Drinking Responsibly : Gin
It’s a warm summer evening. You, laying in bed, watch as the sun slowly sets over the hills of the west. There’s a knock on your door, it’s your doctor, a local Monk. He brings you a glass of an intensely aromatic drink. He’s been doing so for the past week because OH MY GOD ITS THE 12TH CENTURY IN THE SOUTHERN ITALIAN CITY OF SALERNO AND THEY THINK GIN CURES GOUT.
Ok, in their defense, it’s the middle of the dark ages, they were trying their best. But yes! This period and practice is one of the first recorded instances of what we now call gin! Having been invented (in its earliest forms) nearly 900 years ago, the exact origin story is of course contested, but records indicate that monks in Italy in the 12th century were using alcohols and wines infused with juniper berries to treat a wide variety of ailments, and would share their practices with other doctors of France and the Netherlands.
The name, Gin, is derived from the words “jenever” (dutch), “genever” (english), “genievre” (french), all of which are derived from the word “juniperus”, the latin word for Juniper. Interestingly, this etymology tells you quite a bit about the drink itself.
What is Gin?
Gin, in it’s purest and most simplistic form, is any neutral spirit, either infused or distilled with juniper berries, as to make juniper the defining flavor. Obviously, nowadays, it’s a bit more complicated than that, but that is essentially what it comes down to.
Seriously! Look at the US’s definition of gin (that which allows a product to label itself as “gin”): “defined as a juniper flavored spirit made by simply adding approved natural flavoring substances to a neutral spirit of agricultural origin, with the prominent flavor being juniper, and minimum abv of 37.5%”
That being said, there is a huge variety in the types of neutral spirits used, the types of additional flavorings and aromatics added, and the processes in which it’s distilled, re-distilled, and infused. This variation gives way to incredibly different final products, and is largely the result of technological advancements in alcohol production over time, as well as the cross-pollination of different cultures from different geographic locations.
How is it made?
Production:
As we just mentioned, a lot of the variation in gin production is related to technological innovation. By this we mean, different “types” of gin are often related to the production-style that links them back to a certain period of time. For example:
Genever - Gins under this name emulate the “original” style of gin-making. They, from a flavor standpoint, have a heavily malted flavor (as did the ‘neutral’ spirits they were originally made from), and an intensely botanical taste and aroma.
Old Tom Gin - in the 18th century, gin got a makeover that resulted in a less intense and lighter flavor than Genever gin. It was sweet, and packed in more complex flavor due the higher levels of malt and sugar added.
London Dry - This type of gin came about from the invention of the Column Still, and resulted in a gin with a robust, pungent juniper taste to it, and, as the name suggests a very dry quality due to the lack of added sugars.
There are other nominal distinctions as well:
Plymouth - made in Plymouth, England. This is a trademark.
Compound Gin - made by flavoring neutral spirits with essences, other natural flavorings, or natural botanical ingredients left to infuse in neutral spirit without re-distillation
Pot Distilled - Representing the earliest style, this is essentially distilling a fermented grain mash in a pot, then redistilling it with flavoring botanicals for their aromatic compounds. Then it usually ages in tanks or wooden casks to give it a malty flavor (akin to whisky).
Ingredients:
Juniper berries are the defining characteristic of this drink and unsurprisingly they’re paid a ton of attention in the world of gin! We read a beautiful article on the world of juniper here, but the TLDR is essentially: juniper is an incredibly diverse, robust, and resilient plant that can be found from North Africa to Alaska, and just as wine aficionados cherish the “terroir” of their precious grapes, so do gin-enthusiast for their juniper berries.
As you now know, gin can host any number of additional flavorings and aromatics.
“Popular botanicals or flavoring agents for gin, besides the required juniper, often include citrus elements, such as lemon and bitter orange peel, as well as a combination of other spices, which may include any of anise, angelica root and seed, orris root, licorice root, cinnamon, almond, cubeb, savory, lime peel, grapefruit peel, dragon eye (longan), saffron, baobab, frankincense, coriander, grains of paradise, nutmeg, cassia bark or others.”
Interested in making your own??
We know that to flavor gin, you can either redistill a neutral alcohol with flavorings, or you can infuse a neutral alcohol with flavorings. Hint hint, if you want to go to the DIY route, infusions (also called Compound Gin) is the name of the game!
To learn more, we talked to a friend of ours, Daniella Zandi, who makes her own gin!
Daniella has been making her own gin through the magic of infusion for over 2 years now! Her basic procedure is as follows:
Find a good quality neutral alcohol to infuse (she loves using Absolute vodka)
Infuse with any number and combination of flavorings and aromatics. She shared one of her more recent recipes with us: Juniper berries, orange peel, lemon peel, ginger, cardamom pods, coriander seeds, rose buds, lavender sprig, cinnamon stick, star anise pods, and cocktail bitters
Jar the mixture and let it infuse in the refrigerator for around a week (though you can go longer for stronger flavors!)
Strain the flavorings from the mixture, and enjoy!
She notes that one of the things she enjoys most about this whole process is the experimentation. She’ll play with new flavorings, as well as shorter or longer infusion times to see how they impact the final flavors.
How it’s enjoyed
Like all alcohols, if you want to appreciate the spirit’s unique characteristics, au naturale (aka, straight up) is the way to go! Chilled and poured on the rocks will guarantee a smooth gin-flavored experience.
That being said, gin is easily one of the most versatile liquors for cocktail mixing. Its aromas and flavor characteristics allow it to pair well with so many other flavors that it has been a staple in the bartender’s tool kit for decades if not centuries. Here are some classics:
Martini: 3 oz Gin + ½ oz Dry Vermouth, stir in ice, strain into a cup, and garnish with a lemon peel
20th Century: 1.5 oz Gin + ¾ oz Lillet + ½ oz Creme de Cacao + ¾ oz fresh Lemon Juice, shaken with ice, strained, and garnished with lemon twist
Gimlet: 2oz Gin + ½ oz Lime Juice + ½ oz Simple Syrup, stirred in ice, strained, and garnished with a slice of lime (and some mint if you’re feeling extra)
Gin and Tonic (who doesnt love a recipe with the ingredients in the name?): 2 oz Gin + 6 oz Tonic, lime or lemon garnish, served on the rocks
Gin Fizz: 1.5 oz Gin + 1 oz Lemon Juice + ½ Simple Syrup + 2.5 oz Soda Water, shake all but the soda water with ice, strain into a glass, top with soda water
Gin Rickey: 2 oz Gin + Juice of one Lime, served on ice cube and filled to the brim with seltzer
Negroni: 1 oz Gin + 1 oz Sweet Vermouth + 1 oz Campari, stir with ice, strain into a glass and garnish with an orange slice
Tom Collins (why does this drink sound like it comes with a free Hawaiian shirt and an AARP card?): 2 oz Old Tom Gin + 1 oz Lemon Juice + ½ oz Simple Syrup + 2 oz Seltzer, mix in tall glass with ice, garnish with a lemon slice
Avenues for sustainability
As we now know, Gin is made with such wide variance in practice and ingredients, that being a sustainable consumer can be quite tricky! Nevertheless, here are some ways the industry is working toward sustainability, and some suggestions for how you can navigate the world of this awesome spirit in a more sustainable way:
Buy Locally! Buying locally is one of the most sustainable things you can do! This is because many commercially popular gins need to travel huge distances to make it to your local liquor store. We encourage you to check out local producers! These products not only save huge amounts of emissions (due to their lack of national or international shipment), but also often host incredibly unique and complex flavors due to their small-batch quality.
Many producers are also shifting toward more sustainable practices:
Nolet Silver Gin: renewable energy powered facilities
Barr Hill Gin: renovated its production facility to reduce water usage by over 80%, and now utilizes bio-digested waste for renewable fuel
Grey Whale Gin: uses sustainably grown botanicals and donates some of its proceeds to environmental charities
Ramsbury Single Estate Gin: they reuse their waste for their own agricultural processes!
Pea Gin: As Gin can technically be made with any neutral spirit, some researchers and producers have been experimenting with options that are more sustainable than those typically used (such as corn, barley, and other grain). One which has recently been explored is peas! Peas are able to naturally source the nitrogen they need for growth (using a process called “biological nitrogen fixation”) which means they require almost no fertilizers for their growth! Additionally, they create by products that producers can reuse for things like animal feed. Check out the gin company “Nadar” which uses peas as its core ingredient!