Lonkero (Finnish Long Drink) Cocktail Recipe
Gin stretched with bitter grapefruit soda — dry, tangy and built for long Nordic summer evenings.
- Category: Popular
- Glass: Highball glass
- ABV: 6%
- Difficulty: Easy
- Prep time: ~3 min
Ingredients
- Gin40 ml (1.4 oz)
- Grapefruit soda160 ml (5.4 oz)
How to Make It
- Fill a highball glass with ice cubes.
- Pour the gin over the ice.
- Top with cold grapefruit soda.
- Stir once and garnish with a grapefruit wedge.
Garnish
A grapefruit wedge.
What it tastes like
It smells of lemon and lime peel, it is carbonated and it drinks cool and easy.
The technique
Built in the glass. Ice goes into the serving glass, the ingredients go on top, and you stir once if at all. Anything carbonated goes in LAST and never gets stirred; every turn of the spoon costs you bubbles. Fill the glass to the rim with ice: less ice melts faster, not slower.
Glass and ice
A tall, narrow highball. The narrowness does real work — less surface area means the carbonation lasts longer and the ice melts more slowly.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Gin
- London dry gin: juniper up front, citrus and coriander behind it. Brand really does show here — Beefeater is sharp, Hendrick's floral, Tanqueray juniper-heavy.
The Story
Finland's 'long drink' was introduced around the time of the 1952 Helsinki Olympics as a ready-mixed way to serve visitors gin and grapefruit soda, and it has been a national staple ever since.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Lonkero (Finnish Long Drink) mixed?
- It is built in the glass and served in a highball glass.
- How strong is a Lonkero (Finnish Long Drink)?
- Roughly 6% ABV as served — lighter than a beer — a long-conversation drink that takes a second round.
- Can a Lonkero (Finnish Long Drink) be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Lonkero (Finnish Long Drink) hard to make?
- Easy. No bar kit required — a measure, ice and a jar will do.
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Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.