I personally don’t know many people whose preferred choice of alcoholic beverage is gin. Most people are beer, whiskey or vodka drinkers on an average. But at the Beefeater Gin launch at the Grand Hyatt, Mumbai all my misconceptions were cleared. That evening gin revealed itself as a versatile and widely loved alcoholic beverage for many.

I was there at the launch on behalf of Mumbai Food Lovers that evening. The event was to mark the launch of Beefeater’s Gin and to mark 2014 as ‘The Year of the Gin’. There was a small group of like-minded food and alcohol aficionados present to learn more about gin tasting. The event was hosted by Tim Stones – International Brand Ambassador for Beefeater Gin. Tim is greatly involved in educating bartenders and consumers regarding Beefeater Gin and their market. He has been in this industry for 15 years and is actively involved in showcasing the versatility of gin in various cocktails. It was a matter of honour to learn about gin from the master himself!

Tim spoke to us about the history of gin and gave us facts about the drink. We then learnt about the harvesting and process behind the making of gin. Tim taught us about all the different ingredients that go inside a gin, and what special ingredients make the Beefeater Gin so different.

The part of the evening that I was most excited about was Gin tasting. We were made to sample four different brands of gin: Gordon’s London dry gin, Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire and of course Beefeater London dry gin. Who would’ve thought all four gins tasted so drastically different?! Each gin had a different aroma, core ingredient, and taste. My favorite without being partial, was the Beefeater!

Tim also spoke to us about the versatility of gin and how one can incorporate it into any cocktail. And to prove himself correct he made us taste a Mango Lassi-Masala Chai-Gin cocktail. Who thought that such a combination could exist? And taste so delicious too. The evening continued with an intense discussion, where the audience posed their queries across to Tim. The evening continued over gin, gin based cocktails and good times….

All-in-all this was a fun evening where I got to learn and experience the history and magic behind gin drinking. I am definitely a gin convert now. Next time I go to a bar, I’m surely ordering a Beefeater Gin with tonic water, please!