A gin and soda is gin built over ice with plain soda water, poured in a highball and finished with a light citrus wedge. It’s the drink of choice for anyone who wants to taste the gin itself rather than a mixer, and it lands around 139 to 149 calories per standard serve. The recipe below shows you exactly how to build one properly.
TL;DR:
- Using a 2:1 ratio of gin to soda water and high-quality dense ice improves clarity and freshness in the drink.
- Soda water preserves the gin’s botanical notes better than tonic, especially for gin built around citrus, juniper, or floral flavors.
- Carbonation strength and ice quality significantly affect the drink’s fizziness and dilution, with higher-fizz brands and clear cubes being preferable.
- Ready-to-drink cans can be convenient but often contain added sugars and lose vibrancy over time compared to freshly mixed gin and soda.
- The Winston Quinn Denim Collection offers gins with natural botanicals specifically suited for simple soda serve, enhancing flavor transparency.
Table of Contents
- What is a gin and soda? Ratios, glass and garnish basics
- How to make gin and soda: recipe and easy variations
- Why choose soda over tonic for gin?
- Bartender tips for better carbonation and garnish pairing
- Ready-to-drink gin and soda cans: what to check before buying
- Which Winston Quinn gins work best in a gin and soda?
- A simple serve for a more mindful way to drink
- Bring home a bottle built for the glass
- Sources
What is a gin and soda? Ratios, glass and garnish basics
The standard gin and soda ratio is roughly 2 ounces (60 ml) of gin to 4 ounces (120 ml) of soda water, poured over ice in a tall highball glass. That 1:2 ratio gives you enough gin to taste but enough soda to keep the drink long and easy to sip through a warm afternoon. Some Australian recipes go lighter still, using 30 ml of gin with a squeeze of lime before topping with soda for a more delicate pour.
Glassware matters more than most people assume. A highball’s height and narrow base slow the soda’s fizz from escaping too fast, while clear, dense ice cubes melt slower than crushed ice, which means less watering down and a crisper mouthfeel right to the last sip.
Garnish should support the gin, not compete with it:
- A citrus wedge or twist for gins built around bright, zesty botanicals
- No garnish at all when you want the botanical profile completely unobstructed
- A single herb sprig if the gin leans savoury or green
How to make gin and soda: recipe and easy variations
Building a proper gin and soda takes less than a minute once you’ve got the right glass and cold ingredients on hand.
- Fill a highball glass with ice, packing it to the top
- Pour 60 ml of gin over the ice
- Top with 120 ml of chilled soda water
- Stir once, gently, so you don’t knock the bubbles out
- Garnish and serve immediately
That basic build, echoed across most gin and soda recipes, sits around 11.9% ABV depending on your pour, and it’s endlessly adaptable without tipping into sugar territory. Try these low-calorie upgrades:
- Thin cucumber slices for a cool, green freshness
- A few mint leaves, lightly bruised to release oil, not crushed to pulp
- Fresh rosemary or thyme for a herbaceous, almost savoury edge
- A small dash of aromatic bitters instead of syrup for complexity
If you’re skipping alcohol altogether, swap in a non-alcoholic gin alternative or simply build soda with the same botanical garnishes. Readers exploring the sober-curious space might find The Functional Sip’s guide to alcohol alternatives a useful next stop.
Why choose soda over tonic for gin?
Soda water is neutral. It carries carbonation and nothing else, which means it doesn’t fight the gin for attention. Tonic, on the other hand, brings quinine’s distinct bitterness plus added sugar, and that combination can mask the more delicate botanicals in a carefully distilled gin.
The numbers: a standard gin and soda made with 60 ml gin and 120 ml plain soda comes in at roughly 139 to 149 calories, with virtually no sugar, provided you skip syrupy garnishes or flavoured mixers.
That’s a meaningful gap against a gin and tonic, where the tonic alone can add real sugar and calories before you’ve even poured the gin. Still, tonic earns its place at times:
- Gins built for a bitter-sweet contrast, where the quinine actually balances the spirit
- Sweeter, more indulgent serves where you want body and depth rather than clarity
- Occasions calling for a punchier, more traditional gin and tonic character
If your bottle is built around citrus peel, juniper, or floral notes, soda is very likely your better mixer. If it’s a bolder, more savoury gin designed for contrast, tonic may still do more for the glass.
Bartender tips for better carbonation and garnish pairing
Small choices separate a forgettable gin and soda from one that tastes considered. Carbonation strength is the first lever. Higher-fizz sodas hold their bubbles longer and give a livelier, crisper mouthfeel than flatter alternatives, so reach for a robustly carbonated brand rather than whatever’s flattest in the fridge.
Ice quality is the second lever. Clear, dense cubes melt slower than cloudy ice, which keeps your drink cold without diluting it into blandness halfway through. Chilling both the gin and the soda beforehand, rather than relying on ice alone, keeps that first sip properly cold.
Garnish should echo the gin’s dominant note:
- Citrus peel for citrus-forward gins
- Cucumber for fresh, green, cucumber-leaning botanicals
- Rosemary or thyme for herbaceous, savoury profiles
Pro Tip: If you’re building several gin and sodas for a group, pre-chill the gin and soda separately rather than relying on ice to cool them. You’ll pour onto large ice cubes with less immediate melt, which keeps every glass properly fizzy rather than watered down by the third round.
Ready-to-drink gin and soda cans: what to check before buying
Ready-to-drink gin and soda cans have become genuinely convenient, and for good reason. You get a consistent serve every time, no measuring, no fetching soda from the fridge, and a can that travels well to a picnic or a boat. The trade-off is cost per serve, which usually runs higher than mixing your own, and some RTDs lean on added sugar or artificial flavouring to round out a thinner spirit base.
Before buying, check the label for:
- ABV, so you know exactly what you’re drinking
- Sugar and energy content per can, not per “serving” if the can holds more than one
- Whether botanicals are listed as natural or as flavourings
- Actual serving size, since some cans are sized for sharing, not solo drinking
A freshly built gin and soda will almost always taste crisper and fresher than a canned version, largely because bottled carbonation and pre-mixed botanicals lose some vibrancy over time between bottling and opening.
Which Winston Quinn gins work best in a gin and soda?
Soda rewards a gin that’s been distilled with real botanical intent, because there’s nowhere for a thin or muddled spirit to hide. Each bottle in our Denim Collection is built from thoughtfully selected, natural botanicals with nothing artificial propping up the flavour, which is exactly the kind of gin that shines in a simple highball.
Three bottles pair particularly well with a soda build:
- Slim Crop Gin — cucumber or a thin slice of green apple lifts its crisp, fresh character
- Skinny Jeans Gin — a curl of citrus peel plays beautifully against its brighter notes
- White Christmas Gin — a thin citrus wheel or a light dusting of winter spice suits its seasonal warmth
Each was distilled to be sipped, not disguised, and soda water is the honest way to taste that.
A simple serve for a more mindful way to drink
There’s something quietly satisfying about a drink that doesn’t need dressing up. Gin and soda strips a cocktail back to its two honest components, and what you’re left with is whatever the distiller actually put into the bottle. I think that clarity matters more now than it used to, as more people drink less often but want what they do pour to actually taste like something. It’s the drink I’d reach for before a light dinner, on a warm evening with friends, or any sundowner where you want to stay sharp rather than sluggish.
— Winston
Bring home a bottle built for the glass
A gin and soda is only as good as the gin in it, and that’s where a lot of highballs fall flat. The Denim Collection consists of gins crafted with natural botanicals and no artificial additives, so there’s real character to showcase rather than mask. That’s the whole point of pairing carefully distilled spirits with a neutral mixer: nothing to hide behind, and nothing that needs hiding.
If you’re stocking your bar for gin and soda season, three bottles are worth having on hand:
- Slim Crop Gin — crisp and botanical, built for cucumber or green apple
- Skinny Jeans Gin — bright and citrus-friendly
- White Christmas Gin — warm, spiced, and perfect for cooler months
Not sure which one suits your palate? Take our gin match quiz to find your bottle, then order online for delivery or collection at the distillery. For more serves once your bottle arrives, browse our gin cocktail recipes.
