SPIRIT
S
and
JAMES BOND MAY HAVE PREFERRED TO SHAKE IT
WITH VODKA BUT XAVIER PADOVANI STIRS UP GIN’S
CLAIM AS THE TIPPLE OF THE TRULY INSPIRED
22 MARCH, 2010 ◆ INDIA TODAY SPICE
Even though the sun never
set on the British Empire, somewhere it was always over the The classic gin cocktail: G&T; Gin
yardarm, the signal for loyal subjects around the globe to brand London Dry Gin recommends
it with a twist of lime or lemon
quench their thirst with gin while partaking of their daily dose of
antimalarial quinine, the bitter ingredient in tonic.
But how on earth did a juniper-based alcoholic liquid be-
come so quintessentially British, when in fact it was created by
the Dutch? If gin sounds faintly medicinal, it’s only right; it was
developed in the 17th century by a Dutch doctor seeking a cure
for kidney disorders. Later, it became the drink of the British
working class. It was only in the mid-19th century that gin was
able to shake off its middle class moorings and become the
flavour of favour of the upper classes.
Legend has it that English mercenaries, while fighting the
French along with the Dutch in the Netherlands, would drink
the potent Dutch Genever, as it was called, before battle. Doing
so, they found they had extra energy to charge and fight; that is
possibly where the term ‘Dutch courage’ comes from.
The rest is history, as they say. The Brits became addicted to
this Genever and, since they could not pronounce the word eas-
ily, changed the name to gin. Apparently, in the late 1750s,
Londoners consumed 50 million litres of gin a year. With a pop-
ulation of 700,000, this translated to 70-plus litres a year per resi-
dent, including children. In parts of London such as Gin Lane,
these spirit shops accounted for one in four buildings. Gin be-
came known as the poor man’s drink; everywhere in London
signs invited passersby: “Drunk for 1 penny, Dead drunk for
tuppence, Straw for nothing”. Gin was the opium of the people
and acquired numerous monikers—Mothers’ ruin was one of the
more immoderate!
By the mid 1800s, gin’s appeal slowly scaled up the
social ladder and it became the preferred drink of
her majesty’s troupes. The birth of gin and tonic in
IMAGE COURTESY: TANQUERAY GIN
1870 India, to protect the foreigners from malar-
ia, was one of the more romantic tales.
Winston Churchill, a devoted fan of the
beverage, once said, “The gin and tonic
has saved more Englishmen’s lives, and
minds, than all the doctors in the Empire.”
MARCH, 2010 ◆ INDIA TODAY SPICE 23
 SPIRIT
TIPPLE TATTLE
Gin is drunk in many different ways,
neat or on ice, or a mixer in many
cocktails. In Japan bartenders keep it
in the freezer, in England chefs cook
with it. It is all about the signature
serves, if Tanqueray did it with the
grapefruit peel, G'vine with a grape,
Hendrick's definitely made it with the
cucumber which is a little unusual
while London Dry Gin recommends a
lime or lemon for a gin and tonic.
Despite varied palate choices, here are
some weighty considerations that
should be put to test
WHIFF: The olfactory experience
that occurs when inhaling the aro-
matic atmosphere surrounding an
opened bottle (the neat plop of a
cork being freed enhances ‘the whiff’
substantially).
TINKLE: Both of sound and the
play of light as gin is poured into a
glass. Graceful technique can exalt
the tinkle to new heights.
KICK: The initial tasting, when the
notes of the flavour begin to unravel.
Usage example: “I say, old bean, this
little number kicks a smidgeon beedy
barkit wi' a rather marvellous birl,
eh?”
History has it that the first European ever to be cured from malarial fever was
the wife of the Spanish Viceroy, the Countess of Chinchon, while living in South
America. The court physician was summoned and urged to save the countess from
the fever and chill threatening her life, but all efforts failed to relieve her. At last the
physician administered a medicine that he had obtained from the local Indians, who
had been using it to treat similar symptoms. The countess survived tand reportedly
brought the medicine, which turned out to be the cinchona (the plant from which
quinine is extracted) bark back with her to Europe in the 1640s.
But it was only with the arrival of cocktails in the 1800s, that good times were
stirred up for gin and and its imbibers. The Hot Gin punch, which Charles Dickens
drunk in London’s gin houses in the mid 1850s, is part of literary lore.
The story of the Ramos Gin Fizz, an ancestor of the Tom Collins, sizzles too.
Invented in New Orleans in 1888, by Henry C. Ramos, the cocktail created quite a
stir—literally. In order to make this specific cocktail, the bar had to employ a dozen
boys to stand in two lines of six just to keep shaking the cocktail. Why? Simply be-
cause the main ingredients of this recipe, besides gin, included egg white, cream or-
ange flower water and fresh lemon juice. Fot these ingredients to be mixed perfectly,
the cocktail had to be shaken for at least five minutes without stopping. That would
bring the concoction to its perfect shape via an emulsion and enable it to be served
correctly as a fluffy drink which the bar was famous for. The trick was to only stop
shaking once the ice in the shaker stopped making a noise. Try it yourself and see.
Mix a large measure of Hendrick’s gin, a dash of orange flower water, dash of sugar,
one egg white, a dash of fresh lemon juice with a big handful of ice cubes. Shake non-
stop until all the ice has melted. Then pour the contents of the shaker into a high
ball glass and enjoy a 122-year-old cocktail. The recipe travelled to New York courtesy Louisiana governor Huey Long’s Hendrick’s tea time Martini glasses with cu-
fondness for it. In July 1935, Long brought a bartender called Sam Guarino from cumbers pot & scale to calculate the level of
New Orleans’ Roosevelt Hotel to the New Yorker Hotel in New York City to show gin (above); Xavier Padovani (below)
the staff there how to make the cocktail, so he could have it whenever he was there.
So you see, gin was now using the cocktail culture as a way of transportation. With
politicians and diplomats traversing the world, once a cocktail became popular in
New York it inevitably found its way to Paris and London, and vice versa. Once the
exclusive members’ clubs in London served Gin Martinis, that became the gentle-
man’s tipple of choice. The golden epoch of gin saw America flaunting Gimlets, Gin
Fizzes and Singapore Slings to the world as the more sophisticated potentialities of
civilised pleasures.
Vodka hit Hollywood hard in the 1950s and, together with clever marketing, and
dollops of cash, convinced the movie mogul set to endorse this non-flavoured spir-
it. Suddenly Vodka was the star of the show and gin was on the decline. James Bond
may not have been the first to down a Vodka Martini, but he was the most visible
characters in the move from gin to vodka, which reached its peak in the 1990s.
But this scenario discounted the virtuosi of the spirit world: the bartenders. More
often than not, it’s the best bars around the world and their star bartenders that make
or break liquid trends. Consider the Paris Experimental Cocktail Club, New York
PDT, San Francisco Alembic, Boston Drink, London Hix, Edinburgh Bramble,
Hamburg Le Lion, Tokyo High Five, Melbourne 1806, Barcelona Boadas. Well, it
was their maestros who got bored with vodka and its “tasteless flavour”—or so sing
the legends of the fall—and decided to get back to the essentials, aka gin.
In these last ten years, the big bars have slowly de-listed more and more vodka
to only stock the minimum but seem to have developed an avid interest in gin. Even
in the late 1990s, the best bars would showcasing some 10 to 15 vodkas on their back
bar with three to five gins languishing alongside. Today, enter the best watering holesin
New York City, Mumbai, London, Sydney, San Francisco, Delhi or Shanghai and
you’ll find two to four vodkas versus 10 to 15 gins.
Yes, vodka remains the fastest-growing spirit category but, remember, gin has
MARCH, 2010 ◆ INDIA TODAY SPICE 25
 GREEN BLAZER:
One-third green Chartreuse,
2/3rds Hendrick’s gin,
infuse with rosemary
and then flame.

THE UNUSUAL
NEGRONI:
Hendrick’s gin,
Cynar and
Campari with a
grapefruit twist

WHITE CARGO: Vanilla

ice cream, Maraschino
liqueur, Hendrick’s gin with
HENDRICK’S BUCK: a sprinkling of nutmeg
Hendrick’s, ginger ale,
lemon juice and sugar been a part of the world drinking culture since the mid 1600s while vodka ar-
rived in the West only in the 1950s. What is especially intriguing is that the new
gin lovers are not to be found among the masses; it’s the premium segment of
the category that is clipping ahead. So listen to the bartender when he recom-
mends a great new gin instead of the unusual vodka tonic; these are the guys
on the cutting edge. Besides, vodka is so Nineties; gin is the new vodka.
In Japan, bartenders keep it in the freezer, in England, chefs cook with it.
Meanwhile, new signature serves keep evolving. If Tanqueray does it with the
grapefruit peel, Hendrick’s cucumber kick keeps it unique.
Not that all gin fans are new converts. There’s a charming story about
RESHMAS England’s Queen Mother. While on an engagement at which her majesty was
FIZZ: supposed to be offered a cup of tea, her host blurted out: “I hear you like gin”.
Hendrick’s gin, Without hesitation, the Queen Mum said, “I hadn’t realised I enjoyed that rep-
lime, a fresh utation. But as I do, perhaps you could make it a large one”.
raspberry top-up The lady may be dead, but the spirit lives on.
and ginger beer
(The author is Global Brand Ambassador, Hendrick’s Gin)