International brand manager Linda Wedemeier, says that since a tonic is supposed to be bitter, many consumers and bartenders prefer to use Thomas Henry in their G&Ts.
“The most important thing for a G&T is to use a good gin, to which we recommend adding our tonic water and an appropriate garnish. Some gins work better with a lemon zest, others with a lime wedge or a sprig of thyme.”
Wedemeier says it’s vital to keep a close eye on mixologists around the globe. “We are only satisfied if the bartenders are. We continue to set trends as we’ve done with our elderflower and cherry blossom tonics, both of which were developed because bartenders asked for them.”
The G&T is one of the most famous serves going but Moreira says with the many different botanical and flavour make-ups of the new gins on the market Fever-Tree is seeing opportunities to develop variations on gin cocktails. He points to the Gin Buck, a classic cocktail that swaps out the tonic for ginger ale, adding a fiery flavour that’s ideal for the colder months.
This is obviously a trend that’s catching on as Pickering says gin and Fentimans ginger ale is becoming increasingly popular, as are gin and rose lemonade and gin and elderflower.
And Britvic reckons that the ginseng from its Purdey’s drink mixes well with the juniper berry of gin to create a “unique, fruity spicy flavour”. It also recommends mixing its pink grapefruit Teisseire cocktail syrup with gin and tonic to make a Gin Blush and its raspberry flavoured syrup to make a Framboise Fizz.
Back to tonic and Moreira says he is seeing Fever-Tree tonic mixed with a wide range of other spirits too. “Tequila and tonic in Mexico, white port and tonic in Portugal, and vermouth and tonic in Italy have all become increasingly popular in recent years.”
Fever-Tree now exports to more than 50 countries. Moreira says that, while there has always been a huge gin market in Spain and the US, there are exciting developments in Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany, and as far afield as Australia and Canada.
“The Gin Tonica, served in huge balloon glasses with special garnishes began in Spain and we’ve seen the trend picked up across Europe and other countries worldwide. A G&T is quintessentially British as we’ve been drinking it for centuries, but there is still lots of potential in America and other markets.”
Meanwhile, Fentimans now distributes to 65 countries worldwide, with the strongest markets for tonic being Belgium, the US and Austria. And 1724 is now available in the US where Maroto says feedback has been amazing. You can’t help but think, therefore, that these new-age tonics have been a real – er – ‘tonic’ for the traditional mixers market.
