Botanical Lavender Spritz Cocktail Recipe

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

This botanical lavender spritz cocktail is a fragrant concoction with a strong influence from the garden. From lavender flowers through lemon, orange, and various spices, like cardamom and pink peppercorns, its intoxicating aroma vies for attention alongside its layered appearance. The result is equally intoxicating in looks and taste.

Lavender can be a relatively divisive herb. According to Ksenia Prints in At the Immigrant's Table, most people love its subtle floral aroma, while others find it strongly reminds them of soap. But one thing is for sure — as soon as spring begins, lavender seems to represent the season's essence, and starts to appear everywhere. And in this cocktail, we use its evocative fragrance, color, and flavor as an inspiration for a unique drink. The lavender becomes part of a complex, multi-layered, but harmonious whole.

First, we pair lavender with a collection of unusual and aromatic herbs to make a strongly-flavored simple syrup. Then, we combine the syrup with purple, color-changing gin, bubbly Prosecco, and sparkling soda water to create a striking springtime ombré effect. A short stir, and the drink gains the color of a lavender plant in bloom, with a flavor to match.

For the lavender syrup that adds the botanical flavor to this cocktail, gather granulated sugar, dried lavender, lemon zest, orange zest, crushed cardamom seeds, grains of paradise or pink peppercorns, and a pinch of salt. For the lavender, make sure you are using organic culinary lavender buds, which you can grow yourself to then use in other applications in your kitchen. For the spice, you can choose between grains of paradise or pink peppercorns, with the former being a very fragrant and floral type of pepper that is native to Africa, and the latter being a semi-sweet peppercorn with a citrusy and floral aftertaste. Both are very unique and will give your syrup a subtle spice with a floral edge.

For the cocktail itself, you'll need Empress 1908 purple gin, your favorite brand of Prosecco, and soda water. Lemon wheels and lavender sprigs can be used for garnish.

Combine the sugar with 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Bring it to boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.

Remove from the heat. Add the dried lavender, lemon zest, orange zest, cardamom seeds, peppercorns, and salt.

Cover and steep for 2 hours at room temperature.

Strain the syrup through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing the solids gently. Discard the solids.

For each cocktail, add ice to a glass and pour in 1 ounce of lavender syrup.

Add 1 ounce of Empress purple gin.

Top with 2 ounces of Prosecco and 1 ounce of soda water.

Garnish with a lemon wheel and a sprig of lavender.

Serve immediately, and stir before drinking.

• Spring Quiche Recipe
• Pea Pesto With Ricotta Recipe
• Spring Salad with Ramps and Herbs Recipe
• Lemon and Lavender Panna Cotta Recipe
• Bright and Sunny Lemon Lavender Cake Recipe

The gin used in this cocktail, Empress gin, is a unique Canadian gin with a twist. It was created in the iconic Empress Fairmont Hotel in Victoria, the capital city located on Vancouver Island, in 1908.

Though indigo-colored in the bottle from the pigmentation of the butterfly pea flower, when it hits the drink, the gin takes on a vibrant purple hue. This coloring is both a tribute to Vancouver Island's flora and fauna, as well as an attempt to harness the flower's natural superpower: it changes color to purple once it encounters the acidity of lemon or tonic water. Thus, any drink made with this gin will change hue from indigo to purple once it is mixed with lemon.

If you cannot find Empress gin, you can substitute it with another botanical gin that has floral notes. Hendrick's gin would be a bit herbaceous, or try another gin with lavender or plant-derived elements. If you still want to maintain the purple color, you can add 2 tablespoons of butterfly pea flowers to the simple syrup.

There are a few ways to customize this lavender spritz cocktail to suit different flavors and palettes. While playing with the lavender amount in the recipe may be tempting, we suggest you act cautiously, as too much of this flower can be off-putting, while too little may become lost in the other elements of the syrup. 

If you want to simplify the syrup, you can make a basic lavender simple syrup and leave out the zests and spices. However, we love adding different zests to the syrup, and you can try switching up the orange and lemon of the original recipe for grapefruit, lime, or another exotic citrus like bergamot or Makrut lime. To dial up the botanicals, add star anise, cinnamon, or clove for warmth and depth. Herbs like rosemary or thyme would also work.

Another fun change you can make in the drink itself is to switch up some of the sparkling water for a fragrant tonic water. This adds a bit more bitterness and edge to the drink, switching it up from girly and flirtatious to a bit more nuanced and bittersweet.

• Floral White Wine Sangria Recipe
• Fresh Peach Bellini Cocktail Recipe
• Citrusy Mai Tai Cocktail Recipe
• Springtime Lavender Lemonade Recipe
• Rose Sangria with Strawberries and Dried Flowers