Many people think that gin originates in England. But that's not really correct. It was invented in the Netherlands. From the Middle Ages on, people knew about the (desinfectant) healing powers of juniper berries. And in the 16th century, a Dutch doctor made distillates from them and called it "genever". When the potion reached England, the islanders changed the name to "gin".
So what about gin & tonic?
Well, this ís in fact an English invention. The English soldiers in India had to ingest quinine on a daily basis, to fight malaria. To mask its extremely bitter taste, they added water, sugar and lime. And so "Indian tonic", like the classic Schweppes used to be called for example, was born. Then one day, one smart guy decided to add gin to his tonic. Et voilà. The man deserves a statue! You can guess the rest of the story...
