Cucumber Gin Cooler

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   Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker or large pitcher.

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   To prepare with a cocktail shaker:

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   1. If using the shaker, shake hard five times before dividing the contents of the shaker between two chilled glasses.

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   2. Serve immediately.

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   To prepare with a large pitcher:

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   1. Use a long handled wooden spoon to stir vigorously for about 20 seconds before dividing the contents between two chilled glasses.

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   2. Serve immediately.

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   Notes:

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   Since there are so few ingredients in this drink, it is important to use the best ingredients you can. Use a good, dry gin. I'm partial to Tanqueray, Bombay or Hendricks. Do not skimp and buy the el-cheapo stuff. For the love of all that is good in this world, do not use bottled lime juice here. I understand that a good lime can be hard to find occasionally, but this is one instance where you're better off waiting than settling. The oils in the skin of the lime are crucial to the outcome of the drink. Tonic water is a matter of preference. I like Stirrings for a multitude of reasons: crisp, clean, quinine-centric taste and no high fructose corn syrup or aspartame. Use whichever tonic water flicks your Bic. And as for the cukes, use a nice, firm seedless variety with an edible skin. The skin of the cucumber stays in place for both visual and taste appeal here, so a thick, wax-coated number is going to be a giant sour clunker of a note in your symphonic cocktail.

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