Each year on the second Saturday in June, gin fans around the globe band together to celebrate World Gin Day!
World Gin Day began as a simple celebration to bring friends together to share their mutual love of gin. Today, this worldwide celebration is the purview of Emma Stokes, self-proclaimed “Gin Monkey” and author of The Periodic Table of Cocktails. In addition to writing about cocktails, Stokes presents “The Gin Lab” at City of London Distillery, where she helps distillers craft signature botanical recipes. She is also a regular presenter on “The London Gin Experience” and serves as a cocktail expert for BBC’s Good Food.
In 2017, Stokes created a bottle of gin in honor of World Gin Day. Her 7 Continents Gin combines botanicals from each of the world’s seven continents, including juniper from Europe, cinnamon from Asia, coriander from Australia, licorice root from Africa, Angelica root from North America, lime from South America, and sea salt harvested from the Antarctic Ocean.
Of course, there are lots of great gins out there, and lots of cocktails worth celebrating on World Gin Day! Here are a few classics to get you started:
- The Gin Martini is perhaps the world’s most famous gin cocktail. Shaken or stirred, wet or dry, dirty or with a twist… the possibilities are endless. Decode the martini’s multitudinous elements here, and then check out the Gin Monkey’s martini generator to get your creative juices flowing!
- A Gin and Tonic gives the Martini a run for its money when it comes to popular gin cocktails. Slangily knows as a G&T, this popular beverage is easy to make, and truly lets gin shine—whether you opt for a traditional London dry gin, or something more modern.
- The Gin Fizz, which hails from New Orleans, is probably the most iconic fizz cocktail. It’s tart flavors and silky mouthfeel have been delighting drinkers for more than 100 years.
- World Gin Day is celebrated in the height of summer… which is a perfect time to enoy a Tom Collins—a classic, summer highball that’s equally at home on the golf course or at a backyard barbecue.
- Although the Gin and Juice Cocktail has been around for more than a century, it experienced a rebirth when it was reintroduced to popular culture by Snoop Dogg.
- A Gimlet is a simple cocktail, that is in essence a daiquiri made with gin instead of rum. Like its cousin the daiquiri, the Gimlet was created by the British Navy to prevent scurvy. Who says you can’t drink and improve your health at the same time?
Of course, these are just the tip of the gin-soaked iceberg. There’s no wrong way to enjoy your juniper on World Gin Day! Cheers!
World Gin Day is typically celebrated worldwide.