Its secret recipe, Pimm’s closely kept secret. James Pimm invented it during the reign of George IV to accompany the oysters sold at his restaurants. The base ingredient is usually Gin that is flavored with various spices, herbs, fruits, and botanicals. The result is the darker brown “summer cup,” ideal for croquet, cricket, or golf. Although it is tasty and contains lots of fruit, the alcohol content can be overlooked!
Creates 1 3 3/4 pints/1 liter (serves approximately four people)
Ingredients
One apple that has been cored and chopped into half of a small cucumber cut into fine slices
Six large, huge strawberries which have been hulled, chopped, and sliced
1. Orange, finely cut (keep four or five slices aside to garnish)
Ice cubes
250ml (8 1/2fl oz) Pimm’s
500ml (1 1 1/4 pints) lemonade
A few mint leaves
Method
Chop the apple with the cucumber, strawberries, and most of the orange slices in the jug, along with frozen. Add the Pimm’s, then the lemonade, and gently stir. Mix well and decorate with mint leaves and left-over orange wedges.
To substitute lemonade, you can try similar proportions of ginger ale. Another piece of advice (who oversees all the animals at Highclere) suggests drinking champagne instead of lemonade.
