The New Rules For A Perfect Gin & Tonic
From citrus oils to warming spices, the classic G&T is being reimagined at home as a more thoughtful, seasonal ritual for modern entertaining.
5 min
There is a shift happening in the way we entertain. As more gatherings move back into the home, simple drinks are being elevated into considered rituals.
The classic G&T, once a default pour, is now being revisited with fresh attention to balance, aroma, and seasonal flavour.
As Never Never co-founder Sean Baxter says: “It’s about getting the fundamentals right: proportion, temperature and aroma. Once those are in place, you don’t need much else.”
For autumn gatherings, the focus is on structure and subtlety, from crisp citrus oils expressed over the glass to mineral-driven profiles that pair well with food.
Here, Kanebridge News sat down with Sean to explore the return of classic serves and the art of building a better gin and tonic.
Q: We’re seeing a return to classic drinks in 2026. Why do you think the gin and tonic is having a moment again?
A: I don’t think the G&T has necessarily gone anywhere; people have just been experimenting more and more when it comes to finding the style of drinks they enjoy.
G&T is the perfect apéritif; it fills that moment in the late afternoon or early evening before dinner and is easily customisable to fit a wide range of garnish styles and tonic varieties.
It’s also pretty resilient when it comes to current economic pressures because it’s a very affordable mixed drink that can be prepared at home very easily.
Q: What are the key differences between styles of gin? How do juniper-forward, citrus-driven or coastal styles differ in flavour and structure?
Juniper forward gins are the style of gin that has been around for hundreds of years.
They are built using juniper, which is a small, round ‘berry’, but it’s actually a type of cone (similar to a pinecone).
These are usually complemented by root-like flavours such as liquorice and angelica root, with citrus notes from coriander seeds.
These sorts of gins (think Gordons and Tanqueray) have dominated the landscape up until the last few decades.
Some slightly more contemporary gins have started driving a more citrus-forward approach all while delivering a juniper backbone (think Bombay, Tanqueray 10 and Beefeater).
The ultra-contemporary category was born of the popularity of brands like Hendricks, which began exploring completely non-traditional flavours. The vast majority of Australian gin sits in this section.
Q: How much does juniper still define a gin today? Has that shifted with modern distilling trends?
A: Juniper still defines gin. It’s the anchor point in terms of flavour from a traditional sense, and there should still be a representation of juniper in the flavour profile, even when making a contemporary style.
Without juniper, you’re really making a botanical spirit rather than gin, and there are certainly a fair few of those knocking about.
What has shifted is the dominance of juniper in the final blend of ingredients.
Traditionally, it was the loudest instrument in the orchestra, like the bass drum or tuba.
Ultra-contemporary gin styles tend to treat it more as a component rather than a lead, supported by citrus, spice, or floral flavours.
In a good example of gins out there, it’s more like the occasional ping of a triangle rather than anything booming in its presence.
Q: You’ve spoken about “proportion, temperature and aroma”. What are the most common mistakes people make when making a gin and tonic at home?
It usually comes down to those three things that are pretty easy to manage when making a drink.
Proportion: People often under-pour the gin and drown the drink in tonic or vice versa. A good G&T should taste clearly of both.
A great G&T should be a perfect balance and not overly bitter.
Measure your ingredients. I always aim for a 3-to-1 ratio of 3 parts tonic to 1 part gin (also using your fingers doesn’t count, buy a jigger). It’s also a good thing to know how many standard drinks you’ve consumed.
Temperature: Not enough ice or a warm tonic will flatten the drink. Fill the glass properly and start cold. Always try to use cold tonic water; it affects the size of the bubbles in the drink and is often the difference between an ok G&T and a spectacular one.
Aroma: Garnish isn’t just a decoration; it adds flavour and aroma. Your nose hits the glass before your palate.
A fresh citrus peel or herb can completely change the drink. Equally, a 3-day-old brown lime wedge can ruin a perfectly acceptable mixer. Fresh is best.
Get those three right and the drink improves immediately.
Q: How do seasonal ingredients influence gin? Are there certain flavour profiles better suited to autumn and winter entertaining?
Seasonality certainly influences how we enjoy gin (and how often we head out).
In the Aussie summer months, people gravitate toward bright citrus and fresh herbs as garnishes in drinks. Think bright thyme and zesty lemon or lime leaf and mint.
As the weather cools down, we tend to shift towards warming botanicals like cinnamon, cardamom, star anise or even roasted citrus.
Some players work the whole way through like orange. You can also consider how to add seasonal modifiers to your G&T to make it work better.
I like playing with certain types of soda (blood orange in particular), paired with warm spices and a classic Indian Tonic, to add a little more winter character to a G&T.
Q: For someone building a home bar, is it better to invest in one versatile gin or several different styles?
At Never Never, we’ve always prided ourselves on creating super versatile gins that hit every occasion.
My recommendation is to always feature a classic juniper style (like our Triple Juniper Gin) as it would certainly satisfy most ‘gin fans’ in the room if they are into classic juniper character.
That being said, with the rise of contemporary gins, it’s nice to include one or two other heavy hitters if it’s something you can afford (our Oyster Shell Gin is a great citrus-forward alternative to our classic styles).
Q: Finally, if someone thinks they “don’t like gin”, what are they likely reacting to, and what style would you suggest they try instead?
Try it again. One of the most common things we get at the distillery is “Sorry, I don’t like gin, it’s too bitter.”
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but all this time you haven’t enjoyed gin; it’s actually the tonic you’ve been averse to.
Try it with a fresh citrus soda or spicy ginger beer and lime, and see if it’s more to your liking.
Also, if your first example is one your aunt made for you at Christmas time, it probably didn’t exactly adhere to everything covered in the 4th question, so it’s worth having another go.
If you still don’t like gin after all that, we make a pretty good vodka that is winning awards all over the world.
The 1860s Darlinghurst mansion Stoneleigh could become Sydney’s most expensive home ever sold under the hammer when it goes to auction. Clint Ballard is giving buyers a $28 million guide for the heritage-listed mansion on Darley Street, opposite Iona, the former home of Hollywood royalty Baz Luhrmann. Stoneleigh is being offered for sale for the …
Set on one of the city’s last absolute riverfront sites, The Riversdale by Mosaic combines irreplaceable waterfront ownership with one of Brisbane’s most significant residential opportunities.
As AI productivity trackers reshape workplace evaluations, employees are learning how to manage calendars, activity levels and AI usage to ensure their contributions are recognized.
4 min
What’s more important than being a good employee right now? Looking like a good employee in the eyes of AI productivity trackers that more managers are using to evaluate their teams.
Employee-monitoring systems are especially popular at tech companies and are also used by other white-collar firms that want to probe how people spend company time. The scary thing: You might not even know you’re being watched because many states don’t require disclosure.
Metrics can include performance data that is undoubtedly relevant, such as sales results. But it also can employ dubious proxies like keyboard strokes and how often your computer screen goes into sleep mode.
We generally accepted, or at least understood, heightened surveillance during the work-from-home era. Back then it seemed reasonable for bosses to keep tabs on employees they couldn’t see.
Yet the oversight has only escalated, and tensions are rising, too.
A group of former Meta Platforms employees alleges in a lawsuit that the company used a “constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems” when it began laying off about 10% of its workforce in May. Meta says humans make termination calls.
However that case shakes out, a couple of things are clear. Companies eager to gauge which employees are locked in now have sophisticated AI monitoring systems at their disposal. And they believe they have leverage in a tepid labor market.
So while we may chafe at having our worth reduced to numbers on the boss’s productivity dashboard, we have to play the game as it’s being played. Here are some tips, based on conversations with people who make employee monitoring systems—and others who game the systems.
Be meticulous about your calendar
Calendar integration is one way that productivity trackers have gotten more advanced and, ostensibly, fairer.
Let’s say you make an old-fashioned phone call or attend an in-person meeting. Your Outlook or Slack status may switch to “away,” making you appear as inactive as if you were taking an extended coffee break.
Employee monitors like one made by a company called Insightful cross-check your online status with your calendar to see whether there is a valid reason for your apparent inactivity. If that call or meeting is on your schedule, then the system will recognize that you are busy offline. If nothing is on the books, it could look like you’re slacking off.
Hit the activity sweet spot, around 80%
Let’s not go any further without addressing the underlying question: How much downtime is permissible during the workday? After all, people have been scared to let managers see anything non-work-related on their screens since personal computers first arrived in offices.
No one knows this better than Roger Wagner, who is widely credited with creating the first “boss button” in the early 1980s. He designed a keyboard shortcut to instantly display a spreadsheet if the boss walked by your cubicle while you were playing a computer game. Boss buttons have been features of countless diversions since. (I confess to using one built into a March Madness streaming app.)
Wagner, the founder of computer-education company 1010 Technologies, says his original design was a joke—more of a commentary on overbearing managers than a cover for lazy employees. Good bosses understand workers need mental breaks throughout the day, he says.
This matches what I heard from Insightful Chief Executive Ivan Petrovic. He says customers that use his company’s workforce-management platform don’t expect employees to stay on task 100% of the time.
“On average companies are aiming for 60% to 80% of your time being utilized for work during the day,” he says.
Go ahead and exhale. It’s probably OK to watch an occasional YouTube video at your desk.
And if you’re going to artificially inflate your activity level, be careful. Hitting 90% could look suspicious.
Get physical
So don’t leave your mouse jiggler on all day. Choose the right one if you must resort to shenanigans.
There are lots of software applications that mimic the movements of a computer mouse, so you can appear to be working while away from your desk. There are also devices that plug into computer ports and do the same thing.
Corporate cybersecurity systems increasingly block these apps and devices, and productivity trackers claim to be able to detect them. But some workers swear by mouse docks, like one made by Tech8 USA, that keep cursors moving. The company originally made mouse-moving software but now focuses on physical jigglers.
“People are drawn to mechanical solutions because they’re so simple and don’t require software,” says Tech8 Marketing Director Sam Matthews. “As monitoring technology becomes more sophisticated, that distinction has become even more relevant.”
Use AI, but not too much
Another popular metric for employee-monitoring systems is AI usage. Companies want to know who is embracing new tools, and it can be tempting to think more is better.
“There’s a performative aspect where employees overblow their usage of AI so that they appear relevant in the organization,” says Andrea Derler, principal researcher at Visier, which helps companies track and analyze employee work habits.
In a recent Visier survey of 1,000 U.S. workers, 48% admitted to exaggerating their AI usage.
This is already an outdated strategy. Using AI for everything used to score points for experimentation. Now it can seem wasteful because many companies are watching AI token spending more carefully.
Look, productivity theater has always been part of work. Most of us aren’t trying to cheat the system, but expectations are changing so quickly that we need to be savvy about what the latest employee trackers are looking for.
Sometimes it takes a little gamesmanship to get full credit for our contributions.
Three-Michelin-starred chef Massimiliano Alajmo will host an intimate Mediterranean sailing aboard Crystal Serenity, redefining fine dining at sea.
Scotch whisky expert, luxury hospitality strategist and Keeper of the Quaich inductee Ross Blainey is bringing a new philosophy of luxury experiences to Citizen Kanebridge.
