Rosemary can enter a cocktail through syrup, a fresh sprig in the shaker, or a garnish. Those methods aren’t interchangeable. Pick one complete build below and use its specified preparation.
Compare the seven builds
| Cocktail | Herb method | Prepare |
|---|---|---|
| Rosemary Gimlet | Purchased rosemary syrup | Shake |
| Rosemary Greyhound | Purchased rosemary syrup | Build |
| Rosemary 75 | Purchased rosemary syrup | Shake, then add wine |
| Rosemary Old Fashioned | Fresh garnish; plain syrup | Stir |
| Empress Layover | Fresh rosemary with cucumber | Muddle and shake |
| Grapefruit Rosemary Paloma | Its own cooked rosemary syrup | Build |
| Lemon Bourbon Rosemary | Its own smaller rosemary syrup batch | Shake |
1–3. Three measured rosemary-syrup cocktails
The builds below use purchased rosemary syrup. Each build below makes one drink; another syrup’s strength may differ.
Rosemary Gimlet
Shake 2 oz gin, 1 oz lime juice and 3/4 oz Bitter Ex rosemary syrup with ice. Strain into a coupe; garnish with lime and rosemary.
Rosemary Greyhound
Build 2 oz vodka, 4 oz grapefruit juice and 1 oz Bitter Ex rosemary syrup in an old fashioned glass. Stir and garnish with grapefruit and rosemary. Ice for chilling is a serving clarification.
Rosemary 75
Shake 2 oz gin, 1 oz lemon juice and 3/4 oz Bitter Ex rosemary syrup with ice. Strain into a large flute or wine glass and top with 3–4 oz sparkling wine. Garnish with lemon and rosemary. Add the wine after shaking.
4. Rosemary Old Fashioned
The rosemary old fashioned uses 4 tsp plain simple syrup, 3 dashes bitters and 2 oz bourbon, with rosemary as garnish. Stir the syrup and bitters in a glass, add bourbon and an ice cube, stir, then garnish with rosemary. It calls for no rosemary infusion or smoking step.
5. Empress Layover
The Empress Layover uses 1.5 oz Empress 1908 Indigo Gin, 1 oz lemon juice and 1 oz elderflower cordial, plus cucumber, a rosemary sprig and soda water to top. Muddle cucumber in a shaker, add rosemary, the measured liquids and ice, then shake. Strain into a chilled Collins glass with fresh ice; top with soda and garnish with a cucumber ribbon. No cucumber weight or soda volume is specified, so don’t treat those as a fixed yield.
6. Grapefruit Rosemary Paloma
The one-drink Paloma includes its own syrup preparation. Combine 1 cup water, 1 cup sugar and 1/3 cup rosemary leaves in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves; boil 1 minute, remove from heat and steep 30 minutes. Strain, discard the leaves and let the syrup cool. The syrup yields about 1 1/2 cups, not that many cups of cocktail.
For one drink, stir 1.5 oz tequila, 3 oz fresh grapefruit juice and 1 tbsp cooled syrup in a glass with ice. Add 1 oz seltzer, or as needed, and garnish with grapefruit and rosemary.
7. Lemon Bourbon Rosemary
The bourbon sour makes four, with 8 oz bourbon, 4 oz lemon juice and 4 oz rosemary syrup. For one glass, the exact quarter-batch is 2 oz bourbon, 1 oz lemon and 1 oz syrup. Shake with ice and strain over fresh ice in a double old fashioned glass; optional rosemary garnish. Shake separately measured portions if the full batch won’t fit your shaker.
A separate syrup uses 2 large rosemary sprigs, 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water. Gently bruise the sprigs, then heat with sugar and water over medium heat 4–6 minutes, stirring until dissolved. Off heat, steep 10 minutes; remove the rosemary and chill until completely cool. This syrup yields about 2/3 cup. Do not replace the Paloma’s syrup batch with this one while keeping the listed Paloma formula unchanged.
Choose ingredients without combining recipes
The first three use a named purchased syrup; the Paloma and bourbon sour have distinct homemade methods. A sprig garnish does not make plain simple syrup herb-infused. Alcohol and rosemary supply drink flavor here, not focus, digestion or memory treatment.
For grapefruit drinks, FDA’s drug-specific guidance recommends checking your medicine information and asking your pharmacist. Choose a separate complete recipe if grapefruit must be avoided.
For an alcohol-free single-glass rosemary route, see the rosemary grapefruit spritz . For a two-serving pitcher with rosemary syrup and a grapefruit base, see this rosemary grapefruit spritzer . For a different fresh-herb sour, use the basil gin smash . The smoky cocktail collection gets smoke from its spirits; none of the rosemary builds above calls for a flame.
