gin


	The Drinks

General

Unusually, the introduction of gin as a commercial product may be dated with precision, for it undoubtedly happened when Lucas Bols founded his distillery in Schiedam in 1575.

The town's name became synonymous with gin, though 'Schiedam' is not often used nowadays as a description of Dutch gin, which is called Geneva in Holland, often geneva elsewhere and sometimes even Holland's.

the origins

Gin was, naturally, being produced in the Netherlands prior to the advent of Bols, but until the second half of the 16th century distillation, or at least fine distillation of strong spirit, remained mostly confined to the monastery or the primitive medical world, which was still more involved with alchemy than science: a lot was known about herbs.

The Dutch were well to the fore in producing ardent spirits and it is to Franciscus de la Boe that is attributed the invention of a medical compound of pure spirit and oil of juniper.

Juniper was an item in archaic pharmacology: the Latin juniperus literally means 'youth-giving'. The earlier rough aquavits of the Low Countries were welcomed by soldiers fighting campaigns in soggy conditions: the term 'Dutch courage' stems from the use of raw spirits before battle. The new jenever or genever —combining two beneficent ingredients— was altogether too good to be long reserved for the ailing.

Distillers, following the example of the pioneer Mynheer Bols, started to sell genever to an eager public.

Today, wherever British and, to lesser extent, Dutch influences have been historically strong, gin is made (notably in the USA). Australia and New Zealand produce good gin and so does South Africa, and Spain has been producing gin since Nelson's time.

dry gin

general

The English' influence on the gin, and vice versa, has been crucial. English soldiers, sailors and traders were not slow to discover the merits of genever when it came into general sale. They quickly corrupted the word to geneva -giving rise to the misguided belief that it came from Switzerland —and then shortened it phonetically to gin, the name by which the spirit has long been known the world over.

path to Britain

Gin found its way from Holland across the North Sea and achieved a small demand in ports such as Plymouth, Portsmouth and London. A few brewers turned to making it, although it was not considered a very proper activity. The mass of English mainly drank ale, or the newer beer, or cider where it was made, and the wealthier folk drank wine or brandy.

The only spirit in general use was rum. That was the situation during the 17th century until 1688, the year that was to have a dramatic effect on gin.

the beginning of a new era

With James II an exile in France and English relations with that country at low ebb, one of the first acts of Parliament in the new reign —the dual monarchy of William III and Queen Mary— granted farmers what they had long been demanding, protection for English grain for brewing and distilling and a ban on imports of, amongst other things, brandy.

More importantly the Act effectively granted anyone the right to distil from English grain. It was just pure coincidence that King William came from the Netherlands and the only flavoured spirit of which the pioneer commercial distillers of England possessed any cognisance, was gin. A flood of gin commenced to inundate at least parts of the country, concentrating on London.

Two years after the Act in question was passed, consumption of gin was half a million gallons; by 1727 it was nearly five million gallons. In 1729 came the first of the 'Gin Acts', by which Parliament sought to control the trade and curb consumption.

But the regulation covered only 'compounded spirits', and therefore left the way clear for less scrupulous distillers to produce unflavoured spirit —which, not qualifying as gin, escaped the taxes. Cockney wit in London dubbed this Parliamentary brandy.

The ruling class was not at all happy to see the proletariat inebriated on gin. Fearing that it could diminish the working capacity of the masses and lead to disorders and destruction of property, they enacted a law, which amounted to prohibition of spirits except for those who could afford the enormously increased prices caused by penal taxation.

The law could be enforced only through informers, who went in fear of their lives. Civic unrest was rife, illicit distilling and sale flourished, and within three years, the authorities simple gave up trying to prosecute offenders, though the Act was not repealed until 1743. It was estimated that in that year 20 million gallons of gin —or something remotely like gin— were being distilled in London. Most of it was also consumed there: the population of the city was about half a million.

On the social scene, gin was little regarded: it was considered a drink of the lower orders —which indeed it was. However, before the end of the 18th century it must have taken an upturn, as the elegant Bristol decanters of that period, inscribed 'Hollands', suggest these were not for use in grog-shop but more likely for a lady's drawing room, where she might entertain companions with a little 'white wine', a long-standing euphemism for gin.

new acts and new consumers

Gradually, more sense came into the efforts being made to control gin. The Act of 1751, a year after publication of Hogarth's celebrated picture 'Gin Lane', was a determined effort to stop the worst abuses, whilst not denying the people a product they were obviously going to obtain in any event.

There was soon a dramatic fall in the amount of gin distilled and the businesses became more concentrated, in the hands of reputable distillers such as Boors (est. 1726), Booth's (1740) and Gordon's (1769).

Along with the Industrial Revolution, a new dimension came, which caused an enormous expansion of the all existing cities and the metamorphosis of many a formerly sleepy township into a city. Workers flocked from their rustic cottages to take more lucrative employment in mills and factories.

Row on row of little terraced houses spread out from city centres. Rural or small-town recreations vanished. The gap left was filled by a mushrooming of taverns, soon to be called gin palaces. Charles Dickens, on his way up in the world, was perhaps unjust in his castigation of them, albeit they lacked the character of the old coaching inns he depicted so well.

But even in Dickens's lifetime the gin palaces changed. They became filled with shining brass, gleaming mirrors, dazzling gaslights and buxom barmaids.

The special contribution to the story of gin comes from London. During the spirituously turbulent period already described, the English drank gin of the Dutch style. The English had contributed only Old Tom —nowadays almost extinct— an artificially sweetened type, and the specially zestful Plymouth —beloved by the Royal Navy. Then, in the second half of the 19th century, London distillers started to make 'unsweetened gin', advertised as 'positively containing no sugar'.

revolution in gin trade

It is not known who was the first distiller to make this much more lightly flavoured gin, destined to revolutionise the trade. In the beginning it was called 'Dry Gin' and then 'London Dry Gin'. It opened up entirely new markets, since this delicate spirit lent itself to the new mixed drinks that were being introduced from the USA, and it greatly helped the social upward movement of the product.

In those parts of vast British Empire were quinine was essential as a specific against malaria, it was found that gin made this bitter medicine —in the form of Indian quinine (tonic) water— easier and more attractive to take, and there began the gin-and-tonic habit. Brought back to the United Kingdom by those imperial proconsuls who survived to retire with wealth and honour to fashionable Cheltenham and Tunbridge Wells, the gin-and-tonic gave additional social acceptability to once despised spirit. The cocktail age added fashion to respectability.

production of dry gin

London Dry gin is based on neutral, highly rectified spirit, normally from either grain or cane (molasses). The difference is minimal, though some aver that from cane comes a distillate as near as possible to flavourless, whilst that from grain retains traces of its original mash. Methods of production vary, but quality gins are produced by re-distilling the spirit with juniper berries, coriander, orris root, cassis bark and other botanicals, according to the formula of the brand-owner.

London Dry gin is usually accepted as a style, by far the most popular, and not as an indication that the product comes from London, though a few countries, particularly France, insist that only gin imported from Britain may carry the title.

After Prohibition ended, large-scale manufacture of their Dry gins by London companies commenced in the USA: today the largest selling gin there, and in the world, is Gordon's. Other companies such as Booth's and Gilbey's, also produce their gins in many countries and direct export by Tanqueray and Burrough's (Beefeater) is very extensive.

Such is London's reputation for Dry gin that numerous mirror brands have sprung up boasting of a London provenance. This is not to deny that some London Dry gin is very satisfactorily made by foreign companies, notably in the USA and the Netherlands. But elsewhere there are many imitations of the labels of celebrated London brands, and some positively awful 'London Dry gins' —especially in Africa where 'banana gins' (wrangi or moshi), reminiscent of the 'trade gin' of past eras, are sold.

Gin became a potent force in African commerce with Europe —in places achieving a mystic status. To pour gin on a spot where an eminent foot was to be placed was an indication of signal respect.

plymouth gin

Plymouth gin was previously an aromatic gin, distinctively different to London Dry and particularly associated with the pink gin favoured by Navy officers. Excellent as Plymouth gin is, it no longer has the character associated with it; its naval image is dissipated.

The gin of the world is nowadays London Dry, described by the late great André Simon as the 'purest of all spirits'. The description, though not strictly accurate, has some truth in it. Good gin, be it Dutch or London Dry, is a singularly salubrious alcohol, and to London Dry pertains a remarkable versatility.

The Drinks

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