This gin fizz recipe is as complex-tasting as a simple cocktail can get. It’s made with only five ingredients and has a similar sweet-tart character to lemonade (especially when made with a citrus-forward gin). Adding egg whites gives the cocktail a nuanced consistency that makes it as velvety as a milkshake or an ice cream float. And because the cocktail is finished with effervescent club soda, it feels lighter than many other gin cocktails. It’s makes a great porch sipper, brunch cocktail or after-dinner treat.
Fizz cocktails are similar to sour cocktails; both contain a spirit, citrus, sugar and egg white. Fizz cocktails, however, have an added ingredient: bubbly club soda (hence the “fizz” in the name). It’s difficult to know when the gin fizz was first invented. It was referenced in the 1876 edition of the cocktail book The Bar-Tenders Guide by Jerry Thomas. The drink became popular as a hangover cure and eventually morphed into the Ramos gin fizz, a New Orleans cocktail invented in 1888.
Gin Fizz Ingredients
- Gin: You can use any gin to make a gin fizz. Try a London dry gin for a juniper-forward flavor, or use a modern gin with more delicate botanical flavors to lean into the floral notes. If you’re new to gin, one of our picks for the best gin for Negroni will work well in a gin fizz.
- Lemon juice: Feel free to make your gin fizz with lemons or limes. Either way, you’ll want to squeeze the citrus juice at home. Store-bought lemon juice isn’t as bright and can contribute an unpleasantly metallic taste.
- Simple syrup: Making simple syrup is so easy! It’s a combination of equal parts water and sugar that adds sweetness to this frothy cocktail. If you don’t have any on hand, substitute honey, maple syrup or agave syrup. You can also use superfine sugar, although you’ll want to shake the cocktail very well to ensure the granules fully dissolve.
- Pasteurized liquid egg white: Egg whites give this cocktail its silky-smooth texture and foamy finish. You could separate egg whites from yolks at home, but raw eggs carry a risk of foodborne illness. It’s safer to make the cocktail with pasteurized egg whites (available in the refrigerated section at most grocery stores).
- Club soda: You can use club soda or seltzer water, but we prefer the former. Club soda contains minerals, giving gin fizz more depth and complexity.
Directions
Step 1: Dry shake (without ice)
Fill a cocktail shaker with gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and egg whites.
Cover the shaker and shake the cocktail vigorously until it’s foamy.
Editor’s Tip: Don’t add any ice during this step! Shaking the ingredients without ice allows the protein-rich egg whites to emulsify into the other ingredients, giving the cocktail a thicker body and characteristic foamy consistency. For best results, shake for a full 15 seconds—until your arm feels like it might fall off!
Step 2: Shake with ice
Add ice. Cover the shaker and shake again until the cocktail is well chilled.
Editor’s Tip: If you don’t have a home bar setup, you can shake the cocktail in any clean jar with a tight-fitted lid.
Step 3: Strain the cocktail
Strain the cocktail into a chilled highball glass.
Editor’s Tip: Most cocktail shakers come with a metal strainer. These strainers are great at keeping the ice behind, but I also like to pour egg-white cocktails through a mesh strainer. It’ll catch any stringy pieces of egg white that didn’t get incorporated into the cocktail.
Step 4: Add bubbles
Top the cocktail with club soda.
Gin Fizz Variations
- Vegan gin fizz: For a frothy topping without the egg, try using aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas) as an egg substitute.
- Golden gin fizz: Gin fizz cocktails made with egg whites are also called “silver fizz.” For a “golden fizz,” use a pasteurized egg yolk instead. The drink will lose its light, foamy quality but gain a rich, eggy flavor.
- Diamond gin fizz: Make the gin fizz with champagne instead of club soda for a gin fizz with some serious French 75 vibes.
- Ramos gin fizz: For a richer, creamier gin fizz, reduce the lemon juice to 1/2 ounce. Add 1/2 ounce of lime juice, 1/2 ounce of heavy cream and a few drops of orange blossom water to the cocktail shaker. Shake as directed.
Can you make gin fizz ahead of time?
It’s not a good idea to make egg-white cocktails like gin fizz ahead of time. The cocktail will lose its foamy quality within a few minutes of being shaken. You can mix the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup in a lidded container and store it in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to make the cocktail, add the mixture to the cocktail shaker with the egg whites.
Gin Fizz Tips
What type of gin is best for gin fizz?
London dry gin is always a good choice for gin cocktails, but any type of gin works in this gin fizz recipe. Use Old Tom gin for its sweeter flavor, genever (Holland gin) for its robust character or fruity options like sloe gin or pink gin. No matter which direction you decide to go in, opt for a high-quality gin with a flavor you enjoy.
What gin cocktails are similar to a gin fizz?
The gin fizz is a variation of the gin sour, which is made with gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and, usually, egg whites. The gin sour turns into a Tom Collins if you remove the egg and add soda water, and into a gin fizz if you add soda water. Making a gin sour without egg whites and with lime juice instead of lemon juice turns it into a gimlet. And adding soda water to a gimlet and omitting the sugar makes it a gin rickey (or a gin and tonic if you use tonic water).
Confused yet? Us too! Here’s the breakdown of each cocktail’s main ingredients:
- Gin sour: Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, egg whites.
- Tom Collins: Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, club soda.
- Gin fizz: Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, egg whites, club soda.
- Gimlet: Gin, lime juice, simple syrup.
- Gin rickey: Gin, lime juice, club soda.
- Gin and tonic: Gin, lime juice, tonic water.
