Introduction
The alcohol industry has been an ageless industry since human civilization. Gin is one of the old fermented beverages that started as a medicinal liquor prepared by monks and alchemists across Europe. It is a distilled liquor that extracts its flavor from juniper berries. Gin is now one of the fastest-growing categories of global alcohols, with Gin NZ being a rapid player.
Gin NZ
The first New Zealand Gin was South Gin, launched in 2003. The New Zealand Gin market had grown over the past few years, especially during the pandemic when many local Gin distilleries boomed out.
In 2015, the Gin market in New Zealand amounted to 14.00 million. By 2025, it is expected to get 36.68 million USD. This means that in 2020-2025, it will rise at 4.81% per year, while there was a growth of about 16.74% per year recorded during 2015-2019.
2015 saw a daily consumption of each person in terms of value and volume of 3.11 USD. Over the following five years, it increased at 15.21% annually. The index is anticipated to get slow and grow at 4.50% per year until 2025.
Best Ways to Drink Gin
While there are no textbook ways to drink Gin, people across the globe have agreed upon some styles to be the best ways to drink Gin. Some of these ways, as popularly adopted in NZ too, are:
Have Gin Neat
The easiest yet undeniably the most classic method to have Gin would be to have it all by itself without adding other ingredients or chilling it. This way, you can enjoy the authentic taste of the liquor. It does not involve chilled Gin or adding ice to it but having a standard shot.
Have Chilled Gin
Having a chilled shot of Gin can chill you up in no time. You can either “have it up” by chilling it without adding ice to it or by “having it on the rocks” by pouring Gin on ice cubes in a glass.
Have a Classic Gin and Tonic
Gin and Tonic is a cherished combination of the two evident ingredients with lemon, and it makes for a very refreshing yet basic drink.
Have Gin with Different Flavours
Gin can easily be infused with a variety of flavours. And as long as the taste of juniper lingers, all flavour profiles are welcome to be experimented with. Some of these flavours include sodas infused with grapefruit, blood orange or other citric flavours, floral flavours like rose and lavender, herbs like rosemary, thyme, fresh mint or basil leaves, ginger ale, Earl Grey and chamomile tea.
Have a Gin-based Cocktail
Gin is a popular liquor for making amazing cocktails. The most popular cocktails in NZ based on Gin include:
- Martini
- White Lady (Also known as Delilah)
- The Last Word
- French 75 (Also known as a 75 Cocktail and Soixante Quinze)
- Negroni
The Gin NZ market has become a significant player in the global Gin market and is expected to keep expanding over the years. In 2019 alone, the Gin NZ market (processed category) improved by 18.92 %. The quantity of Gin exported by New Zealand was 176 tonnes in 2019, while 182 tonnes in 2020. However, it is yet to come to par with the leading countries like the U.K. and Spain. It still has a long way to go.
