The season of new growth is officially here and there’s no better way to celebrate than with an ice-cold cocktail — at least, that’s what we think! And better yet, let’s truly capture the essence of emerging blossoms and cheery floral flavors with a spirit that really knows how to bring the botanicals. Here are the eight best spring cocktails to make if you love gin!

Need help finding the perfect spring gin? Check out our roundup of the best floral gins to try this year.

Beefeater Fizzy Flowers

• 2 parts Beefeater London Dry Gin
• 2 parts Strawberry Lemonade
• 3 parts Elderflower Tonic

Build your ingredients in a wine glass and garnish with dried flower ice cubes. Then, go outside, sip your Beefeater cocktail and indulge in the scents and sounds of spring!

Beefeater is certainly a top gin brand when it comes to juniper-forward expressions. Combining the flavors of angelica root, licorice, almonds, orris root and bright citrus, Beefeater Gin is a favorite of both London dry diehards and enjoyers of good cocktails.

Find our review of Beefeater London Dry Gin here.

If you don’t have a bottle of Beefeater available, reach for your favorite dry gin.

Cool as a Cucumber

• 1.5 oz Empress 1908 Gin
• 1 oz Lemon juice
• 1 oz Simple syrup
• 4-5 Cucumber slices
• 6-7 Basil leaves

Muddle the cucumber slices in the bottom of your cocktail shaker. Add the remaining ingredients and shake on ice. Strain into a chilled rocks glass. Garnish with a basil leaf and cucumber ribbon.

Empress 1908 Indigo Gin is a color-shifting modern gin made with butterfly pea flower, grapefruit peel, ginger root, cinnamon, coriander, rose petal and Fairmont Empress Tea. Overall, the spirit is citrusy, juniper-forward and lightly floral. It’s also a personal favorite of ours.

Find our review of Empress 1908 here and an interview with the gin’s master distiller here.

If you don’t have this gin at the ready, whip up this spring cocktail with your favorite citrus-forward or classically flavored gin.

Whale Flower

• 2 oz Gray Whale Gin
• .5 oz Elderflower liqueur
• 2 oz Grapefruit juice
• Soda water to top

Combine Gray Whale Gin, elderflower liqueur and grapefruit juice into a shaker with ice and shake for about 30 seconds. Fine-strain your cocktail into a glass over fresh ice and add a splash of soda water. Garnish with a grapefruit wedge and lavender sprig.

Gray Whale Gin highlights flavors from sustainably sourced sea kelp, almonds, mint, Persian lime, fir and juniper. It also happens to make a great martini. Through the brand’s partnerships with 1% for the Planet and Oceana (the largest organization in the world devoted to ocean conservation), Gray Whale Gin donates to charity with every bottle sold.

Find our review of Gray Whale Gin here.

If you don’t have any Gray Whale Gin in your home bar, swap in your favorite savory or citrusy gin.

Ultraviolet 75

• 1.5 oz McQueen and the Violet Fog Ultraviolet Edition Gin
• .5 oz Simple Syrup
• .75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
• Luc Belaire Sparkling Wine
• Lemon Twist

Shake your ingredients on ice and strain them into a chilled flute glass. Top the cocktail with Luc Belaire sparkling wine and garnish with a lemon twist.

Freshly debuted and ready to dazzle your tastebuds, McQueen and the Violet Fog Ultraviolet Edition is a color-shifting spirit that highlights red berries and hibiscus.

Find our review of McQueen and the Violet Fog classic expression here.

If you can’t get your hands on this spirit, try using your favorite fruity gin.

Windsor Garden

• 2 oz Empress 1908 Gin
• .5 oz Fresh lemon juice
• .5 oz Simple syrup
• Basil, thyme, rosemary and mint leaves

Lightly muddle the herbs in the bottom of a cocktail shaker, then add the rest of the ingredients and shake with ice for about 30 seconds. Strain your cocktail into a stemless wine glass with ice. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

Golden State of Mind

• 1.5 oz Gray Whale Gin
• .75 oz Aperol
• .5 oz Fresh lemon juice
• .25 oz Simple syrup
• 2 oz Grapefruit kombucha

Combine all ingredients, except the kombucha, into a cocktail shaker. Shake for about 30 seconds, then pour the cocktail over ice in a Collins glass. Top with grapefruit kombucha and garnish with a grapefruit peel.

Empress Lavander Lemonade

• 2 oz Empress 1908 Gin
• 1 oz Lavender honey syrup
• 2 oz Lemonade
• Lavender sprig

Fill a stemless wine glass with crushed ice. Shake lemonade and syrup on ice and strain into the glass. Layer Empress 1908 Gin on top and add more crushed ice. Garnish with a lavender sprig.

Whale Hello There

• 2 oz Gray Whale Gin
• .5 oz Fresh lime juice
• .5 oz Fresh lemon juice
• .5 oz Agave syrup

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and pour in the gin, lime juice, lemon juice and agave syrup. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass, or strain over a rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with a lemon twist and serve immediately.

Cheers!

Read next:

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