It’s in the name— London Dry Gin.
But it’s Fiction. London Dry Gin does not need to be made in London. It can be made anywhere in the world.
The term neither describes a flavor nor a place-based production. London Dry Gin describes a distillation process. Originally designed to enforce a certain standard of quality in an era where that was anything but guaranteed. For more on the legal meaning, check out our description of what the London Dry Process is.
Why is it London in London Dry Gin?
Aeneas Coffey invented the “Coffey Still” in 1830. His invention allowed distillers to create spirits with a clean, neutral flavor. In other words, his invention led to the creation of neutral spirits we would recognize in the modern day as neutral. They didn’t require copious sweetening to make them palatable– in other words gin could be dry.
Because of this, the term “London Dry” wouldn’t have been used until at least the nineteenth century.
The term was popularized in the late nineteenth century where it first begins appearing in print throughout the world in reference to established London-based gin brands, especially on the export market.
As seen in an Australian newspaper in 1897
As seen in a United States newspaper in 1903
However, the more general term “London Gin” existed well before the addition of dry. In 1801 an advertisement for a book Every Man His own Brewer and Distiller (an update to the popular 18th century book Every Man His Own Brewer) advertised itself as having recipes for “London Gin.”
Several manuals created recipes for emulating “London Gin,” many of them simply were adding things like turpentine to neutral spirit.
In other words, you can see how a quality-based designation would have evolved.
And yes, turpentine is quite toxic and should never be ingested.
From The Morning Chronicle in 1803
From 1898’s The Beverages We Drink
However, while the term was used— it was not consistently defined. Marketers used it as an indication of “high quality,” while producers used it as a general term to refer to a broad category of drinks, flavored similarly to juniper.
In short, the “London” part of London Dry Gin simply dates back to gin’s popularity in London, the number of producers concentrated in London, and it was popularized by distilleries using the designation in their marketing material.
It would not be until much later that the term would be codified in law and take on the quality and production oriented term we have today.
Examples of London Dry Gins produced somewhere other than London
Astraea Meadow Gin (United States)
No. 3 Gin (Netherlands)
Belgravia Gin (South Africa)
Australian Distilling Co. Gin (Australia)
Long Table Gin (Canada)
Tanqueray Gin (Yes, now made in Scotland)