Gin and Tonic

Gin and tonic water — quinine from Andean cinchona the original malaria treatment, Erasmus Bond bottling the first Indian Tonic Water in 1858 and Schweppes in 1870.

The Gin and Tonic's origin is rooted in British colonial medicine. Quinine — extracted from the bark of the cinchona tree, native to the Andes mountains of South America — was the only effective treatment for malaria available to the British Army and East India Company employees stationed in India during the 19th century. The bitter compound was dissolved in carbonated water to create tonic water, but the taste was sufficiently unpleasant that British soldiers and officers began adding gin to their daily quinine ration to make it more palatable. The earliest documented Indian Tonic Water was manufactured by Erasmus Bond in 1858, and Schweppes began producing their own Indian Tonic Water in 1870, bringing the combination to commercial scale. The practice traveled back to Britain with returning colonials and became a standard ordering convention in British bars and clubs through the late Victorian period and into the 20th century. Today the Gin and Tonic is one of the most universally consumed long drinks in the world. Spain developed a particularly intense gin-tonic culture from the early 2000s onward, transforming the drink into an elaborate, multi-garnish presentation served in large copa de balon balloon glasses with botanical garnishes matching the specific gin's flavor profile — a tradition that spread from Spanish bars to gin-conscious establishments worldwide.