Old Tom Gin

It is said that the legends of how Old Tom gin came into being are more than Marvel stories. The fact remains, however, that traces of the story of the gin with the label Old Tom lead all the way to the Netherlands. The Dutch produced the first types of gin around 1500 and later brought this tradition to Britain.

However, the beginnings of distillation were not good at all and the alcohol, which they called gin, could hardly be drunk at all. It had a strong alcoholic aroma, and in order for the producers to "humanize" it a bit and increase their profits, they began to sweeten it with sugar. When the distillation method was later improved and the now very popular London Dry gins were created, the old gins of the Old Tom species almost disappeared from the market.

They experienced the revolution again only before the turn of the millennium. The difference between the classic dry gin and the gin of the Old Tom species remained mainly in the aroma. While dry gins have a hard juniper flavor, Old Tom gins have retained their sweetness and are softer. So they also suit people who don't like modern dry gin.

Another significant difference is the color. While most gins are clear, some Old Tom gins are left to ripen in oak barrels to give a subtle caramel color.

And why Old Tom? One of the stories says that the original improvement of gin distillation was in charge of two masters with the same first name in old London. And since the elder taught the art of distilling the younger, who later established his own brand, he allegedly named this type of gin after his older mentor, old Tom — Old Tom.

Another version says that once in a tub with distilled gin, the old cat drowned during the first attempts to make a new type of alcohol (tomcat means cat in English), so this drink earned the nickname Old Tom. The truth remains that you can still find the symbol of the cat on many bottles with gin of the Old Tom species. Well, just like when enjoying quality alcohol, even in the stories of its origin, there is probably no limit to the imagination ...