A British etiquette expert says he believes that a gin and tonic has become "frightfully downmarket".
William Hanson said 'posers' and 'peasants' now drink it and it should be avoided. He believes a gin and tonic now "lacks the sophistication it once had and should be avoided on social occasions".
"It was once such an elegant, understated drink. It’s almost apologetically simple recipe, transparent look and crisp taste gave it such style that very few other alcoholic drinks could rival", he wrote in an opinion piece for MailOnline.
"But now it has fallen victim to its own success and every Tom, Dick and Harry now drink the gin and tonic and, frankly, have made it rather downmarket. For me, it’s ruined."
William went on to say that "the gin and tonic (never ‘G&T’) has now gone the way of Sambuca and Jagermeister and is quaffed by peasants who are just out to get drunk very quickly, trying to hide their dull, boring, daylight lives rather than strive to improve them."
"Their friendships are built on horny drunken rendezvous, rather than emotional connections, heartfelt counsel and real life (sober) experiences."
If William's assessment hasn't put you off your Hendricks and Fevertree or Cork and Schweppes, he says the only way to properly appreciate it is to drink it from a glass that is "heavily bottomed with a delicate, thin rim".
<iframe src="//giphy.com/embed/eNbWRepYkcWLm" width="480" height="336" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="http://giphy.com/gifs/reaction-gin-ooh-eNbWRepYkcWLm">via GIPHY</a></p>
