Talk:Gin and tonic

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Facebook Group[edit]

"Recently it has seen an upsurge in its popularity as a fashionable drink, so much so that it even has its own day of the week Gin & Tonic Friday, celebrated weekly on Facebook with fans uploading their pictures of Gin & Tonics."

Whilst it is good to see an increase in popularity of the drink, I'm not sure that a Facebook Group is sufficiently noteworthy. But I'd like to hear other views. --Ethanbentley (talk) 07:01, 15 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Gin Tonica[edit]

This should be included as it is a significant development in the evolution of the gin and tonic which is having an impact on the future of the industry. Bombay Sapphire and Tanqueray as well as a number of smaller brands have brought out specifically designed branded glasses for this purpose. It differs because the glassware is very different and isn't used for many other applications, there is a much greater focus on the garnish and the ice:gin:tonic ratio is different.

It is not just a translation it is a reference to a different style. It could also be known as a Gin & Tonic in the Spanish Style but gin tonic is the technical term. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ethanbentley (talk • contribs) 18:26, 10 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

This whole section is misleading - suggesting that Gin Tónic is a different drink worthy of it's own subsection: "In Spain, a drink called Gin Tónic has become popular. This differs from a traditional gin and tonic as it is served in balloon glass or coupe glass with plenty of ice and a garnish tailored to the flavours of the gin." If anything this should just be a note on the popularity of gin and tonic in Spain and the way in which it is served there. It shouldn't imply a separate drink. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.78.243.131 (talk) 13:37, 23 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I feel inclined to agree with the original author, although I would say Gin Tonica is a clearer term than just "gin tonic" it's not a completely separate drink (otherwise it would have it's own page)but is a distinct sub-category. It has at least two (maybe 3) factor differentiating it from a standard American gin and tonic and having tried both with the same gin there is a whole world of difference. Keep it maybe just change the term to Gin Tonica. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.103.9.42 (talk) 13:18, 27 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Curb Your Enthusiam[edit]

I don't have all the details, nor am I very experienced at writing wiki entries, but I would like to see added to this article that there is an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm which mentions Gin & Tonic. Larry finds out that he was adopted and is actually a WASP, therefore he must start drinking Gin & Tonic's to fit in. Funny stuff. It was the final episode of Season 4 I believe, the one where Dustin Hoffman and Sascha Baron Cohen have cameos.

I think in general Wikipedia is moving away from simply mentioning that a particular thing appeared in a television programme, film etc, towards a model whereby only significant appearances of that thing are covered, and only then in prose rather than list form. Ideally these appearances should be significant outside the context of the television show, film, etc. -Ashley Pomeroy (talk) 18:01, 7 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]
In what way is this television appearance relevant to the topic of the article? Even if it was significant for the television series, it's still not significant for this article. It may be mentioned at curb your enthusiasm, if appropriate.--85.177.153.184 (talk) 16:18, 17 July 2008 (UTC)--85.177.153.184 (talk) 16:18, 17 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Lime/Lemon garnish[edit]

I've added Lemon again in the intro as this is what i usually get when ordering a G&T instead of Lime. Allthough a quick round on google reveals recipes mostly only list a wedge of lime as garnish, in reality (read in bars, both in western europe and asia) usually a wedge of lemon is served. My guess is that that has someything to do with the lesser avilability/more expensive lime. . . . s k i n 21:57, 23 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I believe this may be a European thing (per your suggestion that bars in Western Europe serve lemon gin & tonics). In the US, I've never been served, offered, or seen a gin & tonic served with anything but a lime. This includes a range of bars from cocktail bars, nightclubs, dives and even a cheap minibar on a riverboat dinner cruise (roughly, I would imagine, the quality of drink one would expect from a diner at 2 am). This tells me that in the US, you'll get a lime. Although to be fair, my experience is limited to New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Still, I'd bet nobody would make you a gin & tonic with a lemon in the US. Beyond that, as a personal opinion/recommendation, go with the lime.
71.234.58.230 (talk) 01:30, 6 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I read an article (not very reputable, a carriers in-flight magazine) about the original 'Gin and Tonic' being served with lemon and not lime! Are there any researchers with really old (and reliable) cocktail books out there who could clarify the situation? (The fact that the British are called 'Limies' by us 'Krauts' seems to point in the other direction, though...)

... I have never been given a gin and tonic with a lemon. Wild. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.200.169.241 (talk) 05:37, 28 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

... UK here and I've never seen a gin and tonic garnished with lime- it has always been a slice of lemon, and I've been drinking them for nearly 25 years. As for the limey comment above, my understanding is that lime juice was used by the Navy as a dietary supplement to help prevent scurvy, and that was where the nickname came from. IrishPete 15:59, 22 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

The London edition of Esquire's "Handbook for Hosts" (October 2004) calls for 1/2 a lime as garnish.--Ethanbentley (talk) 07:03, 15 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Some months ago I addressed this issue by introducing a new section, entitled "garnish", which makes clear the fact that gin companies recommend lime as the garnish, but also reflects the fact that in the UK lemon has become a more common garnish in many pubs and bars. Today an anonymous editor removed one sentence, which I have now restored. Firstly, the sentence reflects a fact that is stated in multiple sources, which is why the reference I have cited clearly states that it is "an example" of many such sources available. (The comment above, by Ethanbentley (talk) quotes another possible example of the same type of source.) Secondly, I selected this particular source specifically because there is a Wikipedia article about the source itself, thus establishing its credentials as notable. (The anonymous editor seems to think that the length of the article somehow undermines the source, whereas according to policy the existence of the article strengthens the source. Timothy Titus Talk To TT 13:14, 18 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]

With reference to the anonymous change to the infobox today (which I have reverted) it is demonstrable from the sources that lime is the historical garnish, and still the virtually universal garnish outside the UK. It is equally demonstrable that lime is the garnish recommended by all the major distillers. I have searched for a gin distiller who recommends lemon as a garnish, but have found none. For an exception to be marked in the info box it really does need more weight behind it than the unusual practice of a single nation; particularly as, even in the UK, it is very much a "pub" practice - in any of the best hotels of London or the gentlemen's Clubs, you will be given lime, not lemon. The partial UK practice is fully and unambiguously reported in the appropriate section of the article. Timothy Titus Talk To TT 15:08, 24 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I agree with the above user [Timothy Titus] views on the prevalence of lime as a a garnish and whilst the info box should not been changed. However I have added to the section on garnishes a link and a little accompanying text about the debate. I have referenced a New York Time article that address the debate and has the Master Distiller of Beefeater, a major distillery, the founder of Fevertree (a popular high-end tonic), an American bartender/bar owner and another gin veteran, Simon Ford all favouring the use of lemon. I think the fact that this article (from a non-UK source) demonstrates the debate of lemon vs. lime should be reflected in the wiki article as such I have edited to the language used to make it more objective. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ethanbentley (talk • contribs) 20:39, 29 June 2013 (UTC) --Ethanbentley (talk) 20:41, 29 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Gin and Tonic is a British drink and in Britain they serve lemon. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.202.213.23 (talk) 16:57, 2 August 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Firstly, it is not a British drink - you can get one almost anywhere in the world. Secondly, in Britain they serve it with lime in all smart establishments, from gentlemen's clubs to west end hotels. You are correct that in British pub culture lemon is commonly used, but it has been pointed out to you repeatedly that this is unique to British working class/lower middle class culture, unusual in the rest of the world, and contrary to the instructions of all the major distilleries, which recommend the use of lime. Please stop pushing your personal point of view - Wikipedia is an encyclopaedia, not a handbook of your life, or anyone else's. Also, please sign your comments on talk pages. Also, please observe the accepted Wikipedia practice of placing new comments at the bottom of a section, not randomly in the middle. Thank you. Timothy Titus Talk To TT 17:04, 2 August 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think it's at all established that lemon is a UK peculiarity. In Australia, I've never seen lime in a G&T — it's always lemon. And when I have ordered G&T in Spain, it came garnished with lemon. Perhaps lime is a US thing, and lemon is more universal elsewhere. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.220.99.126 (talk) 10:27, 12 September 2016 (UTC)[reply]

A proper gin and tonic, in my opinion, shouldn't be contaminated with any fruit. It contains gin, tonic water, and (at most) a small number of ice cubes. -- But if you have to have it, it's usually and preferably lemon. Not sure I've ever seen one with lime. I'm from Germany, but I've been to many places in Europe. 78.55.216.38 (talk) 05:20, 16 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

H2G2[edit]

There is an interesting quote in the Hitchhiker's Guide re the Gin and Tonic but since it's copyright I don't know how to refer to it here

You can quote short excerpts from copyright material as long as you properly attribute it:

In Life, the Universe and Everything, by Douglas Adams, Ford Prefect describes a psychotic episode to Arthur Dent thus:

"... then I decided that I was a lemon for a couple of weeks. I kept myself amused all that time jumping in and out of a gin and tonic."
Arthur cleared his throat, and then did it again. "Where," he said, "did you...?"
"Find a gin and tonic?" said Ford brightly. "I found a small lake that thought it was a gin and tonic, and jumped in and out of that. At least, I think it thought it was a gin and tonic.
"I may," he addded with a grin which would have sent sane men scampering into the trees, "have been imagining it."

um...I think he was thinking of another quote...the one in the spaceship full of phone sanitizers, where the captain in the bathtub asks them if they want a jynnan tonnyx, and Adams explains how every culture has a drink called gin and tonic...:)

Perhaps you mean this one (from Restaurant at the End of the Universe) :

It is a curious fact, and one to which no one knows quite how much importance to attach, that something like 85% of all known worlds in the Galaxy, be they primitive or highly advanced, have invented a drink called jynnan tonnyx, or gee-N'N-T'N-ix, or jinond-o-nicks, or any one of a thousand or more variations on the same phonetic theme. The drinks themselves are not the same, and vary between the Sivolvian "chinanto/mnigs" which is ordinary water server at slightly above room temperature, and the Gagrakackan "tzjin-anthony-ks" which kills cows at a hundred paces; and in fact the one common factor between all of them, beyond the fact that the names sound the same, is that they were all invented and named before the worlds concerned made contact with any other worlds.

This HHGG quote has no place here. It is completely irrelevant. Contrary to geek culture, most people have not read the book, and don't care what one particular writer has to say about it. The quotation is not even about gin and tonic! What does it tell us about gin & tonic -- nothing! -- other than the fact that Adams is clever as producing alternative spellings of the word. Plus it hardly helps wikipedia's image --- Tarquin 22:37, 25 Aug 2003 (UTC)

Very entertaining quote, though… ;o) — OwenBlacker 22:50, Sep 23, 2004 (UTC)


Damn right, will you sci-fi nerds PLEASE stop sticking references to your favourites books/TV shows/films in every single fucking thread where it's not even remotely relevant? Sometimes I feel like going into all the Star Trek and Firefly articles sticking in references to things that have barely the most remote connection with them, just for revenge.


The statement comes after a statement about it's "culteral and literary" acceptance. In that context, it's a valid point of entry. If you wish to cut it down (say: "One such example is in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series" and leave it at that), or to find another example to add, that would also be relevant. -FrYGuY 08:58, 2 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I find the common "In Popular Culture" sections in WP articles very valuable and I"d say this article lacks one, which in turn of course should mention Hitch Hiker's Guide. But I guess users like Tarquin and FrYGuY above are against "In Popular Cultere" sections alltogether. Or??? WinTakeAll (talk) 03:11, 11 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]
I agree fully with wintakeall that the hhtg reference should be in there because 20 years down the road the cultural references will be importaqnt--Kr4ft (talk) 22:22, 6 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I think Tarquin is a FASCIST! :P 79.70.29.171 (talk) 10:26, 10 April 2010 (UTC)[reply]
I do not think the HHGG quote should be included. It only distracts from the gin and tonic entry. There are likely thousands of literary works that include descriptions of gin and tonic. To include any or all of them is irrelevant. At most, a short list of examples without quotes would demonstrate gin and tonic's place in popular culture. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.178.162.67 (talk) 15:26, 27 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]
The Douglas Adams quote is no more obscure than any of the other references. "Most people" haven't actually read Dr. No either (I'm not sure if I've even seen the movie all the way through), nor have they seen The Year of Living Dangerously, nor have they heard of Ian Gillian, nor Oasis. That said, it could certainly be trimmed as per the comment from FrYGuY.Hbquikcomjamesl (talk) 00:54, 6 January 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Tonic water and quinine[edit]

I'm sure there isn't enough quinine in tonic water for it to be an effective anti-malarial. Anyone? — OwenBlacker 22:50, Sep 23, 2004 (UTC)

lifted from the quinine entry: According to tradition, the bitter taste of antimalarial quinine tonic led British colonials in India to mix it with gin, thus creating the Gin and Tonic cocktail.

Worth including in that tradition would be to mention the lime, or rather, citris / ascorbic acid, used to prevent scurvy on long ocean voyages. the cocktail truly is a gin and TONIC (prevention of malaria and scurvy).

Personally I like to add the juice from half a lemon or lime (whichever I am using).

There may no longer be enough quinine (in the United States, because of laws concerning ingredients) to prevent quinine, but elsewhere, and originally, the purpose was most surely to prevent malaria. Piano non troppo (talk) 01:40, 4 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
You are correct in assuming that there isn't enough quinine in modern Indian Tonic Water to be effective against malaria. The original recipe was far less satisfying to the human palette, leading one to believe that the original gin and tonic wasn't nearly as good as the modern day representation. Tonic water today has much less the concentration of quinine than the original recipe, not that I'm complaining about that. 110.174.91.113 (talk) 17:42, 28 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

External link removed[edit]

I've removed a link to the "gin and tonic society" page. The site requires registration and "acceptance" before anyone can see whatever information is in there. I'm sure that whatever factual information is available there can be found elsewhere on the web without having to go through the rigamarole of registering. Joyous! | Talk 20:14, 29 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

"Cocktail"[edit]

A G&T isn't a cocktail; it's a mixed drink. You might as well call shandy a cocktail. 195.92.40.49 10:59, 31 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Cocktail can just mean "mixed drink" (or indeed, anything mixed- fruit cocktail, cocktail of drugs, what have you). A G&T is technically a Highball cocktail, along with any "spirit + mixer" drink. 82.69.37.32 (talk) 20:11, 10 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]
At the time of writing, Highball (cocktail) redirects to Highball, which in turn draws a distinction between highballs which are drunk in the afternoon and cocktails which are drunk in the evening before dinner. I'm not sure how accurate or verifiable this distinction is! -- Timberframe (talk) 15:50, 12 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Phantom Sweetness?[edit]

The recent addition to the article: "The bitter tonic, bitter gin and sour lime mix to make a phantom sweetness which does not depend on sugar" seems suspect to me. Any commercial tonic water I've ever seen contains one or more of high fructose corn syrup, sugar, or sodium saccharin. I suspect these known sweeteners are more responsible for the apparent sweetness of gin & tonic than any editor-hypothesized interaction between bitter and sour. --AdamRoach (talk) 20:04, 5 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The current article states that tonic "is sometimes sweetened". In my experience (in the US), tonic water is as sweet as soda like Coca Cola or Sprite. It is also sold in a diet form, sweetened with aspartame. I have never seen a "non-sweet" tonic in my life.
71.234.58.230 (talk) 01:22, 6 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

"TNT"[edit]

The drink isn't referred to as a "TNT" suggesting dynamite or strength, but rather as a T and T (T&T), for Tanqueray and Tonic.Yagyu retsudo (talk) 03:44, 23 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

"British Traditional Style"[edit]

The idea that traditionally a British gin and tonic is served without ice is interesting but despite looking I can find very little evidence, and nothing concrete, about this practice. From my research it has been served with ice in the UK since at least the 1930s (as shown in British adverts). The only reference I can find is that is it quoted in the 1982 "The Year of Living Dangerously" and it is certainly not common, nor suggested, practice in the UK today. Until some concrete evidence is found I don't think it should be included. Thanks to Timothy Titus for their work on this. --Ethanbentley (talk) 19:28, 5 July 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Probably it was very hard to find ice in the malaria belt.
(46.205.197.161 (talk) 11:48, 6 December 2014 (UTC)).[reply]

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Commercial caption[edit]

Gin and tonic made with Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin and Schweppes Indian Tonic, garnished with slices of lime.

The photo is generic; I don't see any reason why specific brands should be mentioned here. — MaxEnt 01:55, 19 May 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Research: Proper ratio of gin to tonic[edit]

I just decided to cut to the chase and remove some references (some of which were dead links anyway) and say that the ratio depends on whether lime juice is being added, but 1:2 isn't all that unreasonable. Зенитная Самоходная Установка (talk) 14:13, 21 July 2019 (UTC)[reply]

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