- 4 cups water
- 1 cup chopped lemongrass (roughly one large stalk)
- ¼ cup powdered cinchona bark
- zest and juice of 1 orange
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- zest and juice of 1 lime
- 1 tsp whole allspice berries
- ¼ cup citric acid
- ¼ tsp Kosher salt
- Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once mixture starts to boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and strain out solids using a strainer or chinois.
- You’ll need to fine-strain the mixture, as it still contains quite a bit of the cinchona bark.
- You can use a coffee filter and wait for an hour or more, or do as I do and run the whole mixture through a French coffee press.
- Once you’re satisfied with the clarity of your mix, heat it back up on the stovetop or microwave, and then add ¾ cup of agave syrup to each cup of your hot mix.
- Stir until combined, and store in the attractive bottle of your choice.
- You now have a syrup that you can carbonate with seltzer water; I use my iSi soda siphon for some nicely-textured bubbles.
- To assemble a gin and tonic, use ¾ ounce of syrup, 1½ ounces of gin and 2 ounces of soda water over ice.