Bathtub gin: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Style of homemade spirit}}
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'''Bathtub gin''' refers to any style of homemade spirit made in amateur conditions. The term first appeared in 1920, in the [[Prohibition|prohibition-era]] [[United States]], in reference to the poor-quality alcohol that was being made.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bathtub%20gin |title=bathtub gin |work=Merriam-Webster OnLine |publisher=Merriam-Webster |location=Springfield, MA |accessdateaccess-date=March 3, 2010 | archiveurlarchive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100219094300/http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bathtub%20gin| archivedatearchive-date= 19 February 2010 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurlurl-status= nolive}}</ref>
 
As [[gin]] was the predominant drink in the 1920s, many variations were created by mixing cheap grain [[alcohol (drug)|alcohol]] with water and flavorings and other agents, such as juniper berry juice and glycerin. Because the preferred sort of bottle was too tall to be topped off with water from a sink, they were filled from a bathtub tap.{{huh?|date=February 2019}}{{dubious|date=February 2019}}{{fact|date=February 2019}} In addition, mixing grain alcohol, water, and flavorings in vessels large enough to supply commercial users, had to be small enough for the operation to go undetected by the police. The common metal [[bathtub]] in use at the time would have been ideal as would have been a ceramic bathtub, hence the name, 'bathtub gin'. However, since [[distillation]] requiresis closedboiling distillationand condensation in a closed apparatus, and cannot be accomplished in an open vessel such as a bathtub, stories of distilled alcoholic products produced in an open bathtub are likely untrue.
 
Many gin cocktails such as [[Bee's Knees]] owe their existence to bathtub gin, as they were also created in order to mask the unpleasant taste.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sandham|first=Tom|title=World's Best Cocktails: 500 Signature Drinks from the World's Best Bars and Bartenders|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ceCHTC1QstYC&pg=PA72|date=1 October 2012|publisher=Fair Winds Press|isbn=978-1-61058-648-1|page=72}}</ref>
 
Bathtub Gin is also the name for a gin brand produced by [[Ableforth's]] in the [[United Kingdom]]. Although not made in a bathtub, it is [[Gin#Production_methodology|produced using compounding/infusing]] rather than using botanical distillation.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.ginfoundry.com/gin/bathtub-gin/|title = Bathtub Gin|date = |accessdate = 2015-07-29|website = |publisher = Gin Foundry|last = |first = |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20140522072524/http://www.ginfoundry.com/gin/bathtub-gin/|archivedate = 2014-05-22}}</ref>
 
==In popular culture==
{{In popular culture|date=December 2018}}
The ''[[The Simpsons|Simpsons]]'' episode "[[Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment]]" features [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] and [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] mixing and brewing alcohol, including gin, in various bathtubs in the basement and [[Rum-running|secretly supplying and distributing it]] to [[Moe's Tavern]] via an elaborate delivery system to avoid detection.
 
The band [[Phish]] has a song titled "Bathtub Gin" that was originally released on the album ''[[Lawn Boy]]''. The song also appears on ''[[Hampton Comes Alive]]'' and several other live albums.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Bathtub Gin History|url = http://phish.net/song/bathtub-gin/history|website = phish.net|accessdate = 2015-07-30|publisher = Mockingbird Foundation}}</ref>
 
Mean Miss Hannigan ([[Carol Burnett]]) in the film [[Annie (1982 film)|Annie (1982)]] is shown doctoring bathtub gin.
 
In the film [[Mary Poppins Returns]] (2018) starring Emily Blunt, Mary Poppins sings "flap about in bathtub gin" during a song while swimming in a bathtub with the Banks children.
 
In the film [[The Roaring Twenties]] (1939) Eddie Bartlett, played by [[James Cagney]], is seen mixing a large can of grain alcohol with water in a bathtub to produce bootleg gin during the prohibition era.
 
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== See also ==
{{portal|Liquor}}
* [[Bathtub Gin (Phish song)]]
* [[Fusel alcohol]]
* [[Prohibition]]
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{{reflist}}
 
{{Prohibition}}
{{Alcoholic beverages}}
 
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[[Category:Distilled drinks]]
[[Category:1920s]]
[[Category:AmericanCulture cultureof the United States]]
[[Category:History of North America]]
[[Category:Prohibition in the United States]]