Frédéric Du Bois - The complete guide gin & tonic for the perfect mix

THE COMPLETE GUIDE

GIN & TONIC

FOR THE PERFECT MIX

The gin and tonic has saved more Englishmens lives, and minds, than all the doctors in the Empire.

Winston Churchill

PREFACE

I like large parties. Theyre so intimate. At small parties theres never any privacy.

J ust like the character of Jordan Baker played by Elizabeth Debicki in the 2013 film of The Great Gatsby we love to throw a hell of a party. Dont misunderstand us, there is nothing wrong with an intimate party with friends, but in this book we are pulling out all the stops and wont let anyone go thirsty. It doesnt matter to us where and with whom you drink your gin & tonic, but what does fascinate us is how you take your gin & tonic. What comes out of your glass should dance on the tongue, extend the boundaries, and passion should triumph: So Lets get this party started!

Where others finish, we will go further. Our book will answer your questions, and those that still burn on the lips of everyone who is passionate about gin & tonic: Which gin do I combine with which tonic, and what garnish do I add? Well, after reading this book you will be able to amaze your friends and foes with a heavenly gin & tonic. Perfectly mixed, using the right utensils, and the best tasting garnish popped on top! Throughout the book you will discover more than twenty tonics and sixty gins. At the back you will find a comprehensive Gincyclopedia.

This book is our homage to the immensely popular drink, and your guide on the quest for the ultimate gin & tonic. First, we will catapult you back in time and get thoroughly gin soaked and then resume our journey and take you to tonic land. Read and learn. Then we will take you into the passionate relationship between gin & tonic. We will blow you away with a cornucopia of information, guidelines and sensations. We will show you how to find your ideal match, and add the right garnish, too.

To make the party complete, we will be combining various meals with gin & tonic. We will discover that our favourite drink is at home in any situation, and can complement all kinds of recipes. We round up with twelve must-visit bars. After that, it is up to you: taste, discover and experience. We are more than happy to accompany you on your journey to find your ultimate gin & tonic!

This book is for those who never leave a party early, for those who watch a concert to the very end. For the truly individual, or those who aspire to be so. For those who like to slowly savour, or those who thrive on a snap decision. For those in search of inspiration and information, or those who just want to use the book to get pleasantly sozzled. For those who are in search of a new love, or those who have already found their love.

But first and foremost, for those who prize passion above all.

For all who literally live life to the fullest

Cheers to us!

Note:

The author F. Scott Fitzgerald was a notorious gin lover...

GIN: SOME HISTORY

OR HOW THE JUNIPER BERRY CHANGED THE WORLD

Before gin, there was genever or jenever. In Belgium it is called jenever with a j, while in the Netherlands it is often referred to as genever with a g. The history of gin is not an entirely untroubled one: it is a story of courage, calamity and mishap, but also of new innovations, insights and trends, which continues right up to the present day. Whisky makes us think of the Scottish Highlands, rum conjures up pirates and the shipping trade and vodka whispers of Siberian winters, but the story of gin spreads from the Middle East to Europe and America, it is a history that completely changed the world

BELGIUM OR THE NETHERLANDS

Our favourite, gin, is based on a famous drink which has its origins in the Low Countries (now Belgium and the Netherlands). The first mention of the juniper berry can be found in Der Naturen Bloeme, (The Flowers of Nature) written by Jacob van Maerlant in 1269. This encyclopaedia applauds the juniper berry for its many medicinal properties. Van Maerlant writes about juniper berries cooked in wine and how it is used as a medicine against cramps and stomach pains. A century later, jenever appears again in a booklet, this time as a medicine to cure the plague; the author, Jan van Aalter, is also the first to mention the euphoric effects of jenever. Both Jacob and Jan happened to be Flemish although jenever is well-known both in Great Britain and America, and even today is still called Dutch Courage or Holland Gin, referring to its Low Countries heritage. During the siege of Antwerp in 1585, many flee to the Netherlands, taking their beloved jenever with them. The following century sees Belgium burdened by prohibition, meanwhile however in the Netherlands, the Golden Age is dawning, allowing the production methods of gin to develop.

YES, WE CAN

As people become more familiar with distillation methods, they discover that spirits can be made from anything that ferments. You can just imagine the world of possibilities that unfolded, and during the 14th and 15th centuries a lot of enthusiastic experimentation takes place. In Poland and Russia they discover the delights of a new use for the potato, and in Ireland and Scotland they are busy with barley. In the Low Countries brandy is a term used for a whole range of different spirits. Excise reports from 1492 show that significant amounts of grainbased spirits, particularly rye, are very commonly distilled. In 1582, the first technical description for distilling spirits from grain appears: Guide to Distilling Korenbrandewijn (corn brandy) by Casper Jansz.

THE MYTH OF DOCTOR SYLVIUS

The 17th century the Golden Age in the Netherlands: the Dutch East India Company has flourished to become the largest trading company in the world, Rembrandt is painting his masterpieces, and medical science is evolving fast. It is at this time that Doctor Sylvius (1614-1672), a professor at Leiden University, allegedly creates Dutch Gin. However, we refute this claim. It is true that he used jenever as a medicine for kidney complaints and as a remedy for the plague, but it is highly unlikely that he was the inventor of gin. First and foremost, in the book by Philippus Hermanni, Een Constelijck Distileerboec from 1552, jenever or gin is mentioned as Aqua Juniperi, and this is 98 years before the good doctor was born. There are also references to jenever/gin found in a medieval English cookery book, and also in the play The Duke of Milan, first published in 1632 when Doctor Sylvius was still only nine years old.