Indian Summer

I was born in an indian summer. My mother tells me she sat in the hospital gardens with me, mothers in those days spent 10 full days in hospital, and we soaked up the unseasonal sun together.

This year, my birthday was grey, wet and cold but after a week when I was sure that autumn had set in properly the skies cleared and the temperature rose. The perfect moment for a celebration drink I've been meaning to share all summer.



The fruit punch bases known as Pimms are very traditional English drinks and the most well known version is based on gin, the quintessential English spirit. It's almost impossible to buy the branded version in France, a secret recipe which has been guarded since 1823.

However, it is possible to create a home grown equivalent which is almost as good. Serve it with plenty of ice, slices of orange, lemon and cucumber, add small pieces of aromatic soft fruit like peaches or melon, a sprig of mint (not in picture!) and decorate with borage flowers. You can make it in a jug or the glass but it's a long drink. Serve it in an old fashioned half pint dimple mug or use a straight pint glass as I did.

To make a full 750ml of Pimms No1 style basic alcohol fruit cup mixture which will allow you to make over 3.5 litres of drink you will need:

300ml Dry Gin (no need to use a Bombay Sapphire or other expensive brand)
300ml Italian Red Vermouth (again, pick one you like but it doesn't need to be expensive)
150ml Orange Curaçao (Cointreau works)

If you mix these in a 750ml screw top bottle you can keep it in the fridge and serve yourself delicious drinks on any sunny day that calls for it.

To serve, take your glass and half fill it with ice. Add a measure of Fruit Cup mix and fill the glass with fruit and flowers. Top up with 3-4 measures of lemonade, soda water, tonic water or a mixture to taste. The final alcohol content will be about 6%, equivalent to a strong beer or half the strength of wine so take care and drink responsibly.