Let's give this classic gimlet cocktail a fall twist! This pear-sage gimlet balances a trio of sweet, tart and savory notes to make one complex, flavorful cocktail. You'll want to sip on this gin gimlet all throughout the fall.

Two pear-sage gimlet cocktails on a marble board with fresh sage around it and pears in the background.

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Ingredients
How to Make Pear-Sage Simple Syrup
How to Make Pear-Sage Gimlet
Can I Substitute Another Liquor for Gin?
Perfect Pairing
Looking for More Fall Cocktails?
📖 Recipe

Nothing makes an evening like a fresh, seasonal craft cocktail. Sure, I always appreciate a meal full of seasonal ingredients, but when you can also combine those flavors into a cocktail, it adds a special touch to the gathering. To me, it feels like you're in a fancy craft cocktail bar from the comfort of your own home.

With the fall here, I can't get enough orchard fruits, and sage has become my go-to herb -- and not just for savory meals. If you've ever tried my sage-fig cocktail -- another delightful fall sipper -- you already know how great it is in seasonal drinks, so I'm excited to bring you another delicious option for the fall. Let's get to it.

Ingredients

Before we start mixing, let's make sure we have our ingredients on hand.

Pear-sage simple syrup: We're making this ourselves with water, sugar, pears and fresh sage, so there's no need to go searching the store shelves for some obscure syrup.
Gin: Your favorite London dry gin works. I usually reach for one of my local gins or Bombay Sapphire, depending what I have on hand.
Fresh lime juice: I definitely prefer freshly squeezing my lime juice rather than squirting in bottled juice, and it takes hardly any effort.
Ice: Because no one likes room-temperature gimlets. Not good.

A side view of the pear-sage gimlet with pears behind it.

How to Make Pear-Sage Simple Syrup

Before making our gimlet, we first need to prepare our pear-sage simple syrup. For this step, we add equal parts water and sugar to a small saucepan along with chopped pear and fresh sage sprigs and then bring the mixture to a boil.

Once the syrup boils, we turn off the heat and let the mixture steep. Ten minutes should do but feel free to let it sit even longer if you'd like. Now we strain the syrup and chill until we're ready for a drink.

As long as you store this pear-sage simple syrup in an airtight container in the refrigerator, it should last several weeks, which is why I adore making homemade syrups for cocktails when entertaining. These unique simple syrups make it easy to put a custom spin on any cocktail, and you can take care of this step well in advance for hassle-free entertaining.

An aerial view of a pear-sage gimlet with fresh sage leaves surrounding it.

How to Make Pear-Sage Gimlet

Now that our simple syrup is ready, we can start on the rest of our gin gimlet, which is as easy as can be. To make our pear-sage gimlet, we add our homemade simple syrup, gin, freshly squeezed lime juice and ice to a cocktail shaker. We pop on the top and give it a good shake.

Gimlets are served in a martini glass with no ice, so we want to make sure we perfectly chill it before serving. I find a 30-second shake does the job nicely.

For an extra refreshing cocktail, we can also chill our martini glass, which helps keep our gimlet cold as we sip. To take care of this, we can pop the martini glass in the freezer for about 30 minutes before serving. Another option is to fill the martini glass with ice and water as you prepare the pear gimlet and then empty the glass right before serving.

Now that our fall gimlet is mixed and chilled, we strain it into our martini glass, garnish with a lime wheel and relax with the perfect fall cocktail.

Looking straight on of the fall gimlet with pears behind it.

Can I Substitute Another Liquor for Gin?

If you're not a big gin fan, no worries. I happen to love gin, but I know it's not for everyone. Vodka makes a great substitute.

As a neutral liquor, vodka won't add those additional citrus and floral notes that come with gin, but it still makes for a tasty gimlet. This really comes down to personal preference.

Perfect Pairing

You'll love this pear-sage gimlet with my cheddar-apple stuffed chicken thighs in a creamy garlic sauce. The savory sage pairs nicely with the fresh herbs in the cheddar and apple stuffing, and I love how the bright lime cuts through that rich sauce. With these two together, you have the perfect autumn meal.

For a tasty and easy fall cocktail, I hope you try this pear-sage gimlet.

Cheers!

A close-up shot of the gimlet with pears to the side on a white marble board.

One pear-sage gimlet on a neutral-colored napkin and white marble board.

Looking for More Fall Cocktails?

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📖 Recipe

Pear-Sage Gimlet

5 from 99 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Beverages

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 5

Steeping Time: 10

Total Time: 25

Servings: drink

Calories: 230kcal

Author: Amanda McGrory-Dixon

Ingredients

For Pear-Sage Simple Syrup

▢ 1 cup water
▢ 1 cup white sugar
▢ 3-4 fresh sage sprigs
▢ 2 pears cored and diced

Instructions

For Pear-Sage Simple Syrup

Add water, sugar, sage and pears to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Turn off heat once it boils and the sugar dissolves.
Allow to steep for at least 10 minutes and strain. Use the back of a spoon to push down on the pears while straining to extract as much flavor as possible. Chill and store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for several weeks.

For Pear-Sage Gimlet

Add gin, pear-sage simple syrup, lime juice and a handful of ice to a cocktail shaker. Put on the top and shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
Strain into a chilled martini or coupe glass. Garnish with a lime wheel if desired. Enjoy!

Notes

To get the most juice out of the lime, I recommend firmly rolling the lime on the counter several times under the palm of your hand before cutting, and then use a handheld juicer to extract as much juice as possible.
For full tips, please see blog post.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Nutrition

Serving: 1drink | Calories: 230kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Sodium: 1mg | Sugar: 20g

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Google Web Story: Fall-Inspired Pear Gimlet

Comments

5 from 99 votes (86 ratings without comment)

Pear-Sage Gimlet

Ingredients

How to Make Pear-Sage Simple Syrup

How to Make Pear-Sage Gimlet

Can I Substitute Another Liquor for Gin?

Perfect Pairing

Looking for More Fall Cocktails?

📖 Recipe