The Weird and Wonderful Story of Gin

From the 17th Century to the Present Day

Angela Youngman

• Publisher: Pen and Sword History
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781399002776
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Culinary Arts

Gin is a global alcoholic drink that has polarised opinion like no other, and its history has been a roller coaster, alternating between being immensely popular and utterly unfashionable. The Weird and Wonderful Story of Gin explores the exciting, interesting and downright curious aspects of the drink, with crime, murder, poisons, fires, dramatic accidents, artists, legends and disasters all playing a part. These dark themes are also frequently used to promote brands and drinks. Did you know that the Filipinos are the world’s biggest gin drinkers? And even that Jack the Ripper, Al Capone and the Krays all have their place in the history of gin? Not to mention Sir Winston Churchill, Noel Coward, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and James Bond!

Chapter 1

How It All Began

Born in rebellion and revolt, via hedonism, crime, social upheaval and uncertainty, not counting a pandemic, gin has had an extremely chequered history. From a drink of the wealthy, to the comfort of the poorest of poor, from a boring uncool drink to a fashionable pleasure, the story of gin is one of continual transformation. And it all started with a simple drink, beloved of the Dutch.

The word gin derives from genever (the anglicised form of jenever). This is a botanically rich, clear, malted grain-based spirit, which can now only be made in the Netherlands or Belgium. Since 2008, an official AOC (appellation d’origine contrôlée) has been in place, denoting exactly what constitutes genever and stressing that it can only be produced in these two countries and very specific areas of France and Germany.

No one quite knows exactly where and when genever originated. According to legend, the story begins with a Dutch doctor and alchemist named Sylvius de Bouve working at the University of Leiden, who distilled medicines with juniper berry oil. The problem with this story is that it is known medicines containing the distilled berries of juniper were on sale in the Netherlands by the sixteenth century – and Sylvius de Bouve was born in the seventeenth century. During his tenure at the University of Leiden, he was undoubtedly distilling juniper for medicines, but none of his research papers contain any references to genever. In addition, he was not the first person to distil with juniper. There are written references to genever as long ago as the thirteenth century within Der Naturen Bloeme (The Flower of Nature) by Jacob van Maerlant, an adaptation of an earlier book De Natura Rerum (The Nature of Things) by Thomas of Cantimpré. Much of the content of De Nature Rerum derives from classical Greek and Roman sources.

The invention of the still is believed to date back to Maria the Jewess, a first-century alchemist living in Alexandria. She is said to have been the first true distiller, inventing the bain marie, as well as the tribikos (a device with three arms allowing substances to be purified by distillation) and a kerotakis (a device to heat substances to collect vapours).

The Jenevermuseum in Hasselt, Belgium claims that genever was first produced in Flanders during the thirteenth century. At this period, Flanders was a geographical area covering several parts of the Low Countries including Holland, Luxemburg and parts of what is now northern France. Genever was initially distilled as a medicinal tonic but soon became popular as a social, relaxing drink. Precise dates and records as to when this happened are unknown, but distilleries in Flanders were certainly being taxed from the late fifteenth century onwards. Jenever in de Lage Landen (published by Stichting Kunstboek and the Jenevermuseum) contains references to many different recipes of ‘brandewijn’ (burnt wine) and jenever from the thirteenth century onwards, describing the production of brandewijn flavoured with different herbs and spices, especially juniper berry.

According to Tristan Stephenson’s The Curious Bartender’s Gin Palace, potentially one of the first references to a gin-based recipe occurred in the Duchy of Guelders. He wrote:

In 1495, a wealthy merchant from a region known as the Duchy of Guelders (now part of the Netherlands, near Arnhem) decided it would be a good idea to have a book written for him. Being a household guide, the book documented some of the lavish recipes he and his family were enjoying at the time. Included was a brandy recipe made from ‘10 quarts of wine thinned with clear Hamburg beer’. After distillation, the liquid would be redistilled with ‘two handfuls of dried sage, 1lb of cloves, twelve whole nutmegs, cardamom, cinnamon, galangal, ginger, grains of paradise’ and – crucially – ‘juniper berries’. The spices were placed in a cloth sack and suspended above the distillate, allowing the vapours to extract their flavour. Grinding diamonds over white truffle is as close a comparison as I can imagine to expressing the extravagance of such a recipe during that period. It’s for this reason that it’s highly unlikely that the drink was intended for anything other than sinful pleasures.

Distillers Cooper King experimented with that recipe in 2017, using a medieval style beer recommended by Monnik Beer Company. After two experimental attempts at distillation, Cooper King bottled it at 94% proof commenting that ‘the gin is delicious at this proof, with a lot of sharp edges smoothed off, and the botanicals shine brightly.’

A slightly different recipe was tried by the Gin 1495 project involving Philip Duff, Dave Wondrich, Dave Broom and Gaz Regan, completed in 2015. Their recipe was discovered in another 1495 cookbook from the East Netherlands, formerly owned by Sir Hans Sloane and now in the British Library. This recipe involved a blend of brandy and Marc/Pomace as well as nutmeg, ginger, galangal, seeds of paradise, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, sage and juniper. One part botanicals to nine parts wine distillate were used in the recipe. Two versions of the resultant gin were created, one at 42% ABV, which had very bold flavours and was exceptionally dry with a touch of salty brine and menthol pepper notes. The second version was made using more juniper and citrus, together with the addition of angelica, creating a more citrus, spicy drink with an ABV of 45%.

A further recipe for jenever can be found in a manuscript dated 1552, Een Constelijck Distileerboec, written by Antwerp-based Philippus Hermanni. This booklet is particularly interesting because it contains the first printed recipe of what Hermanni describes as ‘jeneverbessenwater’ (juniper berry water). He was also the first writer to mention ‘geest’ (spirit) when referring to alcohol vapour. His booklet became the most important instructional manual for distillers from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century.

Genever was enjoyed by everyone, not just the nobility. While genever destined for the nobility and wealthy merchants was more likely to include expensive exotic herbs and spices, ordinary people concentrated on using spices abundantly available within the locality, such as juniper berry, caraway seeds, cardamom, aniseed and coriander. Sometimes genever was only grain alcohol or maltwine flavoured with a little juniper berry.

Taverns and alcohol drinking definitely became a central part of local culture within Holland and Flanders, with tavern scenes being depicted by Dutch artists such as Brueghel, Bosch, van de Velde, Jan Steen and Teniers. Pieter Brueghel the Younger’s Peasants Merrymaking Outside the Swan Inn in a Village Street (1630) and Jan Steen’s Merrymaking in a Tavern with a Couple Dancing (c. 1670), are typical of this genre.

Schiedam, just outside Rotterdam, has become one of the centres of genever production. Genever has been distilled at Schiedam for centuries, leading to a steady increase in distillery numbers from 37 to 250. By the late eighteenth century, there were nearly 400 roasters and distilleries in the area exporting genever worldwide.

How did genever get to England?

No one knows just when genever first appeared in England, but it seems to have been a gradual process.

It is likely that cross border links between monasteries led to an exchange of information, with monks distilling liquids for a variety of purposes. Certainly, by the late medieval period there were many Dutch wool merchants trading and living in England who imported genever and introduced the drink to their customers.

In parallel to what was going on in the Low Countries, from 1534 onwards there was a steady increase in the number of distilleries operating in England. The effects of the Reformation and Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries had resulted in hundreds of skilled monks entering civilian life. Many of these had served as alchemists and herbalists within their monasteries, and turned to distilling liquids as a way of earning a living.

Later in the sixteenth century, English soldiers and sailors fighting in the Low Countries during the reign of Elizabeth I encountered genever and brought it back with them to England. In 1623, Philip Massinger’s play, The Duke of Milan contains references to drinking genever. During the 1630s, Dutch ships bearing supplies of genever were frequent visitors to ports like London, Bristol, Plymouth and Liverpool.

The seventeenth century was one of considerable strife throughout Europe, resulting in widespread conflicts involving soldiers of many nationalities, including the Dutch and English. Within the British Isles, the Parliamentarian success in the Civil War resulted in many Royalists going into exile in the Netherlands, inevitably becoming more acquainted with the local drink, genever. Although Charles II regained the throne in 1660, his successor, James, was eventually deposed due to disputes over policy and religion. James’ Protestant daughter Mary and her husband, William of Orange, were invited to take the throne. It was a decision that marked a major milestone in the history of gin.

When William and Mary acceded the throne in 1689, distilling of spirits had already been taking place in England for some decades, albeit on a relatively small scale. Charles I had granted a Royal Charter to the Worshipful Company of Distillers in 1638, giving them a monopoly regarding the production of ‘Aqua Vitae, Aqua Composita, and other strong and hot waters’. The founders of this Worshipful Company included influential people such as Queen Henrietta Maria’s physician, Dr Thomas Cademan, and Sir Théodore Turquet de Mayerne, physician to James I and Charles I.

Medical practitioners were often involved in distilling due to their need to create alcohol for use in their medicines. Such strong waters had been prescribed to sufferers from a variety of ailments, including constipation, for many years. This was one of the key reasons given for creating the Worshipful Company of Distillers. The stated purpose of the Worshipful Company of Distillers was to supply ‘those that be aged and weak in time of sudden qualms and pangs’ in addition to supplying ‘the King’s ships and merchant ships for use shipboard and for sale to foreign nations’.

Among the recipes created by de Mayerne was one for a liquid involving rue, sage, lavender, marjoram, wormwood, rosemary, red roses, thistle, pimpernel, valerian, juniper berries, bay berries, angelica, cirrus bark, coriander, sandalwood, basil, grains of paradise, pepper, ginger, cinnamon, saffron, mace, nutmeg, cubeb, cardamom and galingale.

William of Orange’s arrival heralded a dramatic change in the fortunes of genever in the British Isles. Although versions of juniper-based drinks had been common for medicinal purposes, genever (also known as Hollands) had been an imported drink and invariably more expensive. From 1689, this situation began to alter. William was very fond of genever and increasing numbers of people began drinking it in his honour and to signify their support for the new regime. Dutch records indicate that demand became so great that distillers were loading ships with genever immediately after it was produced, rather than letting it rest for a few weeks as had previously been the practice.

One of William’s first legislative actions was to declare war on France, and he banned imports of French brandy. He lowered taxes on corn, thus making it cheaper to use, and liberalised distilling. In 1690, consent was given to a new law ‘encouraging the distilling of brandy and spirits from corn’. As a result, anyone could make spirits out of British grain, as long as they paid a token customs fee and gave ten days’ notice of their plans to begin distilling. It was a way of thanking his landowning supporters, since they now had a way to make additional profits from grain harvests. Surplus grain not needed for food use, or grain that was unsuitable for food, could be turned into cheap spirits. Consequently, landowners and farmers became closely involved with distillers and equally keen to promote the drinking of this new spirit, which became known as gin. Setting up a distillery was inexpensive, and the output could be huge, creating good profits. Over the next few years, hundreds of distilleries were founded, particularly in London. Cheap to make, gin was a drink that could be sold to a mass market. It was much lower in quality than genever, and was frequently adulterated.

While genever was still imported (and smuggled) for the benefit of the wealthy, gin became the drink of the poor. Gin’s cheapness, scale of demand and level of adulteration highlighted social differences and it became the ‘infamous liquor’ leading to a period of mass intoxication on a scale that had never before been experienced: a poison and a blight on society.

Chapter 2

How The Gin Trade Developed

Although well intended, the decision to encourage sales of gin by helping landowners find new markets for their surplus grain proved to be disastrous. A low quality product, English gin was not regarded as a suitable alternative to Dutch genever. Genever drinkers simply sought out supplies of their favourite product, whereas gin was the drink of the poor. Criticism and opposition to the gin trade became so strong that eventually the government was forced to act – but so dire was the situation that it took decades to make any impact.

People had always got drunk, but what was different this time was the sheer scale involved. What made it so serious was the fact that people were almost continually inebriated. The cheapness of the gin made it accessible to people living at the edges of society, the poor, the deprived and the desperate. Going to the gin shop to buy a dram of gin for a penny was often the only entertainment or leisure activity available. Gin was cheaper than buying bread, and as a warming drink it gave some solace for a little while. The gin shop offered a measure of shelter, and was often more comfortable than the overcrowded, substandard buildings inhabited by these poverty-stricken people. An added advantage was the simple fact that gin was safer to drink than water, which was usually contaminated as it was sourced from streams and rivers that were also used to dispose of human and animal waste.

Rise of the gin shops

Gin was mainly sold from unlicensed premises, often in the backroom of a shop or a private home. Many gin shops offered a simple choice ‘Drunk for a penny, Dead Drunk for Twopence. Clean Straw for nothing.’ Other popular venues to buy gin were wine and spirit merchants trading from what became known as ‘gin vaults’. Gin was also sold in taverns and alehouses, as well as all kinds of general shops like chandlers and grocery stores. It was sold under a variety of names including Cuckold’s Comfort, Ladies Delight and Knock Me Down. There were also countless illegal stills and drinking dens, as well as casual sellers in the streets often carrying ‘little double Dram-cup, which being held up on one side was a Penny, and on the other side a Half-penny’. Some employers partly paid wages in gin, or sold it to their employees. It was universally available.

Everyone drank gin – men, women and children. Women were excluded from alehouses and had to seek beverages elsewhere. The gin shop became the automatic alternative, especially since they could meet their friends there. Gin shops also attracted criminal elements, places where thieves and robbers could meet with fences (people who were happy to trade in stolen goods). It was also where drinkers drank to excess. A pamphlet entitled Distilled Liquors: the Bane of Nations stated:

I am informed, in one place not far from East Smithfield, a Trader has a large empty Room backward, where as his wretched Guests get intoxicated, they are laid together in He...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Chapter 1: How It All Began
• Chapter 2: How The Gin Trade Developed
• Chapter 3: Gin Smuggling
• Chapter 4: Gin’s Progress Through The Nineteenth Century
• Chapter 5: The Deadly Drink
• Chapter 6: Prohibition
• Chapter 7: Gin as a Fashionable Drink
• Chapter 8: Naval Gin
• Chapter 9: Gin’s New Dawn
• Chapter 10: Inspirations for Gin
• Chapter 11: Fantastical Gins
• Chapter 12: Gin Worldwide
• Chapter 13: What Lies Ahead?
• Resources
• Plate section