I'm Not Saying This Is Genius...

I decided to make myself a Sloe Gin Fizz tonight, taking advantage of my lovely new bottle of Plymouth Sloe Gin. As I was setting up, however, I realized I was bereft of the lemons needed to make the lemon juice required in the cocktail. But I still wanted a Sloe Gin Fizz. (I get like this. Once my mind is fixed on a certain drink, it's hard for me to shift to another.)

I looked in the old fruit bowl and saw a few limes. Well, why not?, I thought. All that could happen is it would be terrible. So I made what I call a Sloe Lime Fizz, substituting lime for lemon in a Sloe Gin Fizz recipe I like:

1 oz. Gin
1 oz. Sloe Gin
3/4 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz. Simple Syrup

Shake with ice. Strain into highball filled with ice. Top with soda water.

I know this is a text book example of what bartenders derisively call Mr. Potato Head mixology; you take out one ingredient from a classic drink and substitute another. So it's not genius! And a person can easily make it at home. But it's tasty. Try it. It's a slightly tarter, brisker version of our old friend the Fizz.