We Asked 4 Bartenders to Create Their Ideal Low-ABV Cocktails Using GREY GOOSE® Essences

Classic cocktails will never go out of style, but that doesn’t mean drinkers haven’t evolved. Over the last few years, the low-ABV trend has taken the cocktail world by storm — and bartenders are having fun with it. Now, GREY GOOSE® Essences has made mixing mindful cocktails even easier, with a trio of spirits made with 0 carbs, 0 sugar, and only 73 calories per serving*.

Beloved favorites sing without the heavy alcohol content, and low-ABV cocktails offer a way for both mixers and drinkers to experiment. As Thom Sigsby, owner of Los Angeles bar The Fable puts it, “Lower-ABV drinks let you experiment with different taste combinations without having to call it a night.”

This is where the new GREY GOOSE® Essences, vodkas infused with real fruit and botanical essences, excel. All three summertime expressions — Strawberry & Lemongrass, White Peach & Rosemary, and Watermelon & Basil — are light, refreshing, and easy to mix. Creating a delicious low-ABV cocktail with GREY GOOSE® Essences is as easy as adding soda water and a slice of fresh fruit or herbs. But why stop there? Making a tasty low-ABV cocktail has never been easier.

“Grey Goose makes premium vodka, and Essences is a fun way to play with multiple flavors without having to gather multiple ingredients,” Sigsby says. So, just how versatile and easy can a GREY GOOSE® Essences low-ABV cocktail be? We reached out to four bartenders who shook up an exclusive cocktail using their favorite GREY GOOSE® Essences expression to find out—and the results did not disappoint.

Each drink is simple enough to mix at home, yet possesses an enticing, well-balanced complexity. Plus, the light, fizzy cocktails are made with a low enough alcohol content that you’ll be able to sip and serve through every flavor.

Breaking News

There are no artificial flavors added to GREY GOOSE® Essences, which has a low ABV of 30 percent, no sugar or carbohydrates, and only 73 calories per serving*
There are no artificial flavors added to GREY GOOSE® Essences, which has a low ABV of 30 percent, no sugar or carbohydrates, and only 73 calories per serving*

For Jessica Dure, head bartender and beverage director at NYC’s Ainslie in Williamsburg and Carroll Place in Greenwich Village, going low-ABV doesn’t mean sacrificing complex flavors. “A refreshing spritz-style cocktail with fresh juice, a hint of bitterness, and balancing herbal notes perfectly fit the job,” she says. Her Breaking News cocktail hits all the right spots with just enough GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary vodka to keep it balanced and low-ABV. “In the spirit of beginning to safely gather with friends again, it’s more important than ever to enjoy the time responsibly,” she says.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ ounces GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary
  • ½ ounce Contratto Aperitif
  • ¾ ounce fresh grapefruit juice
  • ½ ounce fresh lemon juice
  • ½ ounce honey syrup
  • Club soda topper (optional)

Directions

  • Place all ingredients into a shaker tin.
  • Add ice and shake vigorously for at least 10 seconds.
  • Strain into a wine glass over fresh ice.
  • Top it off with a splash of club soda (optional)

Ingredients for honey syrup

  • 1 ounce pure honey
  • 1 ounce hot water

Directions

  • Dilute honey in hot water until it has completely mixed together.
  • Allow to cool.

The La Fresca

Creating a delicious low-ABV cocktail with GREY GOOSE® Essences is as easy as adding soda water and a slice of fresh fruit or herbs.
Creating a delicious low-ABV cocktail with GREY GOOSE® Essences is as easy as adding soda water and a slice of fresh fruit or herbs.

Carla Lorenzo, who oversees beverage programming at Hotel Figueroa, a trendy historic hotel in Downtown Los Angeles, says health-conscious drinkers have contributed to the low-ABV trend’s explosion — and she created her cocktail with this in mind. “This cocktail blends a wellness element with delicious quality ingredients so you can feel good about having a drink,” she says. “The mint and watermelon perfectly complement the already robust flavors in the GREY GOOSE® Essences Watermelon & Basil, while the fresh lemon brightens this perfect low-ABV summer drink.”

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces GREY GOOSE® Essences Watermelon & Basil
  • 1 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 ounce collagen simple syrup
  • 1 ½ ounces fresh watermelon juice
  • 4 mint leaves
  • Edibles flowers and mint sprig (garnish)

Directions

  • Place all ingredients in a shaker tin.
  • Add ice and shake vigorously for 10 seconds.
  • Strain into glass.
  • Add edible flower and mint sprig garnish on top.

Ingredients for collagen simple syrup

  • 2 scoops collagen powder
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup water

Directions

  • In a medium saucepan, combine collagen, sugar, and water.
  • Bring to a boil, stirring until all sugar and collagen powder has dissolved.
  • Allow to cool.

The Strawberry 23

To make the perfect spritz use 1.5 parts GREY GOOSE® Essences to 4.5 parts soda water, then garnish with fruit and herbs.
To make the perfect spritz use 1.5 parts GREY GOOSE® Essences to 4.5 parts soda water, then garnish with fruit and herbs.

You may be familiar with the French 75, a refreshing, effervescent, and very boozy classic cocktail. However, Tyler Purdie, bartender at The Hoxton, Portland hotel in Oregon, suggests shaking up a Strawberry 23, an equally refreshing and light low-ABV alternative he’s created using GREY GOOSE® Essences Strawberry & Lemongrass. “It’s a cool reminder of the annual awakening of strawberry season in Virginia, where I’m from,” he explains. “This cocktail is a flourishing twist on the classic French 75. The lemongrass brandy adds an earthy element, complementing the citrusy backbone.” Plus, its low-ABV content means you can enjoy those strawberry flavors from dinner to dessert.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce GREY GOOSE® Essences Strawberry & Lemongrass
  • ¾ ounce strawberry liqueur
  • Spoonful of lemongrass brandy
  • ½ ounce wildflower honey syrup
  • ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice
  • 2 ounces soda water
  • Lemon twist (garnish)

Directions

  • Place all ingredients in a shaker tin.
  • Add ice and shake vigorously for 10 seconds.
  • Double strain and pour into a Champagne flute.
  • Top with soda water.
  • Garnish with the lemon twist.

Ingredients for wildflower honey syrup

  • 1 ounce wildflower honey
  • 1 ounce hot water

Directions

  • Mix hot water and honey together until thoroughly combined.
  • Allow to cool.

Life’s Peachy

Each serving of GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary arrives with no sugar, no carbs, and only 73 calories per serving*.
Each serving of GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary arrives with no sugar, no carbs, and only 73 calories per serving*.

“GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary inspired me to head South,” says The Fable’s Tom Sigsby. This light and refreshing cocktail not only screams summer, it’s also the perfect juxtaposition to many of the hot and hearty comfort dishes one might experience in Southern cooking, and is an excellent complement to a sweltering, sticky summer day. “This is a drink you can keep going back to,” Sigsby says.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ ounces GREY GOOSE® Essences White Peach & Rosemary
  • 3 ½ ounces ginger ale
  • 1 ounce fresh lemon juice
  • 1 ounce honey simple syrup
  • Rosemary sprig and lemon slice (garnish)

Directions

  1. Place all ingredients in a shaker tin.
  2. Add ice and shake vigorously for 10 seconds.
  3. Strain and pour into a tumbler glass.
  4. Top with ginger ale
  5. Garnish with rosemary sprig and lemon slice.

Ingredients for honey simple syrup

  • ¼ cup pure honey
  • ¼ cup water

Directions

  1. In a small saucepan, combine honey and water.
  2. Slowly heat, stirring until honey and water have combined.
  3. Allow to cool. Store leftover syrup in the fridge for up to one month.

*AVG ANALYSIS PER 1.5 FL OZ: 73 CALS | 0 CARBS | 0g PROTEIN | 0g FAT

©2021. GREY GOOSE, THE GREY GOOSE ESSENCES TRADE DRESS AND THE GEESE DEVICE ARE TRADEMARKS. IMPORTED BY GREY GOOSE IMPORTING COMPANY, CORAL GABLES, FL. VODKA WITH NATURAL FLAVORS. 30 % ALC. BY VOL. DISTILLED FROM FRENCH WHEAT.

This article is sponsored by GREY GOOSE® Essences