Gin Cocktails
There are different mix variants and cocktails for every lover of alcoholic drinks. You can prepare and enjoy drinks from almost any spirit. Gin is perfect for mixing cocktails with. The reason for this is that gin can serve a wide variety of tastes. The juniper spirit is available in various types and flavours. Therefore, almost every taste can be catered for, which is why gin cocktails are so popular.
Another reason why cocktails with gin are so popular is the renaissance of gin in the early 2000s. The English juniper spirit has enjoyed increasing popularity since then. The spirit is back on the menu in various cocktail bars and cocktail salons and is being drunk by many new cocktail fans. The juniper spirit is very versatile, just like the various gin cocktails that can be mixed with it. Here is a list of the best-known and most popular gin cocktails.
Trending Gin Cocktail Recipes
Well known: Dry Martini
The Dry Martini cocktail divides the tastes of cocktail fans and lovers. A Dry Martini is perceived as old-fashioned and monotonous by the “new” cocktail fans. The “old” cocktail generation still sees the drink as an absolute classic. There is almost no opinion between these two views.
In the past, there were all kinds of mixing ratios between gin and vermouth. In addition, the gin cocktail was influenced by various other spirits or was refined with them. Thus, the mixing ratio of gin to vermouth has changed again and again over the years. At the “invention” of the gin mixed drink, only gin was served with a “shot” of vermouth. That was around 1880.
Over the years, however, the Dry Martini recipe changed again and again. Various bartenders experimented with different ingredients to create a “new” and tastier Dry Martini. Thus, in addition to the mixing ratio of gin and vermouth, the base spirit of the gin cocktail also changed over the years. Only later was gin used again as the base spirit. Attention: Do not compare with the Vesper Martini. You can find out more about the Dry Martini gin cocktail in our Dry Martini recipe.
The perfect fillers for gin cocktails
It’s up to you which tonic water you want to fill your gin cocktail with. There are various tonics with different flavours that can be individually adapted to your taste profile. Fillers are mainly used in highball cocktails. In these cocktails, the majority of the glass content is filled with non-alcoholic drinks (fillers). Here are some of the most popular gin cocktail fillers:
Tonic Water
The classic tonic water, which is also used in gin and tonic, is a colourless, carbonated soft drink containing quinine. This filler belongs to the group of bitter lemonades. You can find tonic water in every cocktail bar. The best-known manufacturers are Thomas Henry, Fever Tree and Fentimens. The drink containing chinine has been saved from extinction precisely because of the gin hype.
As a result, more gin was consumed and one of the best-known gin cocktails: gin and tonic. Because of this popularity, tonic water can now be bought in any well-stocked supermarket, discount store or online. Tonic water was criticised for a long time. For example, the quinine in pregnant women can cause the unborn child to become addicted to quinine. This addiction will become noticeable after birth at the latest. Therefore, tonic water should not be drunk during pregnancy.
Dry Tonic Water
Dry tonic water is much more bitter and dry than normal tonic water. This makes the gin cocktail even more bitter and less sweet. The manufacturer Schweppes is particularly well known for the production of Dry Tonic Water. Try a Gin Tonic with “normal” and with Dry Tonic Water and decide which drink you like better.
Ginger Ale
Ginger ale is a carbonated soft drink. Ginger is English and means inger. The drink owes this name to both the taste and the appearance. Just like tonic water and bitter lemon, ginger ale belongs to the group of bitter lemonades. However, the colour of the refreshing drink does not come from real ginger. A colouring agent is responsible for this. Unlike the name suggests, there is no alcohol in ginger ale. It is therefore ideal as a filler for gin cocktails of various kinds. The drinks made by Schweppes and Thomas Henry are particularly well known.
Bitter Lemon
Bitter Lemon is another carbonated and quinine-containing soft drink. Due to its high quinine content, the drink glows in the dark. When the drink was invented, real lemons were used. Hence the name Bitter Lemon. Nowadays, only small parts of the Bitter Lemon are lemon juice. As with tonic water, pregnant women and people susceptible to quinine should avoid drinking it. In addition, the high quinine content in bitter lemon can have a performance-enhancing effect. Bitter lemon is also used in some gin cocktails. However, Vodka Lemon or Gin Lemon are the most popular drinks.
Ginger Beer
Ginger Beer is a ginger-tasting, carbonated soft drink that is usually alcohol-free. Unlike its name, ginger beer is not a beer, but a soft drink. In contrast to ginger ale, ginger beer tastes much spicier and hotter. Ginger beer is also much cloudier than ginger ale. Ginger Beer gained fame and popularity primarily through Moscow Mule. In an ingenious marketing strategy by the vodka manufacturer “Smirnoff”, ginger beer and a copper mug were given free with every bottle sold. As a result, many new people got to know the lemonade and began to love it. Even today, ginger beer can be used in various gin cocktails.
Soda Water
Soda water is mainly added to the glass as a filler when making Gin Fizz and Tom Collins. Soda water can also be used in other gin cocktails. The carbonated water can also be safely drunk straight, but the addition of gin and lemon juice makes it much more pleasant to drink.
Other well-known mixed drinks
Gin is really very varied and changeable. There are various different recipes and variations to enjoy the well-known juniper schnapps. Other well-known drinks are called: Hot Toddy, London Mule or the White Lady. But you can also prepare well-known drinks without any alcohol at all, such as the Dry Martini without alcohol, Gin Fizz without alcohol or the Tom Collins without alcohol.
Gin facts
- Gin can be made from a wide variety of botanicals, but the main flavour must always come from juniper.
- Contrary to the name, a London Dry Gin does not necessarily have to come from London.
- The exact composition of the botanicals is disclosed by almost every well-known gin brand.
- The Philippines is the main consumer of gin