This post contains affiliate links. See our disclosure policy here.
Cocktail History
The Noble Pursuit is a rum and gin-based cocktail that was created by author Cassandra Reeder as a boozy take on the fictional drink enjoyed by the desert-dwelling Gerudo people in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Though ready access to ice makes the recipe easier to recreate than the one with which Link is quested, this adaptation does require the juicing of a watermelon, so it isn’t entirely without its challenges.
Cocktail Ingredients
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:
Watermelon Juice: This adds the drink’s watermelon flavor. We used fresh watermelon juice.
White Rum: This is one of the base spirits. We used The Real McCoy 3 Year Old White Rum for its smooth texture and flavors of toasted caramel, coconut, and marzipan. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic White Cane Spirit in place of the rum.
Gin: This is the other base spirit. We used Broker’s Premium London Dry Gin because it’s versatile, high-proof, and a chameleon that adds the distinct flavor of juniper while still allowing the other flavors to shine. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic Dry London Spirit in place of the gin.
Lime Juice: This adds sour citrus flavors for balance. We prefer to use fresh citrus juice because it’s less bitter than the bottled stuff and tastes better.
Lavender Syrup: This is a flavored liquid that adds lavender aroma and flavor. We used Floral Elixir Company’s Lavender Elixir for its fragrant floral aroma and taste and its blueberry undertones.
Simple Syrup: This is a sweetener made with white sugar and water. We made ours at home using Alex’s stovetop recipe.
Lavender Bitters: This is a type of spirit infused with lavender and botanicals. They add floral flavor and spice to the drink for more complexity. We used Scrappy’s Bitters Lavender Bitters because they’re high quality and potent.
Tasting Notes
The Noble Pursuit features summery watermelon aromas and has a mostly sweet taste that counters the fruit’s cooling alkaline flavor with lime’s acidity and a note of floral lavender, and it has an aftertaste that combines sweet watermelon with a light herbal and floral note.
Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: Watermelon’s front-and-center part in this made for a ridiculously refreshing and cooling cocktail, which impressed us both much more than we were expecting. We can see why it had life-saving abilities in the game and plan to whip up the Noble Pursuit again come summertime, maybe even with some tequila to keep with the desert theme.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Alex’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐
“In all honesty, I wasn’t all that excited to make this drink, not because I didn’t have faith in the author’s tastes and certainly not because I don’t love the Zelda franchise but because I didn’t think it sounded all that tasty. Admittedly I was wrong. While our recipe yields about one cocktail, the original was a punch-style cocktail made for 3-4 people, and its measurement of watermelon was in cups pre-juicing, whereas I was working with a fresh watermelon juice we already had from a previous cocktail. By adjusting the taste a bit and adding a dash of simple syrup and lavender bitters, we ended up with an absolutely delicious cocktail that features watermelon’s alkalinity and flavors with the floral syrup and lime and creates a crushable, summery drink that is sure to make all of the lost and tired Gerudos rush to the local watering hole.”—
Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Usually I find the geeky cocktails we try to be a little kitschy, but wow, is this one ever incredibly tasty! I’ve had a few watermelon-based recipes now, and this is the first I’ve truly loved. Even if you know nothing about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, this drink is worth trying. It’s refreshing and would be incredible drink for a hot summer day.”
Recipe
This cocktail recipe was adapted from The Geeky Bartender Drinks: Real-Life Recipes for Fantasy Cocktails by Cassandra Reeder.
Add watermelon juice, rum, gin, lime juice, lavender syrup, simple syrup, and ice to a mixing glass.
Stir for 5-10 seconds.
Strain into punch cups.
Ingredients
Directions
Add watermelon juice, rum, gin, lime juice, lavender syrup, simple syrup, and ice to a mixing glass.
Stir for 5-10 seconds.
Strain into punch cups.
Make It a Mocktail: Use Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic White Cane Spirit in place of the rum and Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic Dry London Spirit in place of the gin to try a booze-free version of this drink.
Tools & Glassware We Recommend
More Cocktails from Movies & TV Shows
If you like this cocktail recipe, here are a few others inspired by movies and shows we’ve tried that you may enjoy:
Miruvor (The Lord of the Rings): A gin cocktail made with elderflower liqueur, white tea, honey syrup, and orange flower water
Spirits Lifted (WandaVision): A peppered gin and vodka cocktail made with vermouth, paprika tincture, smoke & salt bitters, and cocktail onions
Tatooine Sunset (Star Wars): A tequila cocktail made with blue curaçao, pomegranate juice, grenadine, orange juice, lemon juice, and cherries
The Last Variant (Loki): An aquavit cocktail made with honey liqueur, Green Chartreuse, and lime juice
Butterbeer (Harry Potter): A stout beer and spiced rum cocktail made with evaporated milk, butter, margarine, vanilla extract, brown sugar, whole cloves, whole allspice berries, cinnamon sticks, whipped cream, and nutmeg
Kuzcotopia (The Emperor’s New Groove): A pisco cocktail made with Aperol, passion fruit syrup, grapefruit juice, lime juice, Tres Amigos bitters, and a lime slice
Hot Peppermint Patty (Archer): A low-proof cocktail made with milk, white peppermint schnapps, dark crème de cacao, white crème de menthe, cocoa powder, whipped cream, and chocolate
This post contains affiliate links, meaning we make a small commission each time you purchase a product using our links. Product images sourced from Amazon Product Advertising API. Amazon affiliate links last updated on 2023-03-20.
