I Asked 3 Bartenders To Name the Best Tonic Water—They All Said the Same Thing
Their tonic water of choice is easy to get at any grocery store.
Simply Recipes / Getty Images
As a newly-minted 21-year-old, one of my first declarations of adulthood was choosing a standard cocktail order. I did not want to be the one standing at the bar stammering immaturely about my drink order.
I quickly picked up what the classic gin and tonic was putting down. I loved gin’s herbal flavors, and the tonic water introduced just enough bitterness to keep things interesting, along with a touch of sweetness to balance everything out. It also felt like a sophisticated choice, a crystal-clear glass in a boozy college bar sea of blue drinks and flaming shots.
Since then, I’ve been making my own gin and tonics at home, experimenting with different gins and garnishes. I never really branched out when it came to the tonic water, though. Now that there are so many tonic waters available on store shelves, I wanted to take a better look at the options and get opinions from the folks who stand behind the bar.
Turns out, they share the same opinion and their tonic water of choice is easy to get at any grocery store.
The Bartenders I Asked
Ashley Rose Conway: Creator behind Craft and Cocktails, author of Celebrate Rosé, and contributor to Art of the Bar Cart
Hannah Chamberlain: Creator behind Spirited LA and author of the forthcoming book How To Be a Better Drinker
Willa Van Nostrand: Owner and mixologist, Little Bitte Artisanal Catering LLC
Simply Recipes / Fever-Tree
The Best Tonic Water According to Bartenders
Thanks to its not-too-sweet flavor profile and extra bubbly bubbles, Fever Tree tonic water has won the hearts of the bartenders I interviewed.
“Fever Tree has a perfect balance of sweet and bitter where some other tonics can lean cloying,” says Conway. A less-sweet tonic water gives you more options when you’re mixing up a drink. “Having less sugar in a tonic water allows me to personalize a gin and tonic with a dash of liqueur or specialty syrup without the overall drink becoming saccharine and losing its refreshing zing,” Chamberlain adds.
Van Nostrand “[looks] for the trifecta balance of bitterness, sweetness, and astringency in a tonic water” to ensure her cocktails are well balanced. She continues, “I like a tonic that tastes refreshing in its own right and that also underscores the botanical or fruity notes of the spirit I’m mixing with.”
Flavor is a major consideration for all three bartenders. For a drink as simple as a gin and tonic, every component should be high-quality and taste good on its own. Conway loves the flavor of Fever Tree because “The bitterness from quinine adds flavor and contrast to the sweetness while a bump of citrus from orange brightens up the bitter notes.”
Bubbles were almost as important as flavor to the bartenders I spoke with. Conway loves that Fever Tree tonic water has “a great amount of carbonation so the bubbles last for a while in the drink.” Van Nostrand agrees, saying that the “fine, fizzy bubbles add a zingy, almost electric mouthfeel to the tonic, which accentuates any citrus, juices, or tart flavors.”
While all the bartenders make their gin and tonics with Fever Tree tonic water, they had other ideas for the spritzy mixer. Chamberlain uses Fever Tree in non-alcoholic beverages “because the bitterness of the quinine adds character and sophistication, which can help mocktails feel less like they belong only at the kids’ table.”
Van Nostrand recommends using “...Fever Tree tonic in an espresso tonic. I like mine with a sprig of fresh mint for an herbaceous pop.” Conway also uses Fever Tree for espresso tonics. “An espresso and tonic with a lemon wheel makes for a great pick-me-up that balances the espresso and effervescent sweetness,” she says.
Read the original article on Simply Recipes.
