Gin's tonic

After years of languishing in the shade, gin is finding its way back on to the trendiest cocktail menus. Ben McFarland looks at its resurrection.

Blistering botanicals! After years of drifting around the middle-aged wilderness of Bentleys, twin-sets and pearls, gin is in again.

Having been unceremoniously usurped by the less flavoursome vodka as the UK's most popular white spirit a few years ago, England's most treasured tipple is making a comeback. According to murmurings in the nation's style bars, there is an undoubted resurgence of interest in gin and gin-based cocktails.

Although unlikely to replicate the 1950s cocktail era when gin was the ultimate sign of sophistication, Jason Fendick, bartender, consultant and gin aficionado, believes the time is right for gin to return to its rightful position as the most sophisticated spirit on the back bar.

Jason said: "Bartenders now are starting to look at spirits that have characteristics they can draw on when creating new drinks as opposed to using vodka and adding all the flavour. Gin is a perfect tool and is the base to most classic cocktails, thus promoting modern twists on classics.

"People often talk of an image problem but I like gin's imagery. Gin palaces in the 1920s must have been incredible, but gin still has bad connotations that it needs to shed."

There are a handful of mistruths that have hindered gin's progress.

If you believe the lies, gin is a spirit drunk solely by those who remember the war, is a depressant and killed the Queen Mum, god bless her soul. OK, the last one might not be true, but suffice to say, cliché rather than fact has shaped drinkers' opinions in the past.

In successfully shedding this unwanted baggage, however, gin producers have been arguably more effective than, say, their scotch whisky counterparts.

Much of this can be attributed to the marketing graft of a number of premium gin brands, such as Bombay Sapphire, Plymouth and Tanqueray, which have collectively made gin something that young pretty things are happy to be seen drinking.

Bombay Sapphire, for instance, is cool - and this time it's official. As part of a Brand Council initiative, Bombay Sapphire is one of 60 consumer brands that have been deemed "Cool Brand Leaders" by an achingly trendy panel of judges, which included designer Ozwald Boateng, the international photographer Rankin and Alexandra Shulman, editor of Vogue.

However, a victory for Bombay Sapphire is not necessarily a victory for gin. The Bacardi-Martini brand deliberately markets itself as less of a gin and more of an ultra-trendy "white spirit" which regards leading vodka brands as back-bar rivals.

Its alternative method of distillation leads some hair-splitters to suggest that Bombay is in fact closer to the vodka family than gin.

Bombay's transition from lounge bar to local boozer has already begun. It's the nation's fastest-growing white spirit and in this year's Publican Brands Report, a listing of the top 200 pub drinks brands, it was breathing down the neck of the UK's long-established number two gin, Beefeater.

Having played second fiddle to the market leading Gordon's, Allied Domecq gave its Beefeater gin a premium-style makeover a few years ago in an attempt to move towards the top-end of the market.

While the liquid inside is well regarded by gin connoisseurs, the new see-through label and slimmer bottle, as yet, hasn't won over many in the top-end bar market where style has stolen a march on substance.

As such, Beefeater is feeling the heat, not just from Bombay, but a selection of other lesser-known brands.

Plymouth is another gin on the up. Having been neglected at first by former owner Whitbread, Plymouth has developed a strong following as part of the Maxxium UK stable, and its distinctive taste - derived from the use of only sweet botanicals - differentiates it in the marketplace.

The unique selling point of Quintessential, a super premium gin from G&J Greenall of Warrington, is that it's distilled not once but five times.

Quintessential Warrington Dry Gin, to give its full name, is a marked departure for a company whose primary focus had previously been the mainstream Greenall's Original Dry Gin brand.

For licensees looking for something a bit different, there's plenty out there. Hendrick's, for instance, is a new small batch gin from William Grant & Son's and made in Ayreshire, Scotland.

Flavoured with cucumber and rose petals and packaged in a funky looking medicinal bottle, Hendrick's describes itself as "a most unusual gin" and insists that drinkers should garnish their drink, not with lime, but with a fresh slice of cucumber.

If you like your gin really pure then Juniper Green, the UK's only organic gin, might just be the ticket. Bottled and distilled by the Organic Spirits Company at Britain's smallest distillery in Clapham, South London, Juniper Green has received numerous plaudits, not just for its organic credentials, but for its flavour to.

However, its ABV of 37.5 per cent is not something that goes down well among the cocktail fraternity. There is a general belief that a gin with an ABV of below 40 per cent tends not to deliver in terms of flavour and complexity.

Gordon's, for example, scored an own goal among bartenders when it decided to lower its strength below the 40 per cent mark. Jason said: "It didn't please the industry but I'm not sure how many consumers noticed."

While Gordon's has undergone a revamp and been the subject of a major marketing drive (who could forget the scantily-clad strip chess players) in the mainstream marketplace, Tanqueray has led the charge in the style bar sector.

Tanqueray 10, a super premium gin available in the US, can be found in a few bars but there's been no official UK launch yet.

Gin styles​

To those in the know, the differences in styles of gin are much more pronounced than, say vodka, which means that licensees can justify stocking more than just the market leader and an own label.

• London Dry Gin​

London gin is a style of gin and not, as many people assume, a gin that is made in London. In fact, there only three distilleries left in the capital of which Beefeater is the biggest and The Organic Spirits Company's the smallest.

The "dry" in London dry gin refers back to the time when a sweet gin called "Old Tom" was popular. The "dry" moniker was used as a means of differentiation.

Plymouth Gin​

Plymouth gin is the only gin with a geographic designation, which can be compared to an appellation controlée. As such, it can be made only in Plymouth, England.

The Black Friars distillery produces Plymouth gin at two different strengths: 41.2 per cent ABV (original strength) and 57 per cent ABV (navy strength). The latter at 100 per cent proof, is called 'navy strength' because when the gin was stored in the ships' holds next to the gunpowder it needed to have sufficient alcohol so that the gunpowder would still ignite even if the gin was spilled and it became wet. Considered a lot richer in flavour than its London counterparts.

Genever​

Widely regarded as the original gin from Holland and Belgium. However, for UK palates, the over-bearing taste of juniper is stark compared with "English" gins, and it's a lot oilier. Corenwijn, is genever gin aged in oak casks. Best drunk cold as an aperitif.

Did you know?​

• A tradition began in the Second World War where a bottle o