The most common style of gin, typically used for mixed drinks, is London dry gin. London dry gin is made by taking a neutral grain spirit (usually produced in a column still) and redistilling after the botanicals are added. In addition to juniper, it is usually made with a small amount of citrus botanicals like lemon and bitter orange peel. Other botanicals that may be used include anise, angelica root and seed, orris root, licorice root, cinnamon, coriander, and cassia bark.

Here's even more that you didn't need to know. Distilled gin evolved from the Dutch spirits jonge- and oude- Jenever or Genever (young and old Dutch gin), Plymouth gin, and Old Tom gin. Compound gin is gin where the juniper flavoring is added to the neutral spirit and there is no redistillation. Sloe gin is a common ready-sweetened form of gin that is traditionally made by infusing sloes (the fruit of the blackthorn) in gin. Similar infusions are possible with other fruits, such as damask plum. Hmmm. Why not take a shot of frozen Stoli vodka and add, ummm, let's see... YEAH! Barbecue Sauce! That's it! And Hershey's Chocolate Syrup too! Yum! 

A well-made gin will be relatively dry compared to other spirits. Gin is often mixed in cocktails with sweeter ingredients like tonic water or vermouth to balance this dryness.

This practice is clearly for dweebs. Plain and simple. Anyone who takes a good, or even decent gin and adds something that tastes worse to it is not a real brain is he? Some things need the mix to compliment the liquor. Afterall, you can't have a Pimm's No. 1 Cup without adding Bitters to the Pimm's. I mean, that would be sort of like a peanut butter and banana sandwich without mayonnaise. Who would do that, I ask you. But Vermouth? Dry or sweet, it makes no difference. It should be used in small quantities to attract ants and keep them away from good things.

The origin of gin is sort of interesting, as it were. Gin originated in the Netherlands in the 17th century. Its invention is often credited to the physician Franciscus Sylvius. It was sold in pharmacies and used to treat such medical problems as kidney ailments, lumbago, stomach ailments, gallstones, and gout. It spread to England after the Glorious Revolution put William of Orange on the British throne. Dutch gin, also known as jenever or genever, is a distinctly different drink from English-style gin; it is distilled with barley and sometimes aged in wood, giving it a slight resemblance to whisky. Schiedam, in South Holland, is famous for its jenever. Jenever is produced in a pot still and is typically lower in alcohol and more strongly flavored than London gin.

This is significant mostly because the Dutch have had so little to offer the world throughout history that we find it amusing that the nectar of the gods, a gin martini that is, cannot be produced without their contribution. Today's challenge: Not including gin, think of 6 things that have enhanced the quality of your life (and that's what this feature is all about) that are a product of the Netherlands.

So where does "London Dry Gin" come into the picture?

Gin became very popular in England after the government allowed unlicensed gin production and at the same time imposed a heavy duty on all imported spirits. This created a market for poor-quality grain that was unfit for brewing beer, and thousands of gin-shops sprang up all over England. By 1740 the production of gin had increased to six times that of beer, and because of its cheapness it became extremely popular with the poor. (Those were the days...) Of the 15,000 drinking establishments in London, over half were gin-shops. Beer maintained a healthy reputation as it was often safer to drink the brewed ale than unclean plain water. And water purity has never been a bragging point for England. Sort of like dental care from the looks of things. Gin, though, was blamed for various social and medical problems, and it may have been a factor in the high death rate that caused London's previously increasing population to remain stable. This negative reputation survives today in the English language, in terms like "gin-mills" to describe disreputable bars or "gin-soaked" to refer to drunks, and in the phrase "Mother's Ruin," a common British name for gin. And an enlarged nose full of broken blood vessels to be referred to as a "Gin Blossom". (Actually, it's more than likely rosacea.)

The Gin Act 1736 imposed high taxes on retailers and led to riots in the streets. Here in Las Vegas you would probably see much the same reaction in modern times. The prohibitive duty was gradually reduced and finally abolished in 1742. The Gin Act 1751 was more successful, however. It forced distillers to sell only to licensed retailers and brought gin-shops under the jurisdiction of local magistrates. Gin in the 18th century was produced in pot stills, and was somewhat sweeter than the London gin known today.

In London in the early eighteenth century, gin sold on the black market was prepared in illicit stills (of which there were 1500 in 1726) and was often adulterated with turpentine and sulphuric acid. As late as 1913 Webster's Dictionary states without further comment that 'Common gin is usually flavored with turpentine.'

In tropical British colonies, gin was used to mask the bitter flavor of quinine, a protection against malaria, which was dissolved in carbonated water to form tonic water. This was the origin of today's popular gin and tonic combination, even though quinine is no longer used against malaria, nor would it be necessary for the majority of today's consumers of the drink.

Gin is a popular base spirit for many mixed drinks, including the martini. Secretly produced "bathtub gin" was commonly available in the speakeasies and "blind pigs" of Prohibition-era America due to the relative simplicity of the production method. Gin remained popular as the basis of many cocktails after the repeal of Prohibition.