Gin Tonic: the origins
The gin and tonic ingredients are well documented. Firstly, because both the gin tonic both were invented by doctors usually keep records complete enough.
Gin, or more precisely "jenever" (meaning Juniper in Dutch) was developed at the University of Leiden in Holland in 1650 by the physician Franciscus de la Boe (Dr. Sylvius). He was a pioneer of Medicine of that time and was looking for a way to assimilate to his patients all the supposed benefits that juniper berries should have to the bloodstream.
After trying various concoctions, joined Juniper with several other herbs, suspended in a clear distilled and presented to the world this distillate. Soon his medicinal benefits were overlooked in favor of its deleterious effects. At that point, in the 17th century, the Protestant Dutch Republic (composed of Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg) had managed to divide the Catholic Spanish Empire. England had become legally Protestant in the previous century and during the complicated struggle between Catholics and Protestants the Dutch and the English became allies. And, as sometimes they make allies, soon shared their food, one of which was the jenever.
The British called the distillate fortifying "Dutch courage" and began producing their own version, calling it first with the Flemish word "genever", shortening it then with the word "gen" that finally became "gin".
England and Scotland were merged into Britain and these new "British" created three different styles of gin. A toned-down version called Old Tom, and two dry, dry style, London Dry and Plymouth. In the same years in which de la Boe was working in Holland, Spanish colonists in the new world, they discovered that the natives used Cinchona tree bark to treat fevers. The Jesuits took her to Europe to treat those suffering from plague. In 1736 the British discovered the chinchona bark real property.
When Dr. George Cleghorn, surgeon at 22° Regiment of the Royal Army, arrived on the island of Menorca for doing research on diseases of the Mediterranean, he realized that it was very effective for the treatment ...