The world's bestselling London Dry Gin perfectly mixed with diet tonic, ready to drink in a 250ml can. Although neither would call themselves a gin connoisseur, they're familiar with the sharp piney taste and lengthy finish of a classic Gordon's G&T. But. Not all gins are equal. Some are definitely better than others in a G&T. And the point of this is to compare the most commonly available ones and rank ‘em. Mainly because it’s fun and an excuse to drink gin in the interest of science. Firstly, we found that the gins resolve themselves into three groups fairly neatly, irrespective of the tonic with which they’re served.

The UK Chief Medical Officers' (CMO) low risk drinking guidelines recommend that, to keep health risks from alcohol low, it´s safest not to regularly drink more than 14 units a week, for both men and women. Two superb contenders here, but I’m giving the rusty Old Parn Ceremonial Corkscrew of Victory to Bombay Sapphire for a marvellously multifaceted G&T, with Gordon’s in the runner-up slot. Best with Fever Tree Regular Tonic The first group is the basic gin and tonics. These are characterised predominantly by citrus, and they are not surprising or particularly grabby. It’s difficult to ascribe a great deal of complexity to them in the G&T context, and they are differentiated predominantly by how well they balance the sweetness of the tonic (typically struggling to avoid a slight lemonadey quality). But the alcoholic strength of gin can vary a lot – the vast majority of widely bought gin brands are 40% ABV or above, and some – such as ‘small-batch’ or ‘boutique’ gins can be a lot higher. In a press release, the manufacturer said that 'Gordon's 0.0% is created by distilling the same botanicals used in Gordon's Special Dry London Gin, capturing the essence of Gordon's in a delicious alcohol-free alternative'.Amy and I tasted 10 branded gins in the low to medium price range — mostly ones you’d find in normal supermarkets & offies. We tasted them blind (meaning we didn’t know which was which) and in two separate rounds: first with Fever Tree’s Naturally Light Tonic Water and second with their Regular Tonic. A typical-strength single (25ml) measure of gin will have 1 unit of alcohol in it. If your drink has a double measure, that means double the amount of alcohol (and calories).

Both of our testers are gin lovers who were both planning on doing Dry January until this taste test assignment came along, which they couldn't resist.A 50ml measure of Gordon's Special Dry London Gin contains 104 calories, which is roughly the same as two ginger nut biscuits. And the final group consists of the unusual gin and tonics. These are gins which (to varying degrees of success) mainline in flavours that sit outside the standard G&T spectrum. They therefore exhibit a broad range of personalities. They may also be light, and they may also have hoof, but they are to my mind principally characterised by other more unusual flavours and qualities that set them apart from the mainstream. A Note on Price What’s more, the calories people consume through alcohol tend to be additional to the calories they consume in the rest of their diet, rather than a replacement. That means you could be having lots of extra calories ‘passively’, or without thinking about it, which can lead to weight gain. 5 All alcohol – including the alcohol in gin - is made from natural starch and sugar. That means a single measure (25ml) by itself typically contains about 52 calories - almost as much as a chocolate chip cookie (57 calories).