Written by HALEY SPURLIN, BSC.
The pH of Gin OF TOOTH DECAY, HEARTBURN, AND FLAVOR
G
in, one of the most consumed alcoholic spirits in the world, is a combination of three main ingredients, ethanol, water, and key botanicals with juniper being the bestknown and legally required. About 160-250 other non-juniper botanicals, as well as a sundry other non-botanical ingredients, are also used, creating thousands of possible formulations. Recently, several questions were posed to me regarding pH in gin specifically, seeking out as to which gins were closer to neutral in pH value. Analyzing the pH of 45 different
gins from around the world, we found the average pH to be 6.1 (slightly acidic) while the lowest pH was 3.3 (acidic) and the highest pH was 8.6 (alkaline). Knowing that acidity in foods and beverages can affect dental health by causing tooth decay (1-3) and also cause acid reflux or heartburn (4,5), further work was undertaken to better understand this wide range of gin pH values. Because the pH of a beverage or food also impacts its flavor perception, it is important to consider pH for both the effects on the
resulting flavor of gin profiles and with regards to the consumer and health. As noted above, several questions from consumers were related to which gins have higher pH to enable them to enjoy certain brands without risk of dental decay or heartburn. While the issue of pH also pertains to other distilled spirits and beverages, for now the focus is on gin.
DISCUSSION As mentioned earlier, we found a range of pH from 3.3 to 8.6 in the 45 gins assessed. Figure 1 shows a plot, via color coordination to the pH scale, of the 45 gins analyzed. To provide context, the pH scale shows wellknown examples of familiar fluids from across the range of pH values, including both consumable and non-consumable products. The pH value indicates the concentration of hydrogen ions in a solution, with the lower concentration of hydrogen ions more alkaline and the higher concentration of hydrogen
FIGURE 1 Color coordinated plot of gins vs. pH values with reference pH scale. Acid
Neutral
Typical examples for context
0
Battery acid
1
Sulfuric acid/gastric juice
77
2
Lemon juice/vinegar
66
3
Apple/orange juice/ Soda
4
Acid rain/tomato juice/wine
33
5
Black coffee/bananas
22
6
Milk
7
Pure water
99 88
55 44
11 00
Strange Nature Premium Grape 3.27
Badhai Ho! 5.63
Tanqueray Sevilla Orange 6.81
Buddah's Hand 5.66
Uncle Val's Peppered Gin 6.82
8
Eggs/sea water/blood
Strange Nature Barrel Aged 3.63 Pinkster Gin 4.03
Walheim Ranch 5.7
Glendalough Wild Botanical Gin 6.91
9
Baking soda
Killowen Small Batch Irish 4.45
Agatha's Tears 5.74
Black Robin 6.91
Four Pillars (Christmas Gin), 4.45
Indlovo Pink 5.75
Bareksten 7.1
Hand soap/milk of magnesia
Lavender Elysian Fields 4.7
Batch Gin 5.91
Akori Cherry Blossom 7.14
Indlovo Citrus 4.93
Gin Lane 1751 - Old Tom 5.97
Gindu 7.17
Ammonia
Angry Ant Gin 4.98
Ornabrak Single Malt 6.04
Martin Miller's Winterful 7.37
Indlovu Original 4.98
Baobab Spirits 6.43
Amazzoni 7.46
Soap
Glendalough Rose 5.03
Holi Gin 6.45
Pergote 7.48
Few Dark Matter Coffee 5.11
Four Pillars Fresh Yuzu 6.5
Only Premium 7.5
Four Pillars Spiced Negroni 5.12
Freeland Spirits Forest Gin 6.56
Opihr 7.64
L' Chaim! 5.33
Vara High Desert 6.67
Monkey 47 Schwarzwald 7.72
Chon Gaew 5.39
Dà Mhìle Organic Seaweed 6.67
Ant Gin 7.83
Dr. Squid Ink Gin 5.4
Wollersheim Garden Gate 6.8
Martin Miller's Gin 8.59
10 11 12 13 Basic Alkaline
10 10
pH
14
Bleach Liquid drain cleaners
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