Town mouse on a gin revolution

Gone are the days when a dutiful wife would greet her homecoming businessman husband at the door with a pitcher of perfect martinis or a long, cool gin and tonic (G&T). But fortunately for fans like me, The Whisky Exchange at Vinopolis made the latter the star of the company's recent first white-spirit tasting.

First, we learnt about the history of ‘mother's ruin' from world-renowned mixologist Jared Brown, before being guided through eight premium brands-including Jensen, Sipsmith, Tanqueray and Beefeater-under the expert tutelage of Desmond Payne, the maestro formerly behind Plymouth Gin and now at Beefeater. We swished, smelt and sipped each one (no more than a swig or two), noting the disparate flavours-gin, unlike whisky and brandy, can vary widely due to the use of different ‘botanicals', such as citrus, cardamom and even tea, and how they're infused into the basic spirit. Then, we moved onto pairs of mini cocktails using the different gins to compare and contrast, including the classic G&T, sweet martinis, dry martinis and negronis. I'll definitely think twice now before just reaching for any old bottle on the shelf, so join me in raising a glass to the new gin revolution!