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A 'gin and tonic' is a highball cocktail made with gin and tonic water, usually garnished with a slice of lime and/or lemon, served over ice. The ratio of gin to tonic water can vary considerably, from a glass of gin with a splash of tonic to one part gin for every five parts tonic.
In some countries, gin and tonic is marketed pre-mixed in single-serving cans.

Contents

History

In popular culture

Comics

Literature

Music

Television

See also

History

This cocktail was introduced by the army of the British East India Company in India.
Tonic water contains quinine, which was used to prevent malaria. Because the tonic water consumed to prevent malaria in the 18th century was extremely bitter, gin was added to make it more palatable. Although the consumption of tonic water currently has less medical use than it once did, the gin and tonic remains a popular drink. Tonic water available today contains less quinine and is consequently less bitter (usually sweetened). Because of this connection to warmer climates and its refreshing nature, this cocktail is more popular during the warmer months.
Lore has it that the sheer quantity of limes (for the prevention of scurvy) and quinine (for the aforementioned prevention of malaria) was so unpalatable that the only way to get the members of the British Army to consume the prescribed amount was with the addition of gin. [1]

In popular culture

Comics

Gin and tonic is the preferred drink of fictional character John Constantine from the comic series Hellblazer.

Literature

The gin and tonic has gained a central place in cultural and literary life, appearing as a bit part in numerous novels. One such example is in the ''Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' series, where it is stated that eighty-five percent of the races in the galaxy have each independently developed drinks that are pronounced the same, but spelled differently (namely, the spelling variations were ''jynnantonnyx, gee-N-N-T'N-ix, jinond-o-nicks, chinanto/mnigs, and tzjin-anthony-ks''), and which bear no resemblance to one another other than the pronunciation of the name and that they were all invented and named ''before'' the worlds concerned made contact with any other worlds. Also in the book ''Life, the Universe and Everything,'' Ford hallucinates and spends a few weeks thinking he was a lemon "jumping in and out of a gin and tonic." When asked where he found a gin and tonic on pre-historic earth, he replies he had temporarily gone insane, had found a small lake that thought it was "a gin and tonic," (or at least he thought it thought it was a gin and tonic) and had spent a few weeks jumping in and out of it. Also, in the radio and television series, Arthur Dent's first trip through hyperspace is described as "unpleasantly like being drunk"--that is, the way a glass of water is drunk. On experiencing the jump, Arthur moans, "I'll never be cruel to a gin and tonic again."

Music

Gin and tonic is mentioned in a number of popular songs, among them Adam Sandler's ''The Chanukah Song,'' Barenaked Ladies' ''Alcohol,'' Big Bad Voodoo Daddy's ''You & Me & The Bottle Makes Three Tonight (Baby),'' Billy Joel's ''Piano Man,'' Oasis' debut single ''Supersonic'' and the Ramones song, ''Somebody Put Something in My Drink.''
Also, Reverend Horton Heat have a song named ''Gin and Tonic Blues'' consisting only of lyrics,
"I need a Gin'n'Tonic water, baby/Gin'n'Tonic water feelin' better/Give me a Gin'n'Tonic/Gin'n'Tonic/I need it now!" repeated many times.

Television

In an episode of The Simpsons entitled ''Flaming Moe's,'' Moe the bartender looks at a chart of cocktail drinks and says, "Gin and... tonic? Do they mix?"
Gin and tonic was the preferred drink of Mrs. Slocombe (played by Mollie Sugden) of Are You Being Served?, as she couldn't bear neat gin.
In the 2007 BBC Programme Special of 'Top Gear', Jeremy Clarkson and James May drink gin and tonic while driving across the North Pole because there are no drunk-driving laws in the International Waters of the North Pole.

See also

★ List of cocktails