Sunday, May 23, 2021

Welcome Summer with the Perfect Pimms

 JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Once more, please welcome our own Celia Wakefield, today with some wonderful stories and her recipe for a perfect Pimms Cup.

 

I’m very happy to be back home with all the JRW clan (nod to Roberta), and writing about a subject that is dear to Julia and my hearts - L’heure bleue. That time when we stop and relax, preferably with a delicious drink. With our vaccinations done or shortly to be done, our l’heure bleue can include family and friends. Now that, my dear clan, gives me much joy. 

 

I don’t intend to drag on about our last fifteen months. Enough said and while the pandemic is hopefully a once in a lifetime experience, and will linger long in memory, it is time to embrace each other without the aid of Zoom. For most of us, that embrace will include something to eat and something to drink. Rather like Alice, we can choose our poison. Here by the lakeside we drink Pimms in the summer. Well that is I drink Pimms, Julia drinks Pimms, my daughter Olivia drinks Pimms and I share my Pimms with close friends who will appreciate it. I know that Pimms is not for everyone. Victor doesn’t usually drink Pimms.

 

Well, you may say, why Pimms and why in the summer In England? Well, with help from that web thing, I found out that Pimms was invented by James Pimms in 1823. Pimms grew up a farmers son in the County of Kent with which I have many ties, including boarding school, where we would have never been allowed to drink Pimms. James (one can overuse Pimms), owned an oyster bar in the City of London, he developed his ‘tonic’ with a gin base, - “Gin was mothers milk to her”, or “penny a glass, dead drunk for tuppence”, then added herbs and sold it as a health tonic. The actual recipe is still kept a deep, dark secret, but now includes fruit too.

 

It appears that I had to leave England for the drink to become so popular. Julia was in London in the ’80’s and remembers its popularity then. However when I went to Wimbledon in the ’60’s, what we wanted were strawberries and cream. 

 

I don’t remember what I drank at Henley; I was a guest of my best friend Helen’s parents, and dressed in my summer best including a gorgeous pair of while Kurt Geiger high heels, I was freezing all day. Lunch was the traditional poached salmon with hollandaise sauce, new potatoes and salad, and that was cold too. Whatever the weather, tradition is not just observed in the village of Anatevka, it is alive and well in England, which may mean freezing in the summer but dressed to enhance the occasion.

 

My introduction to Pimms came at the home of the same Helen. We met at boarding school and lived close enough in the holidays to get together then. Imagine a beautiful summer’s afternoon in the garden, Helen and I stretched out on rugs catching some rays and Mr. Plutte, Helen’s father, bringing us Pimms to drink. It was love at first taste. 

 

I don’t think I probably had the opportunity to drink Pimms when I was working in London as I really didn’t run with a high society crowd. Boys were willing to shell out for beer but anything more exotic? No, though I do remember after work  parties in the local, when I moved up to corporate life where spirits were always bought for one.

 

Ah me, now when I drink in the summer I do enjoy a Pimms, and I make it differently from any of the  263,000 recommendations from Google. I don’t always measure, but for this recipe I have done so. But first some explanation of the why mine is different. I add spirits to the Pimms mix, along with the measure of Pimms and I top it with Schweppes Tonic Water. 

 

 

 

For a garnish, I like cucumber first; the smell really enhances that first sip. Other than some wines is there any drink not enhanced with a slice of lemon or lime, so let’s add that too. Finally, fresh mint, preferably just picked mint which is why I try to grow mint each year. The mint in the photos was picked maybe twenty minutes before we started shooting.

 

Again, there are recipes with enough cut fruit that one might as well be eating fruit salad. Pimms is a drink, it should be treated as one. Now a note about your mix choice. You will see recipes with lemonade, soda water, ginger ale etc. this is a personal choice. My only caution is please don’t use *diet sodas, they will ruin the taste. For me tonic fits the bill and I like Schweppes.

 

 

 

Our l’heure bleue would not be complete without some tasty nibbles. The display on the table is an English cheddar served of course, with Carrs water biscuits, cornichions to add the bitter, some fresh strawberries in my Wimbledon strawberry bowl, yes, bought at Wimbledon, and the most delicious cookies from a local friend, Samantha Jane Melton, who has started her own commercial baking business. I don’t know if she is shipping yet but those chocolate crumbles, and lemon delights are to die for, and I know my cookies. You can order on her web site, Samantha Jane's Treats, if you want to indulge or send a gift. I know I’ve eaten too many tonight.

 

Finally, here is the recipe and a hearty Cheers to you all:

 

Into a 14 oz glass

Put 5-6 ice cubes

Take a 4 Tablespoon measure (I use a shot glass)

Pour to the top a measure of gin or vodka and pour over the ice

Repeat with a measure of Pimms #1 Cup

Fill with Schweppes tonic water* see above

Add Garnishes, cucumber, lemon, lime, mint, strawberry half etc. to choice

 

54 comments:

  1. This sounds lovely, Celia . . . definitely something to try :)

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  2. I have never had Pimms! And it sounds delightful, Celia - thank you for sharing. I am fond of a gin and tonic in summer blue hours, so I plan to go in search of some Pimms to enhance it.

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    1. I am actually more a V&T woman Edith. But with your liking for G&T's, I think you may well enjoy adding some Pimms and not too much greenery! Any good liquor store in your area stocks Pimms. When I'm in Mass, I get it at the store in Sudbury.

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    2. Edith, I'm a G&T woman myself, but the way Celia makes her Pimms Cup - not too sweet - converted me.

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  3. Sounds wonderful, Celia. I've printed the recipe. I love a Pimm's Cup, but usually use the recipe on the bottle. This sounds better. Question about gins - I see Beefeater in the picture, but wonder if an aromatic could be substituted such as Tanqueray - or would it ruin the flavor? Any advice?

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    1. To be honest Kait, I haven't read the recipe on the bottle. I should have probably been a little more scientific about the measurements and written down the actual proportions without ice. As for gin I actually love Tanqueray, but happened to have Beefeater in the house. Also it does look so English. I suggest you experiment. Let me know please.

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    2. Thanks, Celia, will do. Sounds delicious either way.

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    3. We live in PA and the liquor stores around here have never heard of Pimms Can you tell me how to go about ordering it? Thanks

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  4. Celia, I love to read about your memories and experiences.
    I don’t know Pimms and don’t even know if we can get it in Quebec.
    I almost never drink alcool. What fascinates me is that you call this time “ l’heure bleue “ in French and we call it “ happy hour “ in English. I prefer l’heure bleue and I’ll drink an iced tea to your health and to the health of everyone here .

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    1. Isn't language fascinating, Danielle! Such different descriptions in French and English. I must investigate the origins.

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    2. Danielle - Thank you so much, I have come rather late to writing and most of mine is anecdotal or memoir. Julia encourages me to write. I think that whether one drinks or not, there are special summer refreshers such as your iced tea which we can enhance with just picked herbs and delicious soft fruit. I love the sense of l'heure bleue, a time to relax, enjoy friends or a book and have a pick me up. Agreed Amanda, language I fascinating.

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    3. Danielle, I think native English speakers LOVE French phrases because to us, they make everything sound more civilized and chic.

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  5. Celia, thank you for giving us your perfected Pimms recipe. I've read many references to the drink in books and magazines, and remember that Pimms is the perfect New Orleans early evening drink. I also discovered the Pimms liquer is readily available in Cincinnati. Toasting you and Victor from our screened porch.

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    1. Thank you so much Margaret, and a toast to you both too. We will be toasting today as it's our 52 wedding anniversary.

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  6. I had my first (and last, I do believe) Pimms in London at an Indian restaurant back in the 1970s. I remember it was... tall. And the curry was ever so much hotter than what we get in the states. Your Pimms looks lovely - thanks for sharing, Celia.

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    1. Laughing Hallie, I don't think it could have been well made and not something I would drink with curry. In the old days, beer was what we drank with curry. But thank you, however the photo credits are to Julia.

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  7. Celia, I love it when you are the guest blogger!

    I do not care for gin at all. Neither does Irwin. In summer he'll drink vodka and something(?) but not me. The only way I've ever enjoyed vodka was at a very exotic caviar station at a very fancy bar mitzvah where my step mother instructed me on how to drink frozen vodka shots. I got good at it quite quickly. LOL

    We drink Scotch mostly, neat, a marriage of similar tastes. I also like wine, which he doesn't really. We do have gin in the liquor cabinet, and vermouth and olives and tonic somewhere so...I'll keep your recipe on the off chance that some guest will desire gin. I'm sure I can find Pimms.

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    1. Judy, when Celia is making Pimms for a group, she brings out both the gin and vodka - I know she usually uses the latter in her own Pimms. Which has now got me wondering if one could use other white spirits in a Pimms, like silver rum or tequila blanco.

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    2. Hmmm, not sure about that, Julia, as Pimm's is gin based and very herbal. But it would be fun to experiment.

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    3. Next Jungle Reds get-together. A bunch of women, one bottle of Pimms and every white liquor available.

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  8. I served Pimm's at a bridge luncheon decades ago. As I recall, it went over quite well and most of the guests sobered up in time to get sent home to bed! I think.

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    1. Ann, one of the reasons I prefer highball drinks is that it takes a half hour or more to consume, and about 60% of its volume is ice and a nonalcoholic beverage like tonic or seltzer. It makes it easy to have two over the course of a get-together and still be clear-headed when it's time to leave.

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  9. I've been introduced to Pimm's but did not love it, I'm afraid. Maybe I need more practice...

    That is a lovely tablecloth, Celia. I think April Cornell, yes? That I love!

    Happy Sunday, everyone.

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    1. Amanda, it's VERY sweet and needs to be cut with something astringent, which is why the gin (or vodka) and tonic make a good mix.

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  10. Cheers, Celia! I've always wondered what the heck a Pimm's cup was, so thank you for the brilliant demystification and tutorial. I second the question about whether the kind of gin makes a difference. There are so many these days. Our daughter gave us a bottle from a women-owned distillery in Washington DC, and it barely even tastes like gin, it is so aromatic.

    Our friends serve Keeneland Breezes in the summer, in honor of their Kentucky farm's proximity to another famous racetrack, and I must say they are tasty. Bourbon, gingerale, and orange liqueur over ice, with a splash of soda.

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    1. Karen in Ohio,

      That is new to me. A women owned distillery? Is it OK to ask for the name of the company?

      Diana

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    2. I'd like the name as well, Karen! I'll be going back to DC to visit family again now we've all got our shots. I could pick some up.

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    3. Sorry about not responding earlier, I have been social lifing all day!

      The name of the women-owned distillery is Republic Restoratives, but they didn't make the gin. They made the Rodham Rye my daughter gave me to celebrate having the first woman Vice President.

      The gin was made by another DC distillery, One Eight. My apologies for the misspeak.

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    4. Thanks for letting up know, Karen!

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    5. thanks for letting us know, Karen!

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  11. Debs has made me a Pimms or two, and I remember liking it, but it somehow never rises to the top of my favorite drinks list. Aced out by the margarita and the blackberry bramble, I'm afraid. Which reminds me. I understand Debs secured an overabundance of limes in her last grocery order. There may be a margarita, or a Pimms, in my future.

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    1. Pimms! We will try Celia's recipe. You can always walk home:-)

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    2. The best sort of friend is the one within walking distance. The second best is the one with a well-appointed guest bedroom :-D

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    3. Debs has both. I well remember one afternoon when I was staggering from a week of production work, and she asked if I would like to take a nap in her guest room. I was in a "nap coma" for three hours! That was when I lived too far away to walk home.

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  12. I have not had a Pimms cup in ages, and your post reminded me of how much I love them as well as my British friends in Texas who introduced me to Pimms. Thanks for sharing your recipe and advice ~

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  13. Oh this is all new to me—wonderful! Last year we discovered lime flavored tonic water, and it is wonderful! For gin and tonic or vodka and tonic, it is absolutely delicious. I wonder if it would work with Pimm’s?

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  14. Delightful recipe, Celia! So glad you and Victor are home and well. My last Pimms was in London in June at the pub that became our local - the Black Swan on Bayswater just across from Hyde Park. Deeeeeelicious! As summer is already here in AZ, I may have to make my own just to get through it.

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  15. Celia, l'bleu hour reminds me of the perfume that my Mom used to wear when I was a young child.

    Wonderful recipe though I am confused. 4 Tablespoon measure of ???

    A friend loves Pimms cup and he introduced me to Pimms. I wondered if it is the English version of the Spanish sangria? I asked because both Pimms and Sangria have fruit and ?punch in their recipes. Unless the Pimms I had was different from other Pimms recipes?

    I noticed fruit in the Pimms so I wondered about that.


    Diana

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    1. Diana, something in which to measure 4 tablespoons of the alcohol. Celia used a shot glass, which actually contains less than that - 3 tablespoons (1.5 liquid ounces.)

      I know I've been places where there was a veritable fruit bowl in the Pimms Cup - there are many, many ways to make the drink (as there is with sangria!)

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    2. Julia, thanks! I wondered about the fruit bowl. Growing up, my mom always made the sangria with lots of fruits.

      Diana

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  16. Happy Anniversary to you and Victor! I'd heard so often about Pimms over the years that I finally bought a bottle and made my own cup 2 or 3 summers ago. Delicious. Many years ago, in the latter half of the 70s we were living in Georgia temporarily while Frank taught a session at the Federal Law Enforcement Academy. A couple invited us over for happy hour and produced wine coolers. They mixed red wine, Squirt, and frozen strawberries and served. Actually, it was good. We were so sophisticated back then!

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    1. Pat, I say if it tastes good, it is good. Call it a Georgia Cup and serve it to all your friends! (Maybe hide the Squirt bottles in the kitchen...)

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  17. Happy Anniversary Celia! And thank you for sharing your lake house deck, recipes and drinks with us!

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  18. Happy anniversary, Celia, to you and Victor, and thank you for reminding me about Pimm's! I haven't had a Pimm's cup since summer before the pandemic, because it seems somehow to be a social drink. I don't care for tonic and usually just use club soda or sparkling water. In England I've found it most often served with "lemonade" which is 7-Up to Americans. At any rate, I still have some Pimm's and will happily experiment!

    I loved your reminisces of Wimbledon and Henley, too!

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  19. Celia, I so enjoy your posts, and you paint such a lovely picture of your time with your friend at her house. Your Pimm's recipe looks quite manageable, even for a novice bartender like me, but I am so lazy about fixing drinks, and I don't drink much these days. I can't remember exactly, but it might have been something from one of Debs' books or another British series I read, but when the New Orleans Bouchercon came about in 2016, I was all set to get a Pimm's drink and glass at the Napoleon House Restaurant on Charles St. I had a group dinner there with some authors and other readers, and I got the Pimm's, drink and souvenir glass. I remember liking the Pimm's okay, and I would have it again, but I'm not sure I loved it. Here's the link to the Napoleon House Pimm's, and its ingredients. https://www.napoleonhouse.com/pimms-cup/

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    1. Kathy, that's a classic recipe, and would be a great choice for people who like their drinks a little more sweet.

      As for being lazy fixing drinks, that's one of the reason G&Ts are my summer go-to. It's about as simple as a cocktail gets. I always think of drinks like Pimms Cup (or a sangria bowl, or anything that has more than three ingredients + garnish) as sociable tipples; the things you take the time to make because three or five or six people will be enjoying them.

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  20. I apologize for not answering everyone.. I started off fine then evil Blogger got me and I couldn't get back into JRW. I will try to do questions tomorrow. I am so sorry.

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    1. Pleasure delayed! Hope you and Victor are having a lovely anniversary, dear Celia.

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    2. Don't give it a second thought, Celia. We all get nipped by evil Blogger once in a while - and besides, you should be spending your time relaxing with Victor!

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  21. The evil blogger strikes again! Happy anniversary! There are quite a few comments posted last night on yesterday’s blog. Very interesting experiences with cars!

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