Pink gin: it’s not a gimmick. In fact, it’s been around since the 1800s. Surprising, right? Well, it shouldn’t be. Throughout history, alcohol has been widely prescribed to treat a wide range of ailments, and the origin of pink gin is no different.
The history of pink gin is tied in with the story of Angostura Bitters and a German doctor named Johann Siegert, who needed to find a specific cure-all for tropical stomach ailments while travelling in Angostura, Venezuela. He eventually invented the formula for Angostura Bitters in 1824, which then made its way to the British Royal Navy, who used it as a remedy for seasickness. Now, like the name suggests, these bitters was very bitter – so bitter that it inspired the desperate sailors to get crafty and add gin, thus unknowingly creating the first original pink gin cocktail. It eventually made its way out of the boats and onto the streets where it became the go-to drink of choice.
Originally, bitters gave the gin cocktail a red hue, but nowadays it’s the red fruits found in the gin – like strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants and sometimes rhubarb – that add the sweetness and beautiful colour. And if you’re wondering about the spritz side of things, legend has it that in the 19th century, Austro-Hungarian troops arrived in Italy’s Veneto and spritzed a bit of water in their wine as it was too strong for their tastes. The German word ‘spritzen’ literally translates to splash, so perhaps there is a bit of truth to this tale.
