The history of gin has seen many twists and turns along the way, from fighting diseases, to providing cures for soldiers in foreign lands, to being a public health menace and along the way being refined, with innovative distillation techniques and creative use of botanicals.

Though gin is commonly viewed as a British product, its early history can be traced to Italy, the Flanders and the Netherlands where it was used as a medicinal drink. The first traces of wine distillates with infused herbs date back to the 12th century in Italy where references can be found in the Compendium Salernitanum of the Schola Medica Salernitana.