Gin

The word "Gin" is shortened from the English word Genever, which is the Dutch word for juniper. The origins of Gin are sketchy at best. In the 1580s a juniper-flavored spirit was found in Holland by British troops who were fighting against the Spanish in the Dutch War of Independence. They drank it to give them what they called "Dutch courage" in battle. The Dutch government encouraged people to favor these grain spirits instead of imported wine and brandy by not taxing these local drinks. The origins became a little more clear a few decades later in the 1600s when a Dr. Franciscus de la Bo? created a juniper and spice-flavored medicinal spirit that he marketed as a diuretic. Genever soon became popular across the English Channel. At first it was used as a medicine and then as a beverage. When the Dutch Protestant William of Orange became ruler of England after the "Glorious Revolution" drove James II from the throne, he was adamant about putting a stop to the importation of brandy from the Catholic wine-making countries by setting high taxes on the spirit. He encouraged the production of grain spirits by eliminating taxes and licensing fees for the distilling of such local products as Gin. By the 1720s it was estimated that a quarter of the households in London were used for the production or sale of Gin. As a result, alcoholism became a serious problem. The government tried to prohibit Gin production by instituting the Gin Act of 1736. This resulted in massive illegal distilling and gross over-marketing marketing dubious "medicinal" spirits with such names as Cuckold's Comfort and My Lady's Eye Water. In Holland the production of Genever was quickly integrated into the extensive Dutch trading system. The port of Rotterdam became the hub of Genever distilling. Distilleries opened there to take advantage of the need for spices that were arriving from the Dutch colonies in the East Indies. Many of today's leading Dutch Genever distillers can trace their origins back to the 16th and 17th centuries. Belgium developed its own juniper-flavored spirit, called Jenever. It is made in a similar manner to that of Holland. The German invasions of Belgium in World Wars I and II had a devastating effect on Jenever production because the Germans stripped the distilleries of their copper stills and piping for use in the production of shell casings. The remaining handful of present-day Belgian Jenever distillers produce Jenever primarily for the local domestic market.

The word "Gin" is shortened from the English word Genever, which is the Dutch word for juniper. The origins of Gin are sketchy at best. In the 1580s a juniper-flavored spirit was found in Holland by British troops who were fighting against the Spanish in the Dutch War of Independence. They drank it to give them what they called "Dutch courage" in battle. The Dutch government encouraged people to favor these grain spirits instead of imported wine and brandy by not taxing these local drinks. The origins became a little more clear a few decades later in the 1600s when a Dr. Franciscus de la Bo? created a juniper and spice-flavored medicinal spirit that he marketed as a diuretic. Genever soon became popular across the English Channel. At first it was used as a medicine and then as a beverage. When the Dutch Protestant William of Orange became ruler of England after the "Glorious Revolution" drove James II from the throne, he was adamant about putting a stop to the importation of brandy from the Catholic wine-making countries by setting high taxes on the spirit. He encouraged the production of grain spirits by eliminating taxes and licensing fees for the distilling of such local products as Gin. By the 1720s it was estimated that a quarter of the households in London were used for the production or sale of Gin. As a result, alcoholism became a serious problem. The government tried to prohibit Gin production by instituting the Gin Act of 1736. This resulted in massive illegal distilling and gross over-marketing marketing dubious "medicinal" spirits with such names as Cuckold's Comfort and My Lady's Eye Water. In Holland the production of Genever was quickly integrated into the extensive Dutch trading system. The port of Rotterdam became the hub of Genever distilling. Distilleries opened there to take advantage of the need for spices that were arriving from the Dutch colonies in the East Indies. Many of today's leading Dutch Genever distillers can trace their origins back to the 16th and 17th centuries. Belgium developed its own juniper-flavored spirit, called Jenever. It is made in a similar manner to that of Holland. The German invasions of Belgium in World Wars I and II had a devastating effect on Jenever production because the Germans stripped the distilleries of their copper stills and piping for use in the production of shell casings. The remaining handful of present-day Belgian Jenever distillers produce Jenever primarily for the local domestic market.