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The Remarkable Versatility of Tonic Water

Bitter quinine, valued for its antimalarial properties, found its way into artificially effervescent water in the mid to late 18th century. After the invention of commercial carbonation in the mid-1700s, Jacob Schweppes (among others) set up a factory in London to manufacture fizzy water in the 1790s. As malaria raged in the British Raj, whose global reach extended most famously to India, the addition of quinine in the 1870s created Schweppes' "Indian Tonic Water"—a medicinal drink that was viewed as a preventative against the killer disease. It was also known as the fever tree, for quinine's fever-reducing qualities. Also known as fever tree, for quinine's fever-reducing qualities, Cinchona…

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 Just the tonic: A natural history of tonic water

Discover tonic's rich history which entwines a South American tree, medicine, empire and drink.

 The Truth About Tonic Water

Tonic water originally existed as a way to deliver quinine, an antimalarial drug derived from the bark of the South American cinchona tree. In the early 1800s, a British officer in colonial India invented the venerable gin and tonic when he realized that alcohol helped the medicine go down in the most delightful way. Today, tonic water still contains quinine, but the roles are reversed: a diluted, sweeter formulation of tonic water helps guide gin and vodka past the tonsils instead.

 Tonic Water Is a Home Bar Staple—Here's What It Is and How It Differs From Seltzer and Club Soda

Bitter quinine, valued for its antimalarial properties, found its way into artificially effervescent water in the mid to late 18th century. After the invention of commercial carbonation in the mid-1700s, Jacob Schweppes (among others) set up a factory in London to manufacture fizzy water in the 1790s. As malaria raged in the British Raj, whose global reach extended most famously to India, the addition of quinine in the 1870s created Schweppes' "Indian Tonic Water"—a medicinal drink that was viewed as a preventative against the killer disease. It was also known as the fever tree, for quinine's fever-reducing qualities. Also known as fever tree, for quinine's fever-reducing qualities, Cinchona officinalis was introduced to Africa by Belgian colonists; the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is now home to the largest commercial Cinchona forests in the world. With a history that spans more than 150 years, tonic has established itself as one of the most essential ingredients on your bar, both for mixing with hard liquor and for adding flavor to mocktails.

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A splash of tonic to cure your ills

The gin in your tonic was first used to mask the bitter taste of medicinal quinine. At first they were sold as tonics (hence the name), but they proved so popular when mixed with gin to alleviate the taste of the quinine that they were soon marketed to consumers. Schweppes, founded in 1783 by a Swiss scientist, Johann Schweppe, launched its Indian Tonic Water in 1870.

Espresso and tonic: rise in tonic water popularity leads to experimental mixes

Health-conscious consumers drive trend as soft drink gets added to unusual spirts and flavours

Giving the Second Ingredient Its Due

Quinine was originally used for medicinal purposes. It was the first effective protection against malaria, and those tonics generally contained far more quinine than tonics do today. As a cocktail mixer, quinine is blended with carbonated water and mixed with a sweetener and other botanicals, like lemon grass, citrus zest and spices.

Mineral Water, Seltzer Water, Club Soda and Tonic Water: What's the Difference?

The lowdown on fizzy waters, from tonic to seltzer.

Quinine: From a shrub to a G&T

Quinine is fluorescent, which means that if you place a bottle of tonic water under a black light, it will glow from within. From the rain forest of South America comes the cinchona shrub, which changed the face of medicine and altered our drinking habits. The Quechua people of Peru didn’t know about the alkaloid quinine in the cinchona’s bark, but they certainly understood that the bark could calm the raging fevers and chills of an often-fatal disease—a scourge we know to be mosquito-borne malaria.

Soda Water for Tonic Water

Here’s a healthy swap for when you’re out on the town. If you’re drinking cocktails, ask the bartender for soda water instead of tonic. Tonic water is high in sugar, while soda water contains none. Also consider adding less juice and more soda water to your fruity drinks to cut your sugar content. This is a swap you’ll probably notice, though, since tonic is so much sweeter than soda water.

The history of Gin and Tonic; the infectious disease specialist long drink. When gin and tonic was not ordered but prescribed

As a matter of facts, primitive Gin and Tonic protective effects were well understood by physicians far before the advent of the “germ theory” and its fortunate invention is one of the most fascinating approaches in the history of preventive medicine. Indeed, quinine, a compound with protective effects on the replicative cycle of Plasmodium spp was discovered in 18th Century and since 19th it become the main compound of tonic beverages such as Schweppe’s ones. Interestingly, it was administered to British expatriates’ seamen and soldiers in order to prevent febrile paroxysms. Soon after, British military doctors demonstrated that the addition of lime or lemon peels to tonics was effective in preventing scurvy

The Imperial Cocktail

How the gin and tonic became the British Empire’s secret weapon. What was the source of the gin and tonic’s great power? As is sometimes said of tequila, the gin and tonic is not just a drink; it’s a drug.

The Medical Case for Gin and Tonic

I came across so many gems while I was reporting this story about the cultural history of fever, but there’s one in particular I want to save from the cutting-room floor. It has to do with Jesuit bark, found on trees in the tropical Andes, which was discovered to be one of the first breakthrough treatments for malaria in the 17th century. In those days, malaria was everywhere and it was bad. Really bad. (Sidenote: There was malaria in New Orleans as recently as 1883, and the disease wasn't fully eradicated in the U.S. until the 1950s.) So, anyway, Jesuit bark was a big deal.

What Is Tonic Water? How Tonic Water Is Made

Tonic water is a carbonated drink that contains a compound called quinine that creates its signature bitter taste. Manufacturers often add sugar to the drink to balance this bitterness, giving it a bittersweet taste. In the early nineteenth century, tonic water was considered a medicinal drink that medical professionals offered soldiers to help treat malaria. Tonic water has since become a popular palate refresher, favored for its bitter flavor. It's a widespread ingredient for several alcoholic drinks, such as the gin and tonic, tequila tonic, and vodka tonic.

What Makes a Great Tonic Water and Why it Matters

A tonic water is a tonic water, except, really, it’s not. Gone are the days when practically every tonic water on the market was made with high fructose corn syrup and tasted like Sprite with a dash of quinine. Instead, craft tonic makers are creating a diverse and aromatic array of styles and flavored tonic waters as well as tonic adjacent mixers.

What's the Difference Between Tonic Water, Club Soda, and Seltzer?

Tonic water is the least water-like of the three. It does contain carbonated water, but it has quinine to give it a bitter flavor and also a sweetener, usually high-fructose corn syrup or an artificial sweetener to make a “diet” tonic water. It’s more of a soda than a water.

Resources

Fever-Tree

It all began in 2003 with a meeting of minds and one simple premise: if three quarters of your G&T is the tonic, wouldn’t you want it to be the best?