It's Gin o'clock

There is so much choice when going out to drink that it's sometimes forgotten the oldies are the goodies. Forget Sex on the Beach, the Screwdriver and the Singapore Sling, the one drink guaranteed to hit the spot every time is a good 'ole Gin and Tonic.

The name gin is derived from the Dutch word jenever which means "juniper". From its earliest beginnings in the Middle Ages, gin has evolved over the course of a millennium from originally a herbal medicine to an object of commerce in the spirits industry (similar to the story of Coke Cola). Today, gin is one of the most popular and widely distributed spirit.
Additions to gin often include citrus elements, such as lemon and bitter orange peel. Cucumber works particularly well with Hendricks gin. A combination of other spices include any Liquorice, cinnamon, almond, lime peel, grapefruit peel and coriander.

Gin based cocktails

• 20th Century

• Fallen Angel

• Gibson

• Giblet (as in the film, The Women)

• Gin and Tonic

• Negroni (The Roman Sring of Mrs Stone" film)

• Old Etonian c.1925

• Pimms' Cup

• Pink Gin

• Singapore Sling

• Tom Collins(as in the film, Meet the Parents)

• Vesper (Quantum of Solas film)

• White Lady

Notable English Gin Brands:

• Beefeater, first produced in 1820

• Bombay Sapphire, distilled with 10 botanicals

• Boodles British Gin

• Booth's Gin

• Broker's Gin

• Gibley's

• Gilpin's Westmorland Extra Dry Gin

• Greenail's

• Hayman's Old Tom 

• Plymouth

• Sacred Micro-distillery, distilled in a micro-distillery

• Whitley Neill

Other gin related blog posts:

- See how Gin is made in London
- Hogarth's Beer Lane and Gin Lane etchings

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