Generality
The gin it is one of the best known, most used and marketed alcoholic beverages in the world. The high alcohol content, which by law must not be less than 37.5% Vol., Classifies it among the spirits products.
The noun "gin" comes from the French "genièvre" and / or from the "Dutch" jenever "and / or from the" Italian "juniper".
The real discovery of gin is attributable to Franciscus Sylvius, a Dutch doctor, who in the 17th century AD. he attempted to formulate a cure for the soldiers colonizing the Indies. Towards the end of the 1600s its production characterized the United Kingdom more, following the protectionist intervention of William III of Orange. For a long time, gin represented a real bargaining chip; he was thus responsible for a certain social decline (alcoholism and poverty).
Types of Gin and Current Legislation - January 2014
Although many types of gin have differentiated, according to the current legislation of the European Union they can all be grouped into four categories
- Juniper flavored alcoholic beverages: characterized by moderate intensity fermentation and subsequent distillation with the aromas to extract the aromas. They have a minimum of 30% ABV (Alchol By Volume - volume in alcohol or "vol.") And can also be marketed under the name of Wacholder or Genebra.
- Gin: they are flavored alcoholic beverages NOT produced by redistillation of aromas, but with the addition of natural flavoring substances to neutral alcohol of agricultural origin. The predominant flavor must be of juniper.
- Distilled Gin: it is produced only by redistillation of ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin, initially concentrated at 96% (azeotrope of water and ethanol) using TRADITIONAL stills; juniper berries and other natural aromas are used, as long as the first is predominant. If produced by adding only essences and aromas to alcohol of agricultural origin, it is NOT distilled gin.
- London Gin: it is obtained from ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin with a maximum methanol content of 5g per hectolitre at 100% ABV; the aroma is conferred exclusively by redistillation of ethyl alcohol using traditional stills, in the presence of all natural aromas. The final distillate must have at least 70% ABV and cannot contain more than 0.1g of added sugars per liter of product, nor dyes, or any additional ingredients other than water. It is also called "Dry London Gin".
Within the European Union, the minimum alcohol content in the various bottles of gin (gin, distilled gin and London Gin) is 37.5% ABV.
In the United States of America, gin is defined as an alcoholic beverage with at least 40% ABV (80 proof) with a typical juniper flavor; gin produced only with distillation or redistillation, in the presence of aromas with alcoholic washing, can be further differentiated and marketed under the name of "distilled gin".
Other legal classifications distinguish gins based on the geographical area of origin, without further characterizations (eg. Plymouth gin, Ostfriesischer Korngenever, Slovenská Borovička, Kraški Brinjevec, etc.); there is no lack of references to classical styles, which are culturally recognized but not legally defined (e.g. gin, Wacholder and Old Tom gin).
Production
From its origins, there are many production methods that have become detached from the traditional process; for the most part, these make use of modern techniques aimed at the distillation and aromatization of the drink.
As a result of this evolution, gins can be classified into three types of processing:
- Pot Distilled Gin: it is the first style of gin and is obtained by distillation of fermented must of: wheat or barley or (to a lesser extent) from other cereals; this "malt wine" is then redistilled with the vegetable aromas. In this way it is also possible to produce a double gin, that is a gin redistilled twice with the aromas. By means of traditional stills, the alcohol content remains quite high (about 68% ABV for a single gin and 76% ABV for a double gin). These gins are often aged in wooden barrels which enhance the taste of the malt, making them more like a whiskey. Kornwijn and Ginevra Gin are the most important in the category.
- Column Distilled Gin: was born with the invention of the Coffey style; it is carried out with a first distillation with a high alcohol content (96% ABV) of neutral alcohol from fermented must, which exploits the backflow of a special column. The fermentation base for the " alcohol can be from cereals, sugar beets, grapes, potatoes, sugar cane, sugar etc. (provided they are of agricultural origin). The alcohol (very concentrated) is then distilled with juniper berries and other natural aromas in another instrument. Very often, instead of being immersed, all the aromatic components are placed in a suspended basket and exposed to the flow of alcoholic vapor which extracts all the aromas; this determines a much lighter and more delicate gin which will become Distilled Gin or Dry London Gin based on the final alcoholic composition.
- Compound gin: it is a simple aromatization of neutral alcohol with essences or other natural aromas, without redistillation; therefore, it is not considered a distilled gin.
Many gin flavors contain hints of citrus, such as lemon and bitter orange peel, a combination of other spices, such as: anise, angelica root and seeds, orris root, licorice root, cinnamon, almond, cubeb, zest lime, grapefruit peel, lychee, saffron, baobab, frankincense, coriander, grains of paradise, nutmeg, cassia bark and / or many others.
Consumption of Gin
Gin is a widely used ingredient in the composition of certain cocktails; some examples are: Gin Tonic, Gin Fizz, Gin Old Fashioned etc. Consumption as a pure distillate is (today) quantitatively less important.
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According to the market research firm "International Wine & Spirit Research (Iwsr)", in the world and in contemporary times, the biggest consumers of gin are the Filipinos, in the city of Manila. Furthermore, looking at a report published by "The Economist", using data from "IWSR" (UK-based), it appears that on average a Filipino consumes about 1.4 liters of gin per year. The global gin market sells about 440 million liters per year.
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The United States and Spain seem to have a slightly lower market than the Philippine one but, in terms of unit consumption, the Slovaks and the Dutch follow the Orientals with an annual consumption of 1.2 liters and 0.8 liters per year.
The largest gin producer in the world is "Ginebra San Miguel", which has not by chance resided in the Philippines since 1830. Ultimately, the Philippines holds the largest gin market worldwide, accounting for around 50% of global sales.
Gin contributes, together with other spirits, to the progressive increase in the consumption of ethyl alcohol in the United Kingdom.
From a global point of view, gin accounts for approximately 0.44% of total alcohol consumption.
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