh orange, to garnish
Spring of fresh mint, to garnish
Add the gin and tonic to a glass with lots of ice. Stir, garnish, and enjoy!
50ml rhubarb and ginger gin
25ml lemon juice
15ml simple syrup (100g sugar dissolved in 100ml water)
1 egg white
Add the gin, lemon juice, syrup and egg white to a cocktail shaker and shake well. Add ice and shake well again. Fine strain into a coupe glass and serve.
50ml rhubarb and ginger gin
50ml grapefruit juice
15ml simple syrup
10ml lime juice
Soda water, to top
Grapefruit slice and thyme or rhubarb stalk, to garnish
Add all the ingredients to a glass filled with ice. Give a quick stir to combine. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
50ml rhubarb and ginger gin
75ml soda water
10ml fresh lemon juice
Prosecco, to top
Mint, to garnish
Strawberries, to garnish
Add the gin, soda, lemon juice and Prosecco to a glass with ice and stir. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Once you have made your rhubarb and ginger gin, why not try creating more flavoured gins like these:
