Vieux Mot

About the Vieux Mot

Simple and floral, the Vieux Mot combines Timber Creek Florida Gin with lemon juice, simple syrup, and St. Germain elderflower liqueur, shaken and strained into a chilled coupe. It is an easy, four ingredient cocktail that leans on the elderflower liqueur’s soft, honeyed floral character to give it personality. St. Germain contributes a light, blossomy sweetness that pairs naturally with gin’s own botanical notes, while lemon juice keeps the whole drink from tasting cloying and the simple syrup rounds out the edges just enough.

Timber Creek’s Florida Gin, distilled grain-to-glass on the Crestview farm, has a clean, well balanced botanical profile that complements the elderflower rather than competing with it, letting both ingredients read clearly in the finished drink. To build the Vieux Mot, shake the gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and St. Germain hard with ice, then strain into a chilled coupe. No garnish is required, keeping the presentation clean and letting the pale, slightly golden color of the drink speak for itself.

Its floral, savory adjacent profile makes it a good match for steak tartare, blue cheese, and roasted almonds, and it also pairs nicely with duck breast or dark chocolate for a more indulgent evening. St. Germain’s flavor fades once a bottle has been open a long while, so use a relatively fresh bottle if possible; a tired elderflower liqueur will leave the drink tasting more like sweetened lemon water than the floral cocktail it is meant to be. It also works well built slightly sweeter or drier depending on the lemon’s tartness that day; taste the juice before measuring and adjust the simple syrup a touch if the citrus runs unusually sharp or mild.

The Vieux Mot drinks easily thanks to its floral sweetness, so enjoy it in moderation and pace yourself across the evening. Because the recipe is so simple, the quality of the lemon juice used makes a noticeable difference, so squeeze it fresh rather than reaching for a bottled substitute if at all possible.

Simple and floral, the Vieux Mot combines Timber Creek Florida Gin with lemon juice, simple syrup, and St. Germain elderflower liqueur, shaken and strained into a chilled coupe. It is an easy, four ingredient cocktail that leans on the elderflower liqueur’s soft, honeyed floral character to give it personality. St. Germain contributes a light, blossomy sweetness that pairs naturally with gin’s own botanical notes, while lemon juice keeps the whole drink from tasting cloying and the simple syrup rounds out the edges just enough.

Timber Creek’s Florida Gin, distilled grain-to-glass on the Crestview farm, has a clean, well balanced botanical profile that complements the elderflower rather than competing with it, letting both ingredients read clearly in the finished drink. To build the Vieux Mot, shake the gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and St. Germain hard with ice, then strain into a chilled coupe. No garnish is required, keeping the presentation clean and letting the pale, slightly golden color of the drink speak for itself.

Its floral, savory adjacent profile makes it a good match for steak tartare, blue cheese, and roasted almonds, and it also pairs nicely with duck breast or dark chocolate for a more indulgent evening. St. Germain’s flavor fades once a bottle has been open a long while, so use a relatively fresh bottle if possible; a tired elderflower liqueur will leave the drink tasting more like sweetened lemon water than the floral cocktail it is meant to be. It also works well built slightly sweeter or drier depending on the lemon’s tartness that day; taste the juice before measuring and adjust the simple syrup a touch if the citrus runs unusually sharp or mild.

The Vieux Mot drinks easily thanks to its floral sweetness, so enjoy it in moderation and pace yourself across the evening. Because the recipe is so simple, the quality of the lemon juice used makes a noticeable difference, so squeeze it fresh rather than reaching for a bottled substitute if at all possible.