Gin has been the base for many iconic cocktails for years now. From bringing a bold flavor to the perfect Negroni to the beautiful simplicity of a gin and tonic in a balloon-shaped glass, there are so many delicious ways to savor the jum liquor. For many, a gimlet is one of the best gin cocktails out there.
What most people don’t know is that the gimlet was actually invented for health purposes rather than as a delicious libation. During a time when scurvy was running rampant, sailors were combining lime juice with alcohol to make it less bitter. Most sailors opted for rum, but officers on naval vessels used gin instead, giving birth to the gimlet.
The sailors and officers were consuming the lime juice to help prevent scurvy; it just also proved to be a delicious cocktail, too. Although nowadays, people drink gimlets strictly for enjoyment, it is fun to imagine sailors taking the cocktail as medicine on the high seas. As such, the gimlet has gone down as one of several cocktails with fascinating backstories.
The history of the gimlet
The gimlet wasn’t an immediate invention but rather a product of several factors. Before the gimlet could even be made, doctors first discovered that scurvy patients who were given citrus greatly improved. Once this discovery was made, ships started carrying citrus supplies, including oranges, lemons, and limes, in hopes of stopping the illness.
Simply having the fruit on board was not enough incentive, though. As such, sailors were given recommendations to drink citrus juice in combination with alcohol. It was naval officers specifically who started taking their lime juice with gin.
As for the drink’s name, most people attribute it to a naval doctor named Thomas Desmond Gimlette. Supposedly, he was the one who prescribed lime juice and gin to officers on deck. Others believe the name might’ve come from a tool known as a “gimlet,” which was used to put holes in barrels of spirits on ships.
