What They Said On Making Your Own Gin At Home
“For a spirit that is so complex, nuanced and diverse, gin in its most basic form is actually pretty straightforward. Its a neutral base spirit which is flavoured with botanicals so essentially, like vodka with extra bits.
“The only real stipulation for it to be called gin is that there is juniper is the dominant botanical and it is at least 37.5 per cent Abv. Beyond that, the world is kind of your oyster.
Picture: Craft Gin Club
“Most proper, commercial gin makers extract the flavours from their botanicals through distillation, it is very possible to make gin simply by steeping them in the base spirit. Which in fact means it is very possible to make your own gin at home, using vodka.
“The technical name for this is compound gin but its also sometimes called bathtub gin, in reference to the vessel in which batches were illegally made during American Prohibition in the 1920s.
“Theres nothing illegal about whipping up a bit of your own homemade gin and it can be great fun.
“Beyond the vodka and the juniper berries, you can feel free to experiment with whatever botanicals you like. Some of the most commonly used gin botanicals are coriander seed, angelica root, citrus peel and cassia bark or cinnamon but feel free to raid the spice cabinet and herb garden.
Explore Gin’s Versatility In These Favorite Drinks
Gin is a fascinating liquor to explore. Its botanicals give it a characteristic that no other liquor has one brand can have a completely different profile from another and it is surprisingly versatile when it comes to flavor profiles. Gin is also the foundation for some of the best drinks ever made, including the iconic martini.
Though certainly not as numerous as vodka cocktails, there are thousands of great gin cocktails to explore and the list can be quite overwhelming. Some cocktails work best with a specific gin, some are for acquired tastes and others are reliable and always there for us when we need them.
If you’re just starting out on your journey through the world of gin cocktails, we recommend the ones listed below as essential to your experience. All are quite popular, some more than others, and each has a different appeal that has drawn in drinkers year after year for decades.
The selections include gin at its best in the simplest of mixes as well as in the more complicated, often disputed, and finely balanced recipes. These classics are some of the most timeless drinks that you will find.
Collecting Your Gin Distillate
Collecting your gin distillate is where all of your hard work pays off. Being both a mixture of art and science, this process can be challenging for a new distiller. That being said, dont let this deter you if you are a newcomer to distilling. After you run a few batches with your still, youll definitely be able to dial things in by taking notes and making the necessary changes. You know what they say. Practice makes perfect.
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What Is The Best Ratio Of Gin To Tonic
A gin and tonic should be crisp and refreshing, never boozy or heavy. After doing some research, ratios can vary. Some enjoy equal parts gin to tonic, others reduce the gin and double the tonic. For us, we liked it right in the middle, which kept the drink light and crisp, but still aromatic from the gin.
Is It Safe To Drink Tonic Water Every Day
It is generally harmless for most people to drink tonic water daily in moderation. Quinine is the ingredient in tonic water that is responsible for its semi-bitter and dry taste. The alkaloid is derived from cinchona bark and can lead to quinine toxicity in high doses. This is most often a concern in medication form or for people with certain medical conditions, and it can interact with some medications. To ensure the tonic water sold in the U.S. is safe, the FDA limits how much quinine can be present in tonic water.
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Citadelle Gin & Lemonade
First of all, its a very easy cocktail to make at home with ingredients you can find in any supermarket. You dont even need a shaker, just a glass or a pitcher and some ice. Its everything we need right now with heatwaves and lockdown all around the world. Fresh yet complex with the touch of honey. I recommend wildflower honey for this one. It pairs with the botanicals from Citadelle Gin perfectly. It reminds me when I stayed over at Château de Bonbonnet, where they distill the gin. It was a hot summer too and we were drinking Tom Collins . Nico de Soto, owner of Mace and Danico
Ingredients:
1 oz. fresh lemon juice
0.5 oz. honey
4 oz. sparkling water
Method: In a jug or single serve glass, combine Citadelle, lemon and honey, stirring until honey is completely dissolved. Add ice and fill to top with sparkling water. Garnish with fresh lemon or aromatic herbs.
Prohibition Distillery
What Are The Best Ingredients For A Gin And Tonic
First off, theres the gin. London dry gin is the go-to style for a gin and tonic. Despite its name, London dry can come from anywhere in the world. While the exact flavors vary slightly, you can expect your classic London dry to have juniper, coriander and citrus notes. Its clean and brightexactly what you want in a gin and tonic. Beefeater, Plymouth and Bombay Sapphire are three common brands.
You can also opt for pink gin to make your G& T. Pink gin is fruitier thanks to the addition of red fruits like strawberry, raspberry and currants. If you love juicy fruit flavors, swap pink gin for London dry. Look for pink gin from Beefeater, Gordons and others.
Oh, and your options dont stop with the gin. There are a few other easy ways to put a spin on a gin and tonic. The simplest personal touch you can add is the garnish. The classic G& T calls for a wedge of fresh lime, but you can use a few cucumber slices, a mix of grapefruit and orange slices, summer berries or fresh herbs from your garden.
You can also pick up a bottle of flavored tonic water to introduce another layer of flavor to your cocktail.
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How To Garnish A Classic Gin And Tonic
I like to serve my gin tonics in the style of a Spanish Gin & tonic. In a large wine glass with the following garnishes for flavor:
- Lime wedges
- Fill your glass with ice, all the way to the top.
- Add your gin and the tonic water.
- Squeeze two lime wedges into your cocktail and stir well to combine.
- Serve immediately, garnished with a sprig of mint if desired.
East London Liquor Co Batch 2 Gin
East London Liquor Company fired up their stills in the summer of 2014, and they wasted no time in announcing themselves to the world with this belter of a gin. Lavender, sage, fennel and thyme all provide lovely herbal flavours, producing an English summer garden style of gin, perfect for sunny afternoons and balmy evenings. Plus, it packs a delightful punch at 47% ABV.
Available from:
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Adding Botanical Mix To Your Still Column
After youve cleaned your still thoroughly, youll need to add your botanical mix to your still column. For this, you will roll up about 20 inches of copper packing and insert it into the bottom section of your stills column. Then wrap your crushed botanical mix into a folded piece of cheesecloth. Be sure to fold the sides of the cheesecloth upward to make a small satchel. Tie a string around the top of your small botanical satchel.
Lower your botanical cheesecloth satchel down the column onto the copper packing using the string. If you are using a still with a site glass section, clamp it below the section of your column with the copper packing.
If your still setup has a condenser, hook up your water input and output.
Next, youre going to add your gin mash water into your still. We highly recommend using a siphon for this process. This method is the best way to reduce the amount of sediment from your fermented gin mash water getting into the still. Leaving particles and sediments in the mash water will cause the distillate to burn and ruin your product, so be diligent during this step.
Looking To Upcycle Empty Gin Bottles
Upcycling gin bottles means that instead of recycling an item, it can be repurposed into something new and practical use in your everyday life! With the strength and durability of gin bottles, they are ideal to be used for other everyday objects and items around the house and they can really compliment your interior design!
This is such a good idea if you have a garden and have the patience to make things our of wood!Here are the step by step instructions on how to assemble the bird feeder.
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Craft Easy Great Drinks With Gin
When thinking of drinks with Gin, most people think of awfully dry cocktails that burn your throat and taste like pine needles.
Well, while some of that may be true, Gin can actually be one of the most versatile of base alcohol’s on the planet.
In this list you’ll find 27 of the best drink with gin that you can make easily in your own home.
From fruity concoctions to instant classics and perfectly dry cocktails, this list will have you covered no matter your tastes.
Drinks these days are too complicated and often overdone. We’re here to change that, and make it easy for anyone to craft a 5-star cocktail in the comfort of their own home.
Without further ado, here is our list of the 27 best drinks with gin you’ll ever make!
Creating Interesting Botanical Blends
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How To Make A Gin Sour Cocktail:
- Pour gin, fresh lemon juice and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker, add ice and cover.
- Shake vigorously about 1 minute.
- Pour into an old fashioned glass.
- Add crushed ice and garnish with a lemon twist.
- Optional: Add a few drops of Angostura bitters for garnish.
Variations:
Add ½ of a pasteurized egg white to the ingredients to make a frothy cocktail. Don’t add the ice until you have shaken the mixture for 30 seconds. Add the ice and shake another 30 seconds.
Use grapefruit juice in place of the lemon juice.
How To Make Gin And The Aromatics
All gins need , which can be ordered on amazon. Beyond that, I chose to use coriander seed, ginger, lemon peel, lime peel, orange peel, and lemongrass. These were recipe decisions, mostly because I already had them in stock. I also had cinnamon, cucumber, and almonds on hand, but I decided to leave them out. Lemongrass and ginger were already added, which I felt were distinguishing enough.
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The Distiller Plays A Key Role
Its the job of a distiller to ensure that the botanicals used in a Gin are treated in a way which results in the same flavored end product, despite, for example, using different crops of berries, seeds and herbs over the course of a brands lifetime.Variances in a single batch of juniper berries will occur naturally, so its up to the distiller to taste a number of samples from each botanical crop in order to ensure consistency in flavor.So the next time youre drinking a Gin , think about all the individual botanicals which have made it into your glass, think about the method used to create it, and think about – and thank – the distiller who undoubtedly spent months trying batch after batch, to get that recipe spot on.Heres to you, Gin Distillers the world over. Cheers!
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Is Gin And Tonic A Healthy Drink
While any alcohol you consume should be in moderation, a gin and tonic is one of the healthier cocktails you can choose. Per ounce, gin has 73 calories and tonic water clocks in at just 10 calories. And since it only has two main components , a gin and tonic doesnt rack up the same calories as more complex cocktails. Whats more, if youre watching your calorie count, you can switch regular tonic for diet, or cut down to 1-1/2 ounces of gin.
Plus, juniper berry, the major flavor behind gin, boasts several important health benefits. These small blue-hued berries can aid digestion and reduce bloating. They are also rich in antioxidants which may have immune boosting and anti-inflammatory properties.
That said, alcohol is alcohol and too much isnt a good thing. You can have your gin and drink it too, just dont go overboard.
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Tips On French 75 Cocktails
Do I have to use fresh lemon juice?
Yes. Grab a lemon and squeeze it. Its so much better than bottled lemon juice and super easy to do.
What kind of Gin should I use?
I love making my French 75s with my favorite local gin, New Holland Knickerbocker. Hendricks Gin and Empress 1908 Gin are both unique and flavorful gins that will create delicious variations on French 75s.
How do you garnish a French 75?
A curl of lemon peel is the traditional garnish for a French 75, though you can easily skip the garnish or use a small piece of lemon, if youd rather.
What kind of sparkling wine should I use?
Whether you choose champagne, cava, prosecco, or another sparkling wine, make sure its white wine and that its dry. Skip the moscato, spumantes, and other sweet bubbly bottles.
Where can I get simple syrup?
Make some! Combine ½ cup sugar with ½ cup hot water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then put the syrup in the refrigerator to chill until ready to use.
Can I Make Tonic Water At Home
Many types of soda are fun to make at home. However, tonic water is one that should always be purchased from a reputable manufacturer. Due to the serious side effects of cinchonism, it can be harmful to make your own tonic syrup from cinchona bark because it is impossible to control the amount of quinine. It is generally safe to purchase a premade tonic syrup if you follow the company’s recommended dilution to make tonic water. As an alternative, you can make quinine-free tonic syrup at home.
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What Is The History Of Gin
Gin has been around for centuries, but its impossible to say with absolute certainty where and when gin began. We do know that Greek physician Pedanius Dioscorides lauded a mixture of juniper and wine to cure a common cold remedy in 70 AD.
This suggests blending juniper with alcohol was already a well-established tradition by then, though at this point the spirit was more about utility than enjoyment.
This tradition of blending juniper and wine remained over the centuries: a 1055 AD reference notes that monks Solerno, Italy, drank juniper-infused wine. Whether that was for fitness or fun, however, remains unknown. But a method and usage similar to the Greek was found in the Netherlands circa the 16th century.
It was then and there that the Dutch mixed juniper and wine to create a medicinal spirit called Jenever. Later, during the Eighty Years War, the English sipped what they called genever before battle an apocryphal story that allegedly led to the term Dutch courage.
Genever became increasingly popular in the United Kingdom in the years after that conflict, though by this point it was sometimes referred to as Geneva, and later, gen and, finally, gin. In fact, the first usage of gin dates to the 1714 book The Fable of the Bees, or Private Vices, Publick Benefits, in which gin is described as liqueur of juniper berry.
Later, once alcohol was again legal in the U.S., gin became most Americans go-to drink until the 1960s, when vodka took over.