h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

well, here is my contribution.
get yer gin recipies
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And here's what I found out about Gin history!


Dr. Sylvuis (Franz de la Bo&#955 invented Gin in 1650, in the Netherlands. It was originally intended as a remedy for kidney disorders. He used neutral grain spirits flavored with the oil of juniper. He called it genever after the French term geniθvre meaning juniper. It was being commercially produced by 1655 and English soldiers serving in the area, took affection to the spirit.

During the English reign of William and Mary (around 1689) home production of gin was encouraged. The spread of popularity was widespread and became synonymous with the poor and abuse of the drink was rampant. This is the forerunner of what was known as known as Old Tom's Gin, which was heavily sweetened.

Dry gin was introduced in the 1870's and gin took on respectability in England once again. Finer establishments served "pink gins" and the cocktail age dawned in England the same time prohibition began in the U. S.

During prohibition, bathtub gin was made in America by taking the poisons out of denatured alcohol to recover the ethyl alcohol. This was then flavored with juniper, diluted, then bottled. There were seventy-five different denaturing formulas, so if the purification process was not done by a skilled chemist, vile, and even deadly results often occurred.

Of the Dutch Gin, the are two types "oude" which means old, and the lighter "jounge" which means young. It has nothing to do with the age, but in the methods of distillation. These are not really suitable for cocktails and are often enjoyed straight.

There is a German Gin which is referred to as Wacholder, or juniper. It is distilled with the juniper right in it instead of adding the flavoring afterwards, so the result is quite strong in flavor. Traditionally it is served chilled as a shot with a beer chaser.

London Dry Gin refers to the fact that the gin is dry. Only Beefeater is actually made in London. English Gins are generally more flavorful and considered superior to American Gins. Plymouth Gin is made in Plymouth, England from the waters of the Devon moors. It is smooth and full flavored. Flavored gins are made by simple infusion. Usually lemon and mint are popular. Golden Gin is the only gin that is aged briefly in wooden barrels which gives it the pale color. Sloe Gin is not gin at all, it is a liqueur.

There are two methods for producing gin. Distillation and rectifying (or the redistillation of distilled neutral grain). Flavoring of the neutral spirit is the most common means and thus has lead to various debates as to whether gin is merely a flavored vodka. The primary flavor is of course, juniper. Other flavors, each a highly guarded secret among the bottlers, include; coriander, cassia bark, angelica, orange peel, orris root, cardamon, licorice, and other botanicals.

Thank you very much for your contribution. I have already added it to my project pages. Now I do have a question about this Franz de la Bo?? What special character do you mean?
Other question: do you know which companies first produced Gin in Holland? Maybe one that still (haha) has a website? That would be killer!

I hope you don't mind me rewording it a little. I wanted to work in the information I received from cash. If you feel it has lost it's touch, please let me know and make suggestions on how to get that touch back...

Thanks to your contribution I was also able to reasonably get started on the "Types of Gin" document. This was a major breakthrough. Thank you very much indeed.

-Gin
Keeper and Mixer of the Gin and Tonic,
Muse of the Lemon Garden

the name is Franz de la Bol with an L of greek charater set, like a Y upside down.

you could try also reading
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*do you know which companies first produced Gin in Holland?*
-Well about that... I'll keep searching and I'll post you the answere as soon as I find it...

your welcome. (its not like I have many things 2 do, and I AM a newbie after all... maybe you could put in a good word 4 me... Im trying 2 become a keeper and a muse!)

Here is your chronological History of Gin






12th Century
Records reveal distillation practiced for medical purposes at Salerno Medical School. Invention of process variously attributed to Chinese, Persians and Arabs.

1650
Franciscus Sylvius, Dutch doctor in the city of Leyden, Holland infuses juniper berries into distilled spirits in a search for a cure to kidney and stomach disorders and creates "jenever" origin.

Late 1680's
Dutch exports of gin at over 10 million gallons a year.

1689
William of Orange, Dutch consort to Queen Mary of England, bans imports of French brandy and levies duties on German spirits, guaranteeing a market for Dutch spirits in England. At the same time, the distilling trade is opened to locals who begin procuring "Dutch Courage".

1690
Londoners consume one-half million gallons of gin.

1695
British beer taxes are raised, making gin the cheapest beverage in England.

1720's
"Gin Madness" spreads through London as an escape from the brutal life of the nascent working class. Dram shops advertise, "Drunk for a penny, dead drunk for two pence and a straw for nothing".

1729
First of a series of unsuccessful Parliamentary acts to curtail gin consumption in London.

1750
Londoners consume 11 million gallons of gin per year.

1751
The Tippling Act is passed by Parliament - the beginning of the end of "Gin Madness". The act eliminates small gin shops and leaves the distribution of gin to larger distillers and retailers. Within a few years consumption is down to 2 million gallons per year and the quality of gin has improved. Gin is on its way to becoming a gentleman's drink.

Mid-18th Century
Gin comes to the New World with the settlers.

1825 - 1835
Robert Stein of Scotland and Aeneas Coffey of Ireland invent the column still. The distiller has less control over the product, but can produce far more of it in the same amount of time.

Mid-19th Century
Gin becomes a respectable drink in British high society, served in gentleman's clubs. In the meantime, it becomes drier and more refined.

1860's
A great notion is born - three times in different places! Martini birth #1: Jerry Thomas, bartender at San Francisco's Occidental Hotel, mixes up a "Martinez" for a traveler bound for that town. It consists of bitters, maraschino, vermouth, ice and Old Tom (sweet gin). Sugar syrup added on request.

1870
Gin's position in Britain moves up as it grows drier and more refined. "Indian tonic water" is invented to disguise the unpleasant taste of the quinine necessary to fight malaria in the tropics. It combines will with gin and the gin and tonic is born. Martini birth #2: A gold miner pays for a bottle of whiskey in the town of Martinez with a nugget so big he demands an extra drink. The bartender dubs it a "Martinez".

1879
Founding of Dirkzwager distillery in Schiedam, Holland.

1912
Martini birth #3: Martini di Arma DI Taggia, bartender at New York's Hotel Knickerbocker, mixes up a drink using equal parts of gin and dry vermouth.

August 16, 1920
The Volstead Act (Prohibition) goes into effect. Saloons and bars give way to speakeasies. Gin, the easiest spirit to produce illegally, is king and contributes to the rising popularity of the cocktail because of its smooth, dry quality and because it mixes well with other flavors. Spirit consumption goes up and moves from the saloon to the home. Women civilize the saloons.

1934
The Volstead Act is repealed, ending Prohibition.

Early 1950's
The cocktail hour becomes an established feature of the US lifestyle and executives enshrine the three-martini lunch.

Mid-1970's
Executives sober up and Perrier replaces the three martinis at the executive table.

1976
Vodka surpasses gin and whiskey to become the most widely-consumed spirit in the U. S.

1985
Time Magazine calls the martini an "amusing antique".

1993
U. S. tax laws are changed to allow only 50 percent of "lavish and extravagant" entertaining to be deducted as business expenses. Thus ends the three-martini lunch.

Mid-1990's
The martini stages a comeback, particularly among the 20's and 30's age group and becomes associated with retro culture, deco style, night clubs, cigars and Hollywood's depiction of the thirties' lifestyle.

1995
The Wall Street Journal reports that while overall spirits sales in 1994 were down 2.5%, gin sales increased by 2%.

1997
Holland does it again! Light, 80-proof Leyden Dry Gin, produced in Schiedam's historic Dirkzwager distillery and aimed to satisfy gin and vodka drinkers alike, is the first new gin to appear on the American market in 10 years.

Dirkzwager distillery in Schiedam, Holland.

was supposedly the first!

but do take into account I found all that on the net, so I'm not 100% sure of theire accuracy.

Wow! That's an aweful lot of text! And I wanted to go home now.

One little thing though: your urls were removed. Can you maybe create an entry so that I can have them, too? (These moderators are really fast. Your post is 3 minutes old and already all links gone.)

Concerning the Keepers - go to Archangel Galaxy Babe. (You can tell her I sent you, but there's no need to. She's a nice person.) The list of Keepers can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A441596

The Muses are kept by (St)Dragonfly.
Looka here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A498936

If you want I can make you a Mixer. Sounds a little awkward, I know.

-Gin
Keeper and Mixer of the Gin and Tonic
Muse of the Lemon Garden

I will place the urls in my home page since the moderators do not allow messages with urls. check them out there. in my home page.

Anyway, I already applied 2 be an Angel (talked to Babe on icq)

I will contact the keepers shortly.

And you can check out my application 2 be a mixer in a while. I'll post you a msg in that forum.

I'd like to b the Mixer Of O and I blended and molt (kinnda like whiskey)
thnx