How to Choose Quality Tonic Water for Your G&T
A gin and tonic is a thing of elegant simplicity, but since the mixer makes up the bulk of the drink, a lot depends on the tonic. Luckily, there are many quality quinine flavored foods out there, including syrups! You just need to know what to look for.
Renowned G&T historian and cocktail author Camper English is almost too familiar with the drink and can naturally give some tips on how to choose a tonic water worthy of your gin.
There are clues in the bottle
First, you need to look at the bottle – both the ingredient list and the bottle itself. “The quality of the tonic water depends a lot on the level of carbonation, as well as the type and amount of sweetener,” he explained. “Carbonation holds better in glass bottles, so it’s hard to ditch this 2 liter supermarket brand and switch to glass. Some tonic brands are now available in champagne-sized glass bottles, which is great when you share them. ” As for the sweetener, English advises drinkers to “look for tonics sweetened with something other than high fructose corn syrup, such as cane sugar or agave syrup.” If you are a vodka lover, floral tonics (like elderberry) are made for you. “
Skip the easy things
Tonic is a balance between bitter and sweet, but you don’t want that sweetness to be artificial. “To counter the bitter quinine, the tonic water contains a lot of sweetener, which can be overwhelming if you don’t like sugar, especially if you have two or more,” said English. “Rather than buying light / diet versions that might taste bad sweeteners, try diluting the tonic with half or a quarter of plain soda. It also saves money; a quality tonic is expensive. ” In terms of brands, English is looking for “East Imperial, Fever Tree, Q Tonic and Thomas Henry, but availability is highly geographic.”
Be careful with syrups
Toning syrups that allow you to take a homemade approach by adding your own soda are very popular right now, but there are a few things you need to keep in mind when working with them. “Tonic syrups are usually made from crushed cinchona bark rather than isolated quinine, so they tend to have an earthy rind and are brown rather than clear. Plus, because you’re adding tonic syrup to soda (and possibly gin), there will be less total carbonation in your blended drink. You might want to add an extra pump to your Soda Stream, or use the Topo Chico [which has a lot of carbon dioxide] to try and bring it up to the right soda level. “
If you’re the kind of guy who does everything from scratch, know that a DIY tonic can do some harm if you’re not careful. “If you’re trying to make an online recipe for tonic syrup, be sure to filter out as much of the bark solids as possible,” warns English. “Cinchona alkaloids can overdose and develop a condition called tinnitus (tinnitus is the main identifiable symptom), especially with repeated testing of prescriptions. There are also concerns about quinidine, another alkaloid in the bark of the cinchona tree, which causes problems in people with certain heart conditions at even lower levels. (You can read more about the safety of quinine and tonics — and other potentially hazardous ingredients — at English’s CocktailSafe.org .) In fact, this is a case where in-store shopping is more than good. “The amount of cinchona alkaloids (quinine and others) in commercial tonics is regulated, but homemade products can easily go beyond that,” explains English. So shop wisely, be vigilant, and maybe leave the creation of the tonic to the professionals.