I'm not a fan of gin. Have a couple bad'exeperiences when I was young including sneaking into the parents liquor cabinet as a teen and getting sick from it. Maybe I should give it another chance.
As much as I love the cocktail recipes, I find that I am most interested in the “history” portion. Loving these long form videos breaking down individual spirits!
I appreciate them, too. It gives me more context about what to use and when, based on the type of gins available. Within the era of cocktail, I want to recreate.
Cool piece of history to add on- British soldiers often made trips to their colonies, often places like India where Malaria was endemic, and so had to drink quinine water, which when mixed with sugar became tonic water. They used the gin to help make that bitter concoction go down more smoothly. Also as sailors, they often suffered from scurvy, which a dash of lime juice in the G&T remedied.
Love the history content. As a bourbon and rum lover, my fascination with gin began recently with a bottle of The Botanist. I always thought of gin in the same vein as vodka as a boring alcohol additive for cocktails. Wow, was I wrong! I enjoy exploring the different offerings by local distilleries and growing my gin collection. I justify it to my wife by stating I'm not buying more whiskey, lol.
I, too, was a whiskey enthusiast, and The Botanist was my first gin as well! (I blame Binging with Babish) I also categorized gin in the same way, but now I absolutely love it. In fact, I think I like gin more than whiskey 👀
I’m so happy that you dedicated a portion of the show to talking about Plymouth Gin. I live in Plymouth, and Blackfriars is a source of a lot of pride for our city. I’m not a gin fan myself, but it still makes me happy that such a popular gin is unique to us. (Note: HMNB Devonport is still here! I don’t know how much it affects our booze industry to have the military so close as it once did, but I felt it was still worthy of mention)
If you come to San Francisco, take a hike on Mount Tam and then you’ll understand the nose on the Terroir gin from St. George. It smells of Northern California. It’s my favorite sipping gin.
I wanna join in and say that I've been watching your videos for a long time now, and I've always loved the way they're structured, I love the personality you and Oz give them, always entertaining, and I'm always looking forward to see the next one. Y'all have only gotten better with the years. I genuinely appreciate what y'all do!
I'm not into gin, but the Japanese Suntory Roku was a discovery. I started working at a bar where they were wondering what they could do with it, can we get it on the menu, etc. So, when a gin-based dealer's choice came in, that's where I gravitated, and now it's one of my go-tos. The juniper is very subtle, everything else takes over, and I love that.
The place i work at has a cocktail that contains lemon grass shochu, and suntory gin. Its a riff on a college cocktail that involved vodka, but its basically that, lemon, maracuya, and a beer of your choice, most preferred cider. its delicious, and one of the very few gin cocktails that are shaken for a good reason -- because, though shaking gin bruises and loses the herbal elements and back-end, it also aerates it and it comes out sweeter.
What a great video! Very comprehensive, love the lore, true or not. It helps to understand how all the styles are connected throughout history. It makes me want them all lol
One of your best videos yet, Andres. You are the first person to demystify the world of gin for me. I'm a Botanist man myself, but I do like Plymouth Navy Strength, though I can't get it at my local Binny's anymore. Go figure. Thanks so much!
I love exploring the different riffs on gin that the smaller distillers have come up with. Empress 1908 is one of my favourites. Also one of the local distilleries to my area Dillion’s has put out a few really good tales on gin. I recommend their rose gin.
I love the history you share about each of the different types of Gin. It really helps us understand how and why varieties of Gin have their distinct flavors. This is what sets you apart from other content creators in this genre. Great video!
The music choices for the different eras of gin were so perfect. The neo-swing for the 20’s and bossa nova tune for the 60’s. Beautiful. Also, you did cover my favorite gin. St. George is one of the most amazing spirits I’ve ever tasted.
I learned so much in the video despite a 10-year love affair with gin. Fascinating about the origins of Navy Strength. I was glad to see your love for my favourite gins; all four of my must-have bottles were at least mentioned. Plymouth is my forever number one!
My favorite is St. George Terroir. I really like the subtle pine notes mixed in with the juniper. The combination reminds me of my grandparents house, growing up.
As someone who grew up hating on all things carbonation, the gin and tonic convinced me that I hated gin for the longest time. Then, I came to your channel, looked for gin drinks that didn't have them, and voila, it's now my second favorite type of liquor behind rum, and let's be honest, alcohol made from sugarcane is a hard act to follow for anything. Your channel enlightened me a ton to a new world of mixed drinks, and this video is a great primer I wish I had months ago.
Whitby Gin is run by a young couple, and they do several different gins. Everything that they do is to represent the local area of North Yorkshire Moors, including the unique design of the bottle. They even do a flavoured gin called Prince Of Darkness that came out to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula, that has very strong links to Whitby. They will also be moving their site to two barns on the site of Whitby Abbey in the near future to keep the links with the local community as strong as possible. Worth a look for uniqueness.
on the cheaper side I really like Roku gin from Japan. My current favorite is a German gin Monkey 47, it works well with sweeter drinks like the Bees Knees. As far as the prohibition era gins, we detailed this in our podcast, crime organizations would provide widows and housewives with stills and all the ingredients to make gin, and bottle it., but the bottles were too tall to add water in the kitchen sink...so they did that in the bathtub. If I remember right it would cost about 75 cents a gallon to make and they would sell it to a speakeasy for 10 to 15 dollars a bottle, which was how Capone became very rich.
Wild local botanical find are my favorite current genre of Gin. Micil Irish Gin is a current favorite, and we have Rowhouse Spirits’ Wendigo Gin (a Philadelphia Gin) on our shelf as well. A past favorite was Tinto from Portugal, which was rested in red wine barrels and included poppies in their botanical blend.
There’s been a real gin renaissance in Britain in the last couple of years, because they loosened the regulations, now there are thousands of small gin producers as a opposed to the dozen there were before.
As I understand it, one reason for producing Plymouth Navy Strength is that it was used by Royal Navy surgeons as both an anesthetic and an antiseptic during and after surgical procedures. This, of course, predated the availability of drugs designed specifically for these purposes. The higher ABV of Navy Strength more quickly rendered the patient insensible to pain, and topical application was more effective at killing bacteria in and around the surgical site. The higher ABV also more effectively held (and still holds) all those botanical flavors in the gin until ice or tonic water releases them.
I LOVED THIS VIDEO. Gin is my favorite spirit but I knew practically nothing of its history and not much more about the varieties. Thank you for doing this research and sharing this info.
As I’m not a big gin fan, the St. George is the only one that I’d drink on its own. It’s truly special. For cocktails I use either Botanist or Malfy (the citrusy kind). So I guess I’m in the contemporary gin camp. We learned something today.
Thanks for spoon feeding the information to me. This was so educational and wonderfully done. Answered so many of my questions! You’re the best anders! 👏🏽
Thanks Anders! Love your channel. I was actually sipping a Corpse Reviver Number Two when I saw this video in my feed. Gin is deff a fav of mine so I clicked on the video right away, and as always I was not disappointed. You are my go-to-guy when it comes to spirits and cocktails. I have learned so much from your channel and not only have I enjoyed making a lot of the cocktails you've shown, I've also used the knowledge you've given me to impress ladies I know, so seriously man, thanks again! Also - Hi Az, you're great too!
"Gin was Mother's Milk to her". One of my favorite lines from a play, ever. Whenever I see a new gin on my local bar's shelf ( Gracias a Dios Agave Gin), one with a different ingredient like kelp (but NOT turpentine.) or even a fun "bottle" ( Engine, out of Italy btw) I will always give it a taste. I have rarely been disappointed. Thanks for all you do.
I have only had one barrel aged gin and really liked it. That gin worked great in an Old Fashioned, used angostura orange bitters instead of the original angostura. Great video!
I have been a Bombay Sapphire fan since my twenties. But this made me want to check out the Sloe Gin cordial and the Old Tom. Really love the history and introduction to all the other liquor options. The "navy strength " gin was an eye opener.
Great vid. Thank Anders. I found myself building a personal bar around Gin and Whiskey love vermoth based cocktails and really enjoy your content. Keep up the good work man.
I’m a big fan of both you and gin, sir. London Dry is my go to as I prefer a stout juniper flavor with more botanical notes than citrus. I enjoy all of your content and look forward to your videos every week!
So I became a gin fan when I was working in, of all places, Sumatra. I was working with a bunch of ex-pat Brits who would have gin parties. There’d be 30-40 different gins there and we’d sit in the jungle and drink gin, pick guitars and sing terribly out of tune (there wasn’t a whole lot else to do). And it was this epiphany…holy cow, I REALLY like gin! It’s my main go-to for summer cocktails, of which the French gimlet may be my favorite. But gin is SO good on a hot summer night.
My personal favourite is one coming from Quebec, Ungava It has boreal herbs in it and it's fantaaaastic. I make variants of the bee's knees with it, love it a lot
Quick note on Plymouth gins.... I work for Barbican Botanics, a Plymouth based gin, we have a London Dry style, as well as an Old Tom. Plus we have a spiced rum. Hit me up and I'll see if I can send some samples to the States!
I subscribe to about a dozen bar tender channels but you are by far the best. I love every part of your videos. The history, unique drinks along side classics but mostly you voice / personality. Thank you.
Lovely video, Gin actually started my passion for spirits and distilled drinks. It's so exciting every time I get a new bottle because idk what to expect, the variety is overwhelming! That St. George Terroir is so unique! one of my latest favorites.
Have you thought about doing a video on the Cafe Royal's Tequila Matador? The original 1937 recipe calls for shaking which is rare for a spirit forward cocktail. Could make for an interesting video.
Hi Anders, such a great video-I really enjoy all the details and history portion of your videos and your cocktails are always spot on!! Enjoy your weekend & CHEERS!🍹
Adding to the chorus of appreciation. Your deep dives on different spirits are just wonderful. Excellent history with lots of info mixed with the tastings, great format. I always learn something new! Thanks!! ❤
Hey Anders! Thanks for making this excellent video. I am fairly new to the world of alcohol and recently made my first ever gin purchase (beefeater). I immediately fell in love and am very excited to explore more gins soon, so this couldn't have come at a better time. Thank you!
Also, Iceland has a great craft gin industry that has resulted in some great gins. If you are ever in Reykjavik, try the Einstock bar for some great gin cocktails.
Great video, as ever! Two gins I can highly recommend are Audemus Pink Pepper (French) and Rambla 41 (Spanish). Both excellent and very different but equally versatile.
Great video as always! What I love about gin is all the terroir gins. Every time I go on a trip I buy a bottle of a local gin, made with local or even native botanicals, it’s a great way to bring back the smells, flavors and memories of my vacations.
Gin is amazing in its varieties. There is a distillery in Juneau, AK called Amalga that makes gin flavored with spruce tips and it is one the most interesting things I've ever tasted.
Love these videos, Anders! I think I requested a history of gin around a year ago, so I was delighted to see you post this! Gin holds a special place in my heart. It's really the spirit that got me into the world of drinking for pleasure (and not just to get wasted). And you're right, I do have a favourite! I'm particularly fond of Harris Gin from Scotland, which uses sugar kelp as a botanical. I also love Mermaid Gin, which is from a small distillery on an island in the south of England where I grew up. As an island boy living far inland now, the flavours of those particular gins are so reminiscent of the coast and sea. It really is just home in a bottle
Anders, I'm a gin guy, but I live in Louisville, Kentucky, which is not a gin town. When I moved back here in 2010, the owner of a small liquor store told me that "brown liquors are dead," and that virtually everything he sold was vodka or tequila. Fourteen years ago. Now , there are more barrels of bourbon aging across the state than there are people in Kentucky. But not much gin. But I found a bottle of Brokers this morning, and this tutorial went as well with it as the Schweppes tonic. Cheers!
My absolute favorite "bathtub" style Prohibition Gin is from Crater Lake Spirits Distillery in Bend, Or. Absolutely amazing and makes the best gin and tonic's - sweet, junipery, amazing. Even better than my prior go-to, Bombay sapphire.
As someone who lives in Plymouth, the gin distillery has such a lovely bar with some class food n cocktails, and you can take the tour and learn it's history! It's very lovely during the summer evenings here
Their barrel-aged gin is exceptional! Good for sipping too. I have not liked some other barrel aged gins but this is very well balanced. They combine an initial barred lot with repeat fills (per a tour guide there), so the barrel does not overpower the gin notes but provides a great complement.
Plymouth gin is hands down my favorite gin. It's a little more expensive so I usually opt for lower cost options like Beefeater or Bombay Sapphire. Cheers!
Awesome history lesson on Gin. I was surprised you did not discuss Bombay gin in your review. A few years ago I discovered a gin from Germany called Monkey 47, it's my go to gin these days.
There’s a great gin distillery here in Sweden called Hernö which makes a great London Dry, but they’re famous for their Old Tom. Also very nice looking and interesting bottles. If you ever have a Chance I recommend them.
Thank you for this history. I really love the long form videos that dive into details about a spirit. I revisit the rum episode regularly. I love gin and the different varieties. This was really fascinating. Thank you.
There’s a very long tradition of making sloe gin(a sloe is a type of wild plum) and damson(also a wild plum) gin in the country in England. You take a preserving jar, and fill it with your fruits, poking each one with a bodkin(large darning needle) to allow the juices to flow, add sugar, and cover with gin. Shake and leave somewhere dark. Give it a shake every time you remember to and leave for at least 6 months if not longer.
There's a great distillery in Guelph, Ontario - Spring Mills (housed in one of the oldest mills in the city), and they do a lovely barrel-aged gin that is great for sipping! They also make various other new western-styled gins.
Another fascinating episode! It gave me an idea which I’d like to pass onto you. Could you do a Gin and Tonic episode one day where you compare gin and tonics made with tonic water vs a tonic syrup like El Guapo? I think that it would be a fascinating video for gin and tonic lovers. Keep up all of the great work! Cheers!
One gin (actually two) I can strongly recommend come from Backwards Distillery in Casper, WY. I love both their gins, one of which is a Navy Strength. They use natural and local ingredients, plus the water comes from a sitting in the region, if I recall correctly. You won’t regret it
Being a huge gin fan, I was excited to watch this. It did not disappoint. I’ve had a bottle of The Botanist on my bar for a few years now. I think it might be time to crack it open. 🍸
Given that I watch your channel religiously, this was my favorite video - very informative! Wish you had reviewed by favorite gin (Hendrick's), but you did mention my two favorite cocktails (Negroni and Boulevardier). How do you manage to taste test all of those spirits and not get a bit toasted??? Nice job...
Thank you for the history lesson, very interesting! In the past, I only used to drink Tanqueray gin,...but then got turned onto Aviation gin by certain celebrity & enjoyed that. So I started trying other gins & was amazed by all the different varieties! From your suggestions I'm looking forward to trying The Botanist, Plymouth, Terroir & Koval.
I just started out drinking and loving spirits especially rum. Your rum guide helped me really a lot and I want to explore more so this comes right at the perfect time.
there's a microdistillery local to me that makes really good gin, and i love that they bring out impressions for each season and using botanicals to fit, whilst maintaining the juniper berries probably a nightmare to get a hold of if you're not in the UK, but i definitely recommend checking out Psychopomp if you ever make a trip here
Just getting into the gin world after mostly sticking to bourbon. Monkey 47 is the only gin so far I enjoy drinking on its own and is definitely set apart from others. Drumshanbo Gin is my favorite for a Gin and Tonic.
Super late to the party, but as a gin enthusiast I found this fascinating and helpful! One variety I discovered while in Europe is HAVN, which has a series of city-themed gin varietals that add herbs based on the city - Bangkok, for example, has star anise. They’re one of a small group of gins that I’ll sip neat, as they’re almost better without mixers. Worth looking for!
If you can get your hands on a bottle of Hernö Juniper Cask (yes, the cask is made from juniper wood) that makes for one amazing Negroni. Keep a light touch with the Campari and let it sing. Highly recommended.
I've been to a number of gin tastings at distilleries and none of them have been nearly as informative and interesting as you are in this video. They could really learn a thing or 2 about presenting their gins in this way!
Loved this! Need to re-watch, my baby decided she was going to intermittently interrupt. I was super excited about this video, 😢but it took me two weeks to watch the first time. I recently finished the Book of Gin audio book on audible. Even if you've read it, I thoroughly enjoyed the narrator's version, good driving or lunch time listen. Appreciate you sir!
I used to live right next to this adorable little speakeasy style bar in Prague with a fantastic bartender. My first day I said, I don't like gin, prove me wrong. He made me a gimlet with Tanqueray Rangpur and I was blown away. Still my go to.
I'm working of a couple of nice bottles at the moment that I definitely recommend: 23rd St Gin from here in Australia, and Ki No Bi, Kyoto Dry Gin from Japan... absolutely delicious!
I've been trying different gins for various drinks over the last few years. I prefer the Botanist for gin & tonics because of the botanical flavors and Martin Miller's gin for the Aviation and French 75. I have tried Plymouth and I must admit I was not a fan - it tasted very flat to me even though it is well regarded. One gin that I would recommend is a little difficult to find: Sazerac makes Henry Ramos gin which it seems you can only purchase in Louisiana. We discovered it when visiting New Orleans. It makes an awesome Bee's Knees cocktail. And I haven't even mentioned Hendrick's. Great video, Anders!
If you like a warm woodiness to your gin. Try Vikre Distillery's Boreal Cedar Gin. Vikre is in Duluth, MN and are making some great gins, aquavits, and whiskeys.
Hey, great video, as usual ! I wondered if you ever tried Citadelle's No Mistake Old Tom, if not you really should ! (and all their line up ofc) keep up the great work ! :)
Now who brought the tonic water?
I was gonna reply with a joke about mass-market tonic water, but I can't top Brendan Behan's.
I'm not a fan of gin. Have a couple bad'exeperiences when I was young including sneaking into the parents liquor cabinet as a teen and getting sick from it. Maybe I should give it another chance.
I brought the Cocchi Americano; does that help?
@@DryWall-wd4ei Been there , done that in 1964.. I remember it well. Barfed in a swimming pool.
Omg yes. The whole history of the gin and tonic and the anti-malarial properties of quinine could be a video in itself!
As much as I love the cocktail recipes, I find that I am most interested in the “history” portion. Loving these long form videos breaking down individual spirits!
Appreciate the comment. Always so much to cover with these deep dives. Cheers
Echoing Lucas here. The deep dive and history segments are the best, and having a whole episode of just that is just perfect
Yes, Anders, keep it up! Your style is informed and trustworthy. I will keep watching these. (Hi, Oz!)
I appreciate them, too. It gives me more context about what to use and when, based on the type of gins available. Within the era of cocktail, I want to recreate.
Agree though the recipes are great too
as a dutch person I have to say the seccond pronunciation you did was spot on.
Cool piece of history to add on- British soldiers often made trips to their colonies, often places like India where Malaria was endemic, and so had to drink quinine water, which when mixed with sugar became tonic water. They used the gin to help make that bitter concoction go down more smoothly. Also as sailors, they often suffered from scurvy, which a dash of lime juice in the G&T remedied.
Love the history content. As a bourbon and rum lover, my fascination with gin began recently with a bottle of The Botanist. I always thought of gin in the same vein as vodka as a boring alcohol additive for cocktails. Wow, was I wrong! I enjoy exploring the different offerings by local distilleries and growing my gin collection. I justify it to my wife by stating I'm not buying more whiskey, lol.
I, too, was a whiskey enthusiast, and The Botanist was my first gin as well! (I blame Binging with Babish) I also categorized gin in the same way, but now I absolutely love it. In fact, I think I like gin more than whiskey 👀
I found botanist within the last year and love it also!
Botanist is truly one of the best value for price gins that aren’t London Dry. Super good.
I’m so happy that you dedicated a portion of the show to talking about Plymouth Gin. I live in Plymouth, and Blackfriars is a source of a lot of pride for our city. I’m not a gin fan myself, but it still makes me happy that such a popular gin is unique to us.
(Note: HMNB Devonport is still here! I don’t know how much it affects our booze industry to have the military so close as it once did, but I felt it was still worthy of mention)
If you come to San Francisco, take a hike on Mount Tam and then you’ll understand the nose on the Terroir gin from St. George. It smells of Northern California. It’s my favorite sipping gin.
I wanna join in and say that I've been watching your videos for a long time now, and I've always loved the way they're structured, I love the personality you and Oz give them, always entertaining, and I'm always looking forward to see the next one. Y'all have only gotten better with the years. I genuinely appreciate what y'all do!
Love love love gin… I started with Tanqueray, moved on to Hendrix and Bombay Sapphire, and I just bought my first bottle of Plymouth ❤
same path. have a bit of Hendrick's to finish before I crack open the Plymouth Navy Strength.
@@javakidnyc1 Do let us now the result!
I'm not into gin, but the Japanese Suntory Roku was a discovery. I started working at a bar where they were wondering what they could do with it, can we get it on the menu, etc. So, when a gin-based dealer's choice came in, that's where I gravitated, and now it's one of my go-tos. The juniper is very subtle, everything else takes over, and I love that.
The place i work at has a cocktail that contains lemon grass shochu, and suntory gin. Its a riff on a college cocktail that involved vodka, but its basically that, lemon, maracuya, and a beer of your choice, most preferred cider. its delicious, and one of the very few gin cocktails that are shaken for a good reason -- because, though shaking gin bruises and loses the herbal elements and back-end, it also aerates it and it comes out sweeter.
Love these longer format history pieces, thanks for the content!
I remember visiting the Plymouth Gin distillery as a child/teenager (I grew up in Cornwall)...it's been a favourite gin ever since 😊😊
What a great video! Very comprehensive, love the lore, true or not. It helps to understand how all the styles are connected throughout history. It makes me want them all lol
One of your best videos yet, Andres. You are the first person to demystify the world of gin for me. I'm a Botanist man myself, but I do like Plymouth Navy Strength, though I can't get it at my local Binny's anymore. Go figure. Thanks so much!
Appreciate that. I think we've got a similar taste for gin!
I love exploring the different riffs on gin that the smaller distillers have come up with. Empress 1908 is one of my favourites. Also one of the local distilleries to my area Dillion’s has put out a few really good tales on gin. I recommend their rose gin.
I love the history you share about each of the different types of Gin. It really helps us understand how and why varieties of Gin have their distinct flavors. This is what sets you apart from other content creators in this genre. Great video!
The music choices for the different eras of gin were so perfect. The neo-swing for the 20’s and bossa nova tune for the 60’s. Beautiful.
Also, you did cover my favorite gin. St. George is one of the most amazing spirits I’ve ever tasted.
I learned so much in the video despite a 10-year love affair with gin. Fascinating about the origins of Navy Strength. I was glad to see your love for my favourite gins; all four of my must-have bottles were at least mentioned. Plymouth is my forever number one!
My favorite is St. George Terroir. I really like the subtle pine notes mixed in with the juniper. The combination reminds me of my grandparents house, growing up.
As someone who grew up hating on all things carbonation, the gin and tonic convinced me that I hated gin for the longest time. Then, I came to your channel, looked for gin drinks that didn't have them, and voila, it's now my second favorite type of liquor behind rum, and let's be honest, alcohol made from sugarcane is a hard act to follow for anything. Your channel enlightened me a ton to a new world of mixed drinks, and this video is a great primer I wish I had months ago.
Whitby Gin is run by a young couple, and they do several different gins. Everything that they do is to represent the local area of North Yorkshire Moors, including the unique design of the bottle. They even do a flavoured gin called Prince Of Darkness that came out to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula, that has very strong links to Whitby. They will also be moving their site to two barns on the site of Whitby Abbey in the near future to keep the links with the local community as strong as possible. Worth a look for uniqueness.
on the cheaper side I really like Roku gin from Japan. My current favorite is a German gin Monkey 47, it works well with sweeter drinks like the Bees Knees. As far as the prohibition era gins, we detailed this in our podcast, crime organizations would provide widows and housewives with stills and all the ingredients to make gin, and bottle it., but the bottles were too tall to add water in the kitchen sink...so they did that in the bathtub. If I remember right it would cost about 75 cents a gallon to make and they would sell it to a speakeasy for 10 to 15 dollars a bottle, which was how Capone became very rich.
Wild local botanical find are my favorite current genre of Gin. Micil Irish Gin is a current favorite, and we have Rowhouse Spirits’ Wendigo Gin (a Philadelphia Gin) on our shelf as well. A past favorite was Tinto from Portugal, which was rested in red wine barrels and included poppies in their botanical blend.
*Wild Harvested featuring local botanicals…
There’s been a real gin renaissance in Britain in the last couple of years, because they loosened the regulations, now there are thousands of small gin producers as a opposed to the dozen there were before.
As I understand it, one reason for producing Plymouth Navy Strength is that it was used by Royal Navy surgeons as both an anesthetic and an antiseptic during and after surgical procedures. This, of course, predated the availability of drugs designed specifically for these purposes. The higher ABV of Navy Strength more quickly rendered the patient insensible to pain, and topical application was more effective at killing bacteria in and around the surgical site. The higher ABV also more effectively held (and still holds) all those botanical flavors in the gin until ice or tonic water releases them.
That was my first thought as well. Still, the gunpowder relation is another great thing to know! Thanks Anders!
Also it’s concentrated the Navy would water that down as part of the rum ration.
I LOVED THIS VIDEO. Gin is my favorite spirit but I knew practically nothing of its history and not much more about the varieties. Thank you for doing this research and sharing this info.
Gin is my favorite spirit. As I’ve gotten older, I have decided that Plymouth gin suits me best. Thanks for this video. I learned a lot.
As I’m not a big gin fan, the St. George is the only one that I’d drink on its own. It’s truly special.
For cocktails I use either Botanist or Malfy (the citrusy kind). So I guess I’m in the contemporary gin camp. We learned something today.
Thanks for spoon feeding the information to me. This was so educational and wonderfully done. Answered so many of my questions! You’re the best anders! 👏🏽
Thanks Anders! Love your channel. I was actually sipping a Corpse Reviver Number Two when I saw this video in my feed. Gin is deff a fav of mine so I clicked on the video right away, and as always I was not disappointed. You are my go-to-guy when it comes to spirits and cocktails. I have learned so much from your channel and not only have I enjoyed making a lot of the cocktails you've shown, I've also used the knowledge you've given me to impress ladies I know, so seriously man, thanks again! Also - Hi Az, you're great too!
"Gin was Mother's Milk to her".
One of my favorite lines from a play, ever.
Whenever I see a new gin on my local bar's shelf ( Gracias a Dios Agave Gin), one with a different ingredient like kelp (but NOT turpentine.) or even a fun "bottle" ( Engine, out of Italy btw) I will always give it a taste. I have rarely been disappointed. Thanks for all you do.
She bit the bowl off the spoon!
Love a Pygmalion/My Fair Lady reference.
I have only had one barrel aged gin and really liked it. That gin worked great in an Old Fashioned, used angostura orange bitters instead of the original angostura. Great video!
I have been a Bombay Sapphire fan since my twenties. But this made me want to check out the Sloe Gin cordial and the Old Tom. Really love the history and introduction to all the other liquor options. The "navy strength " gin was an eye opener.
Great vid. Thank Anders. I found myself building a personal bar around Gin and Whiskey love vermoth based cocktails and really enjoy your content. Keep up the good work man.
I’m a big fan of both you and gin, sir. London Dry is my go to as I prefer a stout juniper flavor with more botanical notes than citrus. I enjoy all of your content and look forward to your videos every week!
Thanks so much! Happy weekend
So I became a gin fan when I was working in, of all places, Sumatra. I was working with a bunch of ex-pat Brits who would have gin parties. There’d be 30-40 different gins there and we’d sit in the jungle and drink gin, pick guitars and sing terribly out of tune (there wasn’t a whole lot else to do). And it was this epiphany…holy cow, I REALLY like gin! It’s my main go-to for summer cocktails, of which the French gimlet may be my favorite. But gin is SO good on a hot summer night.
My personal favourite is one coming from Quebec, Ungava
It has boreal herbs in it and it's fantaaaastic. I make variants of the bee's knees with it, love it a lot
Quick note on Plymouth gins.... I work for Barbican Botanics, a Plymouth based gin, we have a London Dry style, as well as an Old Tom. Plus we have a spiced rum. Hit me up and I'll see if I can send some samples to the States!
Big love to Barbican Botanics! My wife and I will be coming in for a flight in the new year. Best place for a drink in Plymouth!
I subscribe to about a dozen bar tender channels but you are by far the best. I love every part of your videos. The history, unique drinks along side classics but mostly you voice / personality. Thank you.
Lovely video, Gin actually started my passion for spirits and distilled drinks. It's so exciting every time I get a new bottle because idk what to expect, the variety is overwhelming! That St. George Terroir is so unique! one of my latest favorites.
Have you thought about doing a video on the Cafe Royal's Tequila Matador? The original 1937 recipe calls for shaking which is rare for a spirit forward cocktail. Could make for an interesting video.
Hi Anders, such a great video-I really enjoy all the details and history portion of your videos and your cocktails are always spot on!! Enjoy your weekend & CHEERS!🍹
Adding to the chorus of appreciation. Your deep dives on different spirits are just wonderful. Excellent history with lots of info mixed with the tastings, great format. I always learn something new! Thanks!! ❤
Hey Anders! Thanks for making this excellent video. I am fairly new to the world of alcohol and recently made my first ever gin purchase (beefeater). I immediately fell in love and am very excited to explore more gins soon, so this couldn't have come at a better time. Thank you!
Barrel aged gins are my favorite! I strongly recommend making it to make a mint-julip style coctail, especially with fresh speramint.
Also, Iceland has a great craft gin industry that has resulted in some great gins. If you are ever in Reykjavik, try the Einstock bar for some great gin cocktails.
I’ve tried some Icelandic gin, and it’s terrific.
such a great video! I can't get enough of these history lessons!
Interestingly, my neighbor did launch their own gin recently. It's called Two Shores. Really great stuff.
Great video, as ever! Two gins I can highly recommend are Audemus Pink Pepper (French) and Rambla 41 (Spanish). Both excellent and very different but equally versatile.
Excellent video. Great history lesson and great flavour profiles on everything mentioned.
Great video as always! What I love about gin is all the terroir gins. Every time I go on a trip I buy a bottle of a local gin, made with local or even native botanicals, it’s a great way to bring back the smells, flavors and memories of my vacations.
Gin is amazing in its varieties. There is a distillery in Juneau, AK called Amalga that makes gin flavored with spruce tips and it is one the most interesting things I've ever tasted.
Love these videos, Anders! I think I requested a history of gin around a year ago, so I was delighted to see you post this!
Gin holds a special place in my heart. It's really the spirit that got me into the world of drinking for pleasure (and not just to get wasted). And you're right, I do have a favourite! I'm particularly fond of Harris Gin from Scotland, which uses sugar kelp as a botanical. I also love Mermaid Gin, which is from a small distillery on an island in the south of England where I grew up.
As an island boy living far inland now, the flavours of those particular gins are so reminiscent of the coast and sea. It really is just home in a bottle
Anders, I'm a gin guy, but I live in Louisville, Kentucky, which is not a gin town. When I moved back here in 2010, the owner of a small liquor store told me that "brown liquors are dead," and that virtually everything he sold was vodka or tequila. Fourteen years ago. Now , there are more barrels of bourbon aging across the state than there are people in Kentucky. But not much gin. But I found a bottle of Brokers this morning, and this tutorial went as well with it as the Schweppes tonic. Cheers!
A really excellent coverage of gin. The Botanist is marvelous. Would love to see a discussion or a cocktail featuring aquavit sometime!
My absolute favorite "bathtub" style Prohibition Gin is from Crater Lake Spirits Distillery in Bend, Or. Absolutely amazing and makes the best gin and tonic's - sweet, junipery, amazing. Even better than my prior go-to, Bombay sapphire.
As someone who lives in Plymouth, the gin distillery has such a lovely bar with some class food n cocktails, and you can take the tour and learn it's history! It's very lovely during the summer evenings here
Check out Bluecoat Gin. Copper pot distilled with organic juniper, coriander, and angelica. It’s citrus forward but not a bomb. Great for a Gimlet!
A superb gin from Philadelphia.
Their barrel-aged gin is exceptional! Good for sipping too. I have not liked some other barrel aged gins but this is very well balanced. They combine an initial barred lot with repeat fills (per a tour guide there), so the barrel does not overpower the gin notes but provides a great complement.
Plymouth gin is hands down my favorite gin. It's a little more expensive so I usually opt for lower cost options like Beefeater or Bombay Sapphire. Cheers!
Awesome history lesson on Gin. I was surprised you did not discuss Bombay gin in your review. A few years ago I discovered a gin from Germany called Monkey 47, it's my go to gin these days.
He mentioned Bombay among good, big brand gins like Beefeater.
There’s a great gin distillery here in Sweden called Hernö which makes a great London Dry, but they’re famous for their Old Tom. Also very nice looking and interesting bottles. If you ever have a Chance I recommend them.
It's always fun to go to different bars abroad and see them have Hernö on their shelves.
These deep dive histories are awesome!! They’re so detailed damn
For American style I highly recommend Young & Yonder’s H.O.B.S (Harbor Of Broken Souls) Gin which hands down has the best label artwork in spirits!
Thank you for this history. I really love the long form videos that dive into details about a spirit. I revisit the rum episode regularly. I love gin and the different varieties. This was really fascinating. Thank you.
There’s a very long tradition of making sloe gin(a sloe is a type of wild plum) and damson(also a wild plum) gin in the country in England. You take a preserving jar, and fill it with your fruits, poking each one with a bodkin(large darning needle) to allow the juices to flow, add sugar, and cover with gin. Shake and leave somewhere dark. Give it a shake every time you remember to and leave for at least 6 months if not longer.
Love the Bilberry Blackhearts Gin from Journeymans in Detroit. Thanks for the shout out.
Terrific video! Thanks so much for demystifying these different styles!
I have really enjoyed Empress Gin. I like the flavor and love the purple colour.
There's a great distillery in Guelph, Ontario - Spring Mills (housed in one of the oldest mills in the city), and they do a lovely barrel-aged gin that is great for sipping! They also make various other new western-styled gins.
9:27 Yeah. Most of the "London dry gin" comes from outside of the UK. Or even Europe. I wonder when they will make "London dry gin" on the Mars...
Another fascinating episode! It gave me an idea which I’d like to pass onto you. Could you do a Gin and Tonic episode one day where you compare gin and tonics made with tonic water vs a tonic syrup like El Guapo? I think that it would be a fascinating video for gin and tonic lovers. Keep up all of the great work! Cheers!
My favorite Gin is Aviation. It's floral and drinkable alone or mixed as a cocktail.
One gin (actually two) I can strongly recommend come from Backwards Distillery in Casper, WY. I love both their gins, one of which is a Navy Strength. They use natural and local ingredients, plus the water comes from a sitting in the region, if I recall correctly. You won’t regret it
Being a huge gin fan, I was excited to watch this. It did not disappoint. I’ve had a bottle of The Botanist on my bar for a few years now. I think it might be time to crack it open. 🍸
Given that I watch your channel religiously, this was my favorite video - very informative! Wish you had reviewed by favorite gin (Hendrick's), but you did mention my two favorite cocktails (Negroni and Boulevardier). How do you manage to taste test all of those spirits and not get a bit toasted??? Nice job...
I like No 3 London Dry Gin, I was introduced to it at Dukes of London. Is also used by Dukes for the Vesper
Thank you for the history lesson, very interesting! In the past, I only used to drink Tanqueray gin,...but then got turned onto Aviation gin by certain celebrity & enjoyed that. So I started trying other gins & was amazed by all the different varieties! From your suggestions I'm looking forward to trying The Botanist, Plymouth, Terroir & Koval.
I just started out drinking and loving spirits especially rum. Your rum guide helped me really a lot and I want to explore more so this comes right at the perfect time.
Thanks, great film! I loved the information on the history of gin! My next request is a film on the history of whiskey or scotch.
Really liked this format, the editing, mixed use of typography, imagery and visualisations.
James May Gin. Navy Strength. My new favorite gin. Great video. Thanks.
This is a wonderful channel! It's what I feel has been missing in How To Drink for the last couple years. Thanks Anders!
there's a microdistillery local to me that makes really good gin, and i love that they bring out impressions for each season and using botanicals to fit, whilst maintaining the juniper berries
probably a nightmare to get a hold of if you're not in the UK, but i definitely recommend checking out Psychopomp if you ever make a trip here
Just getting into the gin world after mostly sticking to bourbon. Monkey 47 is the only gin so far I enjoy drinking on its own and is definitely set apart from others. Drumshanbo Gin is my favorite for a Gin and Tonic.
I love drumshanbo! Irish FTW
This episode filled me with joy. I love gin so much!!!
Super late to the party, but as a gin enthusiast I found this fascinating and helpful! One variety I discovered while in Europe is HAVN, which has a series of city-themed gin varietals that add herbs based on the city - Bangkok, for example, has star anise. They’re one of a small group of gins that I’ll sip neat, as they’re almost better without mixers. Worth looking for!
If you can get your hands on a bottle of Hernö Juniper Cask (yes, the cask is made from juniper wood) that makes for one amazing Negroni. Keep a light touch with the Campari and let it sing. Highly recommended.
I've been to a number of gin tastings at distilleries and none of them have been nearly as informative and interesting as you are in this video.
They could really learn a thing or 2 about presenting their gins in this way!
Loved this! Need to re-watch, my baby decided she was going to intermittently interrupt. I was super excited about this video, 😢but it took me two weeks to watch the first time. I recently finished the Book of Gin audio book on audible. Even if you've read it, I thoroughly enjoyed the narrator's version, good driving or lunch time listen. Appreciate you sir!
I used to live right next to this adorable little speakeasy style bar in Prague with a fantastic bartender. My first day I said, I don't like gin, prove me wrong. He made me a gimlet with Tanqueray Rangpur and I was blown away. Still my go to.
Thank you so much for explaining the varying types of gin and what drinks they usually go into. Please make videos with more gin recipes.
I'm working of a couple of nice bottles at the moment that I definitely recommend: 23rd St Gin from here in Australia, and Ki No Bi, Kyoto Dry Gin from Japan... absolutely delicious!
This might be your best video yet. You legit took us to school on that one. Awesome vid!
Good shout on Haymans old Tom. I went for a tour at their distillers and bought a few bottles of old Tom. A great company.
I love that you called vodka a "mixer". I have joked so much about vodka being a mixer to my drinks!
I've been trying different gins for various drinks over the last few years. I prefer the Botanist for gin & tonics because of the botanical flavors and Martin Miller's gin for the Aviation and French 75. I have tried Plymouth and I must admit I was not a fan - it tasted very flat to me even though it is well regarded. One gin that I would recommend is a little difficult to find: Sazerac makes Henry Ramos gin which it seems you can only purchase in Louisiana. We discovered it when visiting New Orleans. It makes an awesome Bee's Knees cocktail. And I haven't even mentioned Hendrick's. Great video, Anders!
If you like a warm woodiness to your gin. Try Vikre Distillery's Boreal Cedar Gin. Vikre is in Duluth, MN and are making some great gins, aquavits, and whiskeys.
Love to see you repping Chicago and the region so much in this video! So many of our local faves
Marvelous segment! Thank you so much. I learned so much. I love gin, and now I know I'll find gins I love even more.
Hey, great video, as usual ! I wondered if you ever tried Citadelle's No Mistake Old Tom, if not you really should ! (and all their line up ofc)
keep up the great work ! :)
Citadelles citrus gin made me so happy