Raising Spirits: Spirited effort

The history of gin is absolutely embedded in the last 300 years of English social history. Starting from Dutch origins, when, according to legend, English soldiers in the Thirty Years War found allied Dutch soldiers drinking "genever" to give them what became known as "Dutch Courage", gin soon became the national spirit of England. This was thanks in no small part to Dutch King William of Orange, who was later crowned William III.

By the mid-18th century gin was the drink of choice for people across England - it had even become cheaper to buy than beer. But by the 19th century businessmen such as Alexander Gordon and Charles Tanqueray had founded their own gin recipes and distilleries and gin became the spirit of choice for the middle classes - all enjoyed in the new vogue place to drink: the gin palace.

And yet over the last 100 years gin's popularity slowly but surely waned and in the 1990s it was emphatically overtaken as the "national spirit" by vodka .

However, more recently bartenders in top-end style bars have really begun to turn back to gin - the spirit that is the traditional and original base for so many cocktails.

This has been coupled with the launch of new brands, with sharp design and clever marketing, that really have taken the gin category and given it a massive and much-needed shake-up.

Now we have a category bursting with ideas. And these ideas are filtering down into the pub arena…

How is gin made?

The basics

• The production of gin is almost like painting on a blank canvass. You take a neutral spirit and blend in whatever flavours the distiller wants
• The spirit is usually made from grain or molasses
• You then add the flavours - known as botanicals
• All gins use juniper. After that the make-up of the gin is down to the individual recipes, all of which are closely guarded secrets
• Other botanicals that are used include coriander, angelica, orange peel, lemon peel, cardomom, cinnamon, cubeb berries and nutmeg
• According to the Gin & Vodka Association a top gin will contain between six and 10 botanicals
• The neutral spirit and botanicals are mixed (most often in a copper still) and distilled

What's so special about Plymouth?

One of gin's unique qualities is its often close association with the place it was originally produced in.

Just look at London and arguably the world's most famous gin style - London Dry gin.

When it first appeared this meant the new, unsweetened style of gin being produced in London in the late 1800s. And yet today London Dry is not unique to England's capital city.

Produced in places as far flung as Malaga and even Warrington, there are only three distilleries in London that produce London Dry (the most famous of which is Beefeater).

However, Plymouth gin is different. All Plymouth gin has to be made in Plymouth, and this has been the case since it was first produced at the Black Friars Distillery in 1793.

Its name and style of production is legally protected in much the same way as French wines are under the appelation controlée rules.

All Plymouth gin continues to be made in the same copper that was used in the 1850s, and using water from the Dartmoor Spring. A modern visitors' centre now adjoins the distillery.

Strength

Like most other spirits categories, gin breaks up into what brand managers call "standard" and "premium" categories. Some might even use that questionable phrase "super premium".

Where gin differs however is that there is only one all-conquering "standard" gin. While Smirnoff dominates the "standard" vodka sector, Vladivar performs creditably. But Gordon's Original stands alone in the gin sector. The latest AC Nielsen statistics confirm this, showing the brand with a 75 per cent market share.

Rival brands are perfectly aware of this and are quite happy to take a step back and position their brands in the "premium" category. "People expect to be served Gordon's as a standard gin," says Eileen Livingston, senior marketing manager for Plymouth Gin. "I think we are battling it out with Bombay Sapphire in the premium category."

Sophie Lockyear, marketing manager for Bombay Sapphire, agrees. "From our perspective Gordon's is the ongoing mainstream gin. If we were going to compare ourselves to other brands it would be to vodka brands like Absolut and Stoli. We are a drink for people who want to treat themselves on special occasions," she says.

And brand owners outside of the Diageo-owned Gordon's believe that licensees can trade on the premium nature of the brands and make more profit.

"Whereas Gordon's is very juniper-based, Bombay has 10 botanicals. It is more carefully blended and has a much more balanced flavour," says Sophie. "Plus thanks to its unique design, Bombay also looks great on the back-bar. So I think the product will work for licensees if they want to upsell. We recommend that licensees charge 15p to 20p more per serve than standard gins, and we know that consumers are willing to pay that extra."

40% - the magic number

True gin fans believe that the spirit's magic ABV is 40 per cent. They say it is a mystical cut-off point, below which all the subtle flavours and botanicals just disappear. Gin is distilled using all kinds of weird and wonderful additives such as coriander, lemon and orange peel but they say the spirit can only hold onto these flavours if it holds its 40 per cent strength.

So when Gordon's took the decision to reduce its ABV to 37.5 per cent it received huge criticism. Mark Ridgwell, founder of spirit experts network Taste and Flavour, says the decision only made sense commercially. "Gordon's did a lot of good for gin when it dropped the ABV below 40 per cent, as it allowed them to invest significantly in the category. However, the move did bugger-all for taste," he says.

This of course may explain why Diageo took the decision last year to launch a new Gordon's gin: Distiller's Cut. Infused with lemongrass and ginger. Crucially, the ABV was set at 40 per cent.

The marketing of Plymouth gin is not only focused on its taste but also on its premium ABV. "We trade on our taste - in blind taste tests we almost always come out on top," says Eileen Livingston.

"And this is because of the seven botanicals we use in production - known as the 'magnificent seven'. At 41.2 per cent ABV it is also stronger than its competitors as our master blender believes that is the perfect strength to hold the botanicals."

Drinks writers Susy Atkins and Dave Broom in their excellent book "Drink!" would agree.

"Something weird happens to gin when it goes below 40 per cent. You don't just lose the strength, you lose the flavour and complexity. Gin is as delicious and fragrant a spirit as any," they argue. "Please support the best of them and go for the brands that are 40 per cent and above. You know it makes sense."

How to make the most of gin in your pub

• Treat each gin you sell as a recipe
• Learn what sets each gin apart from the other - how old each one is, what flavours make up the different products. For example, learn which gins are the most balanced so you can mix them with confidence. Bombay Sapphire will mix much better with a wide range of mixers than a classic gin like Beefeater which has much stronger juniper notes.
• This knowledge is vital if you are to justify sales and prices to your customers - if a customer wants a traditio