This New Festival Seeks to Find the Best Gin and Tonic in Auckland

Initially created by British troops in the 1700s as a cure for tropical diseases like malaria, the humble gin and tonic has since earned itself a place on the classic five-ingredients-or-less cocktail list. Here to prove that there's more to the beverage than a 1:1 ratio of house brand ingredients is the East Imperial Gin Jubilee.

Asia's premier gin festival will touch down in New Zealand from February 27 – March 4, 2017. Now in its fifth year, the core objective of the festival is to redefine what a traditional gin and tonic actually is by bringing together some of the world's finest gins, the region's best bars and bartenders. It annually attracts more than 10,000 imbibers across Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Phnom Penh, Bangkok and Singapore.

For its first time outside of Asia the festival will include pop-up bars, gin masterclasses, gin bar trails, a closing party and an awards show. It will kick off with a foraging event on Great Barrier Island on February 27 before one drink is lionised as the best gin and tonic the city has ever tasted. 33 Auckland bars are already onboard, inviting gin lovers to sample their variation of the classic drink marriage.

For more information about New Zealand's inaugural East Imperial Gin Jubilee, visit ginjubilee.com.