No mere gin and tonic
Spanish craze employs fruits and herbs
Proxi restaurant in Chicago’sWest Loop offers four
The gin-and-tonic craze in Spain is nothing new. For years, locals have used the drink to create a lovely pause in the day, and tourists have followed suit. The Spanish cocktail barely resembles the highball fromthe American corner bar, often made from cheap gin topped with syrupy tonic fromthe soda gun. In Spain, the gin tonic— a truncated form of ginebra y
tonico— is a thing. On a recent trip toMadrid, Barcelona andValencia, we enjoyed gin tonics everywhere, from food shows to market halls, hotel bars to neighborhood taverns.
The technique: Building the cocktail is a big part of the Spanish gin tonic experience. First, the bartender must select the proper oversize goblet and add large cubes of ice individually. The ice gets stirred with a bar spoon to tonics, chill the glass as the patron ponders the choice of gin, which is added— generously — next. Garnishes must be slapped or pinched to release their aromas as they tumble in. Finally, the tonic is poured slowly down the twisted handle of the spoon to increase the bubbles and enhance the aromatic effect of the botanicals.
At our favorite hangout in the Lavapies neighborhood of Madrid, we lovedwatching the sleepy bartender become mesmerized by his own careful stirring. Many bars serve the tonic in its own bottle on the side, allowing the guest to pour in tonic at leisure, pondering the ratio as the ice melts on a hot afternoon al aire libre.
The gin: Spanish distilleries are proliferating faster than tourists visiting la Sagrada Familia. Companies fight formarket share by introducing unique versions of the spirit, and even the humblest bar carries several selections. Our favorites includedNordesAtlantic GalicianGin, which is distilled fromgrapes; Gin Mare, whoseMediterranean botanicals include Arbequina olives and resinous herbs; the uberpopular Larios; and Siderit, a newer player in the gin gamewhose lineup includes a column-distilled pink gin infused with hibiscus flower. (Pink gin is also a thing. Strawberry and hibiscus versions are very popular in Europe and Great Britain— a trend towatch for in coming months.)
The tonic: Schweppes made fromcane sugar is the mixer standard in much of Europe, and in Spain, it comes in lots of interesting regional flavors, including “pink” (flavored with currant, introduced as a less bitterway to consume gin tonic), pink peppercorn, hibiscus andmatcha. Mixologistsmix andmatch the botanicals in the ginwith the flavor profiles of several brands of tonicwaters from around the continent. Prep: 1
1 2 200- The garnish: Purists may scoff at the variety of fruits, herbs, spices and vegetables that are added to gin tonics, butwe adore theway the flavors of the garnish complement the botanicals in the gin and the style of the tonic. Wewatched as dozens of itemsweremuddled into the mix. At a bohemian bar in the Raval area of Barcelona, the caftan-clad proprietor shuffled back to the kitchen to fetch blackberries every time a guest ordered a gin tonic; the berries added a memorable color and flavor thatwas worth the trouble. Bay leaves, fresh herb leaves, citrus peel, grapes (particularly with GinMare), strawberries, cucumber ribbons, whole spices— all create a delightful aroma in the glass.
JoshRelkin, head bartender at Chicago’s Proxi, amped up his gin tonic research while on his honeymoon in Spain (in fact, hewas on the trip when hewas offered his job at Proxi). He nowoffers four variations on his cocktail menu. His strawberrystrewnversion features Citadelle, a French gin, and serves as a great example of whatRelkin says he learned abroad: “Agin tonic is more than just a gin and tonic.”
“Citadelle gin’s super bright acidity shows lemon and grapefruit, but rather than garnishing with citrus peel, Iwanted to showa progression of flavor,” Relkin says. “Inmy mind, the flavor of lemon leads to macerated strawberries, which makes me think of fresh basil, then pink peppercorns.”
Relkin’s most unique gin tonic discovery happened in Barcelona: a saffron gin tonic infusedwith orange peel and cardamom. “Here, saffron is a luxury ingredient, and there, it turns up in an everyday drink,” he says.
Life lessons fromSpain, in a goblet.
Lisa Futterman is a freelance writer.