The Juice on Gin

Gin was probably first created in 17th-century Holland, but then travelled to England where it became ever-so popular. At the time it was called genever, and didn't taste much like the gin we enjoy today, but more like an herb-infused, unaged whisky.

Later, sugar-sweetened Old Tom gin became the standard up until the early part of the 1900s. Then came the gin we all know and love today is the London Dry style -- but it's not just made in London.

Two of the larger bargain brands, Seagram's and McCormick's, are made stateside. But in recent years, a slew of new gins have come out of small American micro-distilleries. Most of them are using innovative flavors and downplaying the juniper berry aspect of gin, pumping up the floral and citrus aspects of the final product instead.

Oregon is the host to a number of microdistilleries and they all seem to be making gin. Cascade Mountain Gin is made in Bend, Oregon with wild, handpicked juniper berries. Rogue Spirits' Spruce Gin is made in Newport, Oregon, and contains cucumbers, ginger and tangerine along with the spruce. Cricket Club Gin is made in Cottage Grove, Oregon. And Aviation Gin from Portland, contains lavender, aniseed and sarsaparilla.

On the other side of the country, Bluecoat Gin is made in Philadelphia. They keep their ingredients secret but there's a nice orange peel note in the flavor profile. DH Krahn Gin is based in New York, and flavors the gin with ginger and grapefruit.

Rehorst Premium Milwaukee Gin is made in Milwaukee (duh) with sweet basil and Wisconsin ginseng. Death's Door Gin is also made in Wisconsin, on Washington Island, flavored with botanicals sourced from the Great Lakes region.

The San Francisco Bay Area has a few gin distilleries as well. 209 Gin has spicy floral notes and mixes well with others. Sarticious Gin is made in Santa Cruz, and incorporates cilantro in the botanical mix. And Anchor Distilling, housed in the basement of the Anchor Steam Beer brewery in San Francisco, puts out a bold juniper-forward gin called Junipero, as well as a hard-to-find genever-style gin called Genevieve.

Many of these small gin brands on the market are not available in all states, so head on down to your local liquor warehouse superstore and see what local gins you can find.

Now that you've got your gin, here are some recipes that help show off -- rather than bury -- its flavor.

Martini
2 1/2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce dry vermouth
Lemon twist for garnish

Shake ingredients in ice-filled shaker and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with twist.

Gimlet
1 1/2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce or less simple syrup*

Shake ingredients in ice-filled shaker and strain into cocktail glass.

Gin and Tonic
2 ounces gin
Tonic water
Lemon or lime wedge for garnish.

Add gin to ice-filled highball or old-fashioned glass and fill with tonic water. Squeeze and garnish with citrus wedge.

Gin Fizz
2 ounces gin
1 1/2 ounces fresh lemon juice
3/4 ounces simple syrup*
Soda water (approximately 4 ounces)

Shake ingredients except for soda water in ice-filled shaker. Strain into an ice-filled highball glass and top with soda water. Adjust portions of ingredients to taste.

White Lady
2 ounces gin
1 ounce Cointreau
1 ounce fresh lemon juice

Shake ingredients in ice-filled shaker and strain into cocktail glass. To make frothy, add a touch of fresh or powdered egg white to the mix.

*Simple syrup: Put equal parts sugar and water in a bottle and shake until it turns clear. Store in refrigerator between uses.

Camper English is a cocktails and spirits writer and the publisher of Alcademics.com.

Photos: Getty Images

Originally posted by Camper English