A
gin and tonic is a
highballA highball is a type of alcoholic drink, possibly named for an early form of railway signal.Highball may also refer to:* Highball glass, a drinking vessel* A type of bouncing bomb* A type of bouldering situation* A film by Noah Baumbach...
cocktailA cocktail is a style of mixed drink. Originally a mixture of distilled spirits, sugar, water, and bitters, the word has gradually come to mean almost any mixed drink containing alcohol....
made with
ginGin is a spirit flavoured primarily with juniper berries. Distilled gin is made by redistilling white grain spirit which has been flavoured with juniper berries. Compound gin is made by flavouring neutral grain spirit with juniper berries without redistilling.The most common style of gin,...
and
tonic waterTonic water is a carbonated soft drink flavoured with quinine, which gives it a distinctively bitter taste.The drink has garnered its name effects of this bitter flavouring...
, usually garnished with a slice of
limeLime is a term referring to a number of different fruits, both species and hybrids and generally citruses, which have their origin in the Himalayan region of India and which are typically round, green to yellow in colour, 3–6 cm in diameter, and generally containing sour and acidic pulp. They are...
or
lemonThe lemon is a small evergreen tree originally native to Asia, and is also the name of the tree's oval yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and nonculinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind are also used, mainly in cooking and baking...
and often served over ice. The ratio of gin to tonic water can vary considerably according to taste, with up to 50% gin being common.
In some countries, gin and tonic is marketed pre-mixed in single-serving cans.
This cocktail was introduced by the army of the
British East India CompanyThe East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
in
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
.
Tonic waterTonic water is a carbonated soft drink flavoured with quinine, which gives it a distinctively bitter taste.The drink has garnered its name effects of this bitter flavouring...
contains
quinineQuinine is a natural white crystalline alkaloid having antipyretic , antimalarial, analgesic , and anti-inflammatory properties and a bitter taste. It is a stereoisomer of quinidine....
, which was used to prevent
malariaMalaria is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by a eukaryotic protist of the genus Plasmodium. It is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, including parts of the Americas, Asia, and Africa. Each year, there are approximately 350–500 million cases of malaria, killing between one and...
.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Gin and tonic' Start a new discussion about 'Gin and tonic' Answer questions from other users |
A
gin and tonic is a
highballA highball is a type of alcoholic drink, possibly named for an early form of railway signal.Highball may also refer to:* Highball glass, a drinking vessel* A type of bouncing bomb* A type of bouldering situation* A film by Noah Baumbach...
cocktailA cocktail is a style of mixed drink. Originally a mixture of distilled spirits, sugar, water, and bitters, the word has gradually come to mean almost any mixed drink containing alcohol....
made with
ginGin is a spirit flavoured primarily with juniper berries. Distilled gin is made by redistilling white grain spirit which has been flavoured with juniper berries. Compound gin is made by flavouring neutral grain spirit with juniper berries without redistilling.The most common style of gin,...
and
tonic waterTonic water is a carbonated soft drink flavoured with quinine, which gives it a distinctively bitter taste.The drink has garnered its name effects of this bitter flavouring...
, usually garnished with a slice of
limeLime is a term referring to a number of different fruits, both species and hybrids and generally citruses, which have their origin in the Himalayan region of India and which are typically round, green to yellow in colour, 3–6 cm in diameter, and generally containing sour and acidic pulp. They are...
or
lemonThe lemon is a small evergreen tree originally native to Asia, and is also the name of the tree's oval yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and nonculinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind are also used, mainly in cooking and baking...
and often served over ice. The ratio of gin to tonic water can vary considerably according to taste, with up to 50% gin being common.
In some countries, gin and tonic is marketed pre-mixed in single-serving cans.
History
This cocktail was introduced by the army of the
British East India CompanyThe East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
in
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
.
Tonic waterTonic water is a carbonated soft drink flavoured with quinine, which gives it a distinctively bitter taste.The drink has garnered its name effects of this bitter flavouring...
contains
quinineQuinine is a natural white crystalline alkaloid having antipyretic , antimalarial, analgesic , and anti-inflammatory properties and a bitter taste. It is a stereoisomer of quinidine....
, which was used to prevent
malariaMalaria is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by a eukaryotic protist of the genus Plasmodium. It is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, including parts of the Americas, Asia, and Africa. Each year, there are approximately 350–500 million cases of malaria, killing between one and...
. Because the tonic water consumed to prevent malaria in the 18th century was extremely bitter,
ginGin is a spirit flavoured primarily with juniper berries. Distilled gin is made by redistilling white grain spirit which has been flavoured with juniper berries. Compound gin is made by flavouring neutral grain spirit with juniper berries without redistilling.The most common style of gin,...
was added to make it more palatable. The bitter flavor of quinine complements the green notes of gin (flavored with
juniperJunipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
) much like dry
vermouthVermouth is a fortified wine, flavoured with aromatic herbs and spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, marjoram and chamomile. Some vermouth is sweetened; however, unsweetened, or dry, vermouth tends to be bitter...
complements gin in a classic
martiniThe martini is a cocktail made with gin and vermouth. The drink is almost always garnished with an olive or, less commonly, a sliver of lemon peel. It is often described as being "crisp". Over the years, the martini has become one of the most well-known mixed alcoholic beverages. H. L. Mencken once...
.
Although the consumption of tonic water currently has less medical use than it once did, gin and tonic remains a popular drink. Tonic water available today contains less quinine and is consequently less bitter (and is sometimes sweetened). Because of this connection to warmer
climateClimate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorological elements in a given region over long periods of time...
s and its refreshing nature, this cocktail is more popular during the warmer months.