A Favourite: Plymouth Gin

It does not matter if you are with company or without, nothing is as pleasurable as a decent Gin and tonic. The day can be hot and it quenches, the rain can soak and it warms. Gin seems adult and unsullied unlike other spirits.

It is natural as a British man to require my Gin with a sharp effervescent tonic water. This is not to say that it cannot mix with the likes of bitter lemon or soda water, but it simply shouldn't. In the U.K the most common Gin is London Dry Gin which is not really a gin. It is essentially a flavoured spirit akin to vodka. I will not claim to be that pedantic to ever pass it up though. It suffices when combined with a slice of lemon or lime. To taste a real Gin it is imperative that you find some Plymouth Gin.

Much like Champagne, Plymouth Gin can only be named so if it indeed originates from that region (E.U Legislation). Plymouth Gin is a subtly sweeter taste and distinct in flavour from dry Gin. Commonly it is 41% abv and that offers me the stiff kick I require. Using a blend of several botanicals and soft water from Dartmoor, this spirit has been produced since 1793. So it is fair to assume they've got the recipe just right by now. The taste is naturally that of juniper and is complimented by the botanical blend. Its slight zestiness is gentle but apparent and helps conspire to refresh the drinker.

Plymouth Navy Strength is a much stronger beast. It is 57% abv and this directly correlates to the 100% proof required to the Royal Navy's demands. This demand was that a spirit of 100% proof would still ignite if spilt on gunpowder. It certainly is fun stuff indeed. Combine it with only lime and you too can sample the scurvy combating methods of Royal Navy. This style of drinking Gin is called a 'Gimlet' and was created, unimaginatively by Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette, apparently to help the lime go down.

Buy a bottle and like many Gin drinkers in Britain, arm yourself with some 'Dutch Courage'. This is so called due to the use of Gin to warm the wet and bedraggled forces fighting in the Lowlands during the Thirty Years War. Buy another and you will be in good company sharing this tipple with others such as Winston Churchill, Ian Fleming and Alfred Hitchcock. Remember the old adage though; "Little nips of whisky, little drops of gin, Make a lady wonder where on earth she's bin", drink in moderation.