Gourt Home::Gourt :: Pimm's
Pimm's is a brand of alcoholic beverages now owned by Diageo. Its most popular product is Pimm's No1, a gin-based beverage that can be served both on ice or in cocktails. The recipe of Pimm's No1 is secret; it has a dark tea color with a reddish tint, and tastes subtly of spice and citrus fruit. A close approximation to Pimm's No1 can be prepared by mixing one measure of gin with one measure of red vermouth and half a measure of triple sec, although this will lack the spices that give Pimm's its distinctive flavour.
There are five other Pimm's products besides No1. The essential difference among them is the base alcohol used to produce them: No1 is based on gin, No2 on whisky, No3 on brandy, No4 on rum, No5 on rye and No6 on vodka. At present the only variants aside from No1 still in production are Nos 6 and 3 (recently marketed as "Pimm's Winter"), both of which are made in much smaller quantities than No1.
History and culture
Pimm's was invented in the 1840s, by James Pimm, a farmer's son from Kent who became the owner of an oyster bar in the City of London. Pimm offered the tonic (a gin-based drink containing quinine and a secret mixture of herbs) as an aid to digestion, serving it in a small tankard known as a 'No. 1 Cup', hence its subsequent name. Pimm's was commercially marketed in 1859.
After the Second World War, Pimm's extended their range, utilising a number of other spirits as bases for new 'cups'. In 2004, Pimm's introduced Pimm's Winter Cup, which consists of Pimms No3 (the brandy variant) with added spices and orange peel.
Pimm's is especially popular in Britain, where it has an important place in popular drinking culture. It is normally regarded as a summer drink, ideal for picnics, garden parties, or for spending an afternoon in the pub. It is also popular for serving at summer sporting events, such as rowing regattas, tennis tournaments or cricket matches.
Cocktails
Pimm's No1 is the essential ingredient in the Pimm's Cup (normally known simply as a Pimm's cocktail, according to the company's website), which mixes one part Pimm's No1 with three parts lemonade or lemon soda (sometimes ginger ale or Indian tonic water), ice cubes, borage leaves (nowadays a wedge of cucumber is usually substituted for this ingredient), mint leaves and slices of lemon, orange and apple.
Sources
- How a farmer’s son invented taste of the social summer, by Mark Gardner, Faversham Times, 25 June 2005
"Pimm's"