The Ramsbury Guide to the Best Spring Cocktails
With the days finally beginning to seem drier and the temperature slowly but surely getting warmer, it can only mean 1 thing: spring is on its way!
While this tends to signal longer days and happier people, the spring season also has a way of changing how we drink.
The heavier, slower serves of winter begin to feel out of place, replaced by something brighter – a squeeze of citrus, a sprig of fresh herbs, a splash of soda catching the light in a tall glass. Evenings stretch a little longer. Windows open. Tables move outdoors.
The best spring cocktails capture that shift. They’re lighter without being insubstantial, fresh without being fleeting. They lean into botanicals, orchard fruit and clean, crisp spirits that don’t need hiding behind syrup or spice.
With this in mind, we thought it no time better than now to put together our guide to the best Ramsbury spring cocktails that feel at home on a garden table, at Easter lunch, or poured generously as friends drift into the kitchen. Each one is built around Ramsbury spirits – balanced, versatile and crafted to shine when the flavours are allowed to speak for themselves.
What Makes a Cocktail Perfect for Spring?
A truly good spring cocktail doesn’t rely on richness or intensity for flavour. Instead, it feels considered.
Heavy, oak-led drinks and warming spice begin are replaced with fresher options. Citrus becomes sharper. Herbs feel greener. A splash of soda or sparkling wine adds length and air, allowing a drink to feel refreshing rather than weighty.
At its heart, a spring cocktail is usually defined by a few simple characteristics:
- Brightness – fresh lemon, grapefruit or orchard fruit
- Freshness – herbs such as mint, thyme or rosemary
- Length – often topped with soda, tonic or sparkling wine
- Clarity – clean, well-balanced spirits that don’t overpower
Freshness matters more at this time of year. Lemon juice squeezed moments before shaking. Cucumber sliced just before serving. A sprig of thyme gently tapped between your hands to release its aroma.
Balance is equally important. With lighter serves, there’s less to hide behind. If a cocktail is overly sweet, it shows. If the spirit is harsh, it jars. Spring drinks reward precision and simplicity.
They also suit a particular kind of occasion. Spring cocktails are rarely solitary. They’re poured at Easter lunches, passed across garden tables, or made casually in kitchens with doors left open. They should feel:
- Easy to return to
- Refreshing enough for a second glass
- Interesting without being demanding
Ramsbury Estate Spritz
A sparkling orchard-inspired cocktail made with Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, white vermouth, honey syrup and fresh lemon.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
The Estate Spritz captures that moment when citrus still feels welcome but the days are beginning to soften. Built on Ramsbury Single Estate Gin it layers gentle sweetness from honey with the brightness of lemon and the lift of sparkling wine. It feels celebratory without being showy, structured without being heavy, making it the perfect spring cocktail.
How Does It Taste?
Fill a large balloon glass generously with ice then add 30ml Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, 20ml white vermouth (Bianco), 40ml honey syrup, and 10ml fresh lemon juice. Next, stir gently to combine, then top with chilled sparkling wine. Finally garnish with a thin apple fan.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
This spritz pairs beautifully with smoked salmon, lightly dressed salads, or simple spring sharing plates – anything fresh that won’t overpower its delicate honeyed character.
Raspberry Royale
A sparkling cocktail made with Ramsbury Raspberry & Wildflower Honey Gin and chilled prosecco – bright, fruit-led and quietly celebratory.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
Raspberry feels like the first proper taste of the spring season. Paired with the gentle floral sweetness of wildflower honey and lifted with sparkling wine, this spring cocktail feels perfectly placed between spring and early summer. It’s lighter than a berry sour, but more expressive than a simple spritz.
How Does It Taste?
Fresh raspberry leads, softened by delicate honey notes. The sparkling wine adds structure and lift, keeping the drink crisp rather than sweet. The finish is clean and gently aromatic.
How To Make It?
Add 50ml Ramsbury Raspberry & Wildflower Honey Gin to a chilled flute. Top with well-chilled prosecco and give a gentle stir. Garnish with a fresh raspberry or a thin twist of lemon peel.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
Lovely alongside fresh strawberries, lemon shortbread, or light afternoon desserts. It also works surprisingly well with soft cheeses.
The Gardener’s G&T
A botanical-led serve made with Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, tonic and fresh garden herbs.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
This is the conventional G&T reimagined for the spring season. By introducing fresh herbs – thyme, rosemary or basil – it becomes something more considered, echoing the green notes emerging outdoors.
How Does It Taste?
Fresh and aromatic. The gin’s botanicals are lifted by tonic, while the herbs add gentle savoury complexity.
How To Make It?
Build in a large glass over ice. Add 50ml Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, top with premium tonic water, and garnish generously with fresh herbs and a slice of citrus.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
Best alongside cucumber salad, light tapas, or smoked fish.
French 75
A sparkling classic made with Ramsbury Lemon Balm Gin, fresh lemon juice and chilled prosecco or champagne.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
The French 75 is already a cocktail built for celebration, but using Ramsbury Lemon Balm Gin gives it a distinctly seasonal lift. The lemon balm brings a soft, herbaceous citrus note that feels perfectly aligned with spring — fresh, green and gently aromatic. Paired with bright lemon and sparkling wine, it captures the feeling of longer evenings and lighter days.
How Does It Taste?
Zesty and elegant. The lemon balm gin enhances the fresh lemon rather than competing with it, adding subtle herbal depth beneath the citrus. The sparkling finish keeps the drink crisp and refined, with a dry, celebratory edge.
How To Make It?
Add 35ml Ramsbury Lemon Balm Gin, 15ml sugar syrup, and 15ml fresh lemon juice to a shaker filled with ice and shake until well chilled and double strain into a chilled flute glass. Top with prosecco or champagne and garnish with a lemon peel twist.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
This is ideal alongside oysters, smoked salmon blinis, or delicate spring canapés. It also works beautifully with light desserts where citrus plays a role.
Honey Clover Club
A berry-forward gin cocktail made with Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, raspberry and honey.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
As soon as berries begin to grow during the spring, it makes sense for the drinks to naturally follow. The Honey Clover Club brings fresh raspberry character together with honey’s softness – light, vibrant and quietly celebratory.
How Does It Taste?
Juicy at first sip, then gently floral and smooth. The raspberry provides brightness without becoming overly sweet.
How To Make It?
Shake 50ml Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, fresh raspberry purée, 20ml lemon juice, and 15ml honey syrup with ice. Fine strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a fresh raspberry.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
Ideal with strawberries and cream, light sponge cake, or a simple cheese board.
Blood Orange Martini
A citrus-led martini made with Ramsbury Single Estate Gin and fresh blood orange for a brighter, seasonal twist on the classic.
Why It Works As A Spring Cocktail?
The Blood Orange Martini captures the transition between the meeting point of citrus season and lighter evenings beautifully. It keeps the clean lines of a traditional martini but softens them with fresh juice and a hint of natural sweetness. The result feels less austere than winter’s stirred classics, yet still composed enough for an early evening serve.
How Does It Taste?
Clean and structured, but with warmth from the blood orange. There’s brightness at the front – fresh citrus oils and gentle acidity – followed by the familiar botanical backbone of Ramsbury Single Estate Gin. The finish is smooth, lightly aromatic and quietly confident.
How To Make It?
Add 60ml Ramsbury Single Estate Gin, 20ml fresh blood orange juice, and 10ml dry vermouth to a shaker filled with ice. Shake briefly until chilled, then strain into a chilled martini or coupe glass. Garnish with a thin twist of orange peel, expressed over the surface.
What Is The Perfect Food Pairing?
This works beautifully with citrus-dressed prawns, olive tapenade on toasted sourdough, or simple salted almonds. Anything clean and savoury allows the blood orange to remain the focal point.
A Season Worth Savouring
There is a clear gradual change in the air once winter terms into spring. The sky’s gradually get lighter, the temperatures warmer and group get togethers gradually begin to move to the outdoors.
The best spring cocktails follow that same rhythm. They’re bright but balanced, fresh without being fleeting, and designed to be shared rather than simply served.
Whether it’s the crisp lift of a French 75 or the vibrant sparkle of a Raspberry Royale, these spring cocktails capture something of the season in a glass. They don’t demand attention; they invite it. And as spring eases into early summer, they settle naturally into longer evenings and slower weekends.
Looking for a more inherently spring based collection of drinks this season? For our complete Ramsbury selection of spirits and cocktail recommendations.