What inspired the distinctive shape of the Tanqueray gin bottle?

I think it looks like a cocktail shaker, myself.

According to this site:

http://www.ardentspirits.com/Links/Tanqueray.html

"The bottle used for Tanqueray gin is said to have been modeled on an eighteenth-century British fire hydrant, but other accounts from the company state that the bottle was meant to suggest a cocktail shaker."

According to World Features Syndicate, it is the hydrant story. But good job, in either case. And a reference, too ! Thanks again, LL.



(I vote for the hydrant. Cocktail shakers are thinner.)

Well, I still say cocktail shaker for the following reasons:

1. I've never been to Britain.
2. 18th century was just a tad before my time.

But, just looking at your "doggone" question, I figured you say fire hydrant!

When did we have fire hydrants in the C18? We do not have them now, for goodness' sake! For us they are a strange but distinctive feature of US films; it used to mystify us what these things were, standing up at street corners, which you could collide with in comic car chases and which shot great jets of water everywhere. There was never any such thing above ground in the UK like that .

Fire hydrants here, in so far as we have them, are under 'man-hole' covers, under the street and are just large ordinary pipes with very large taps ( faucets) all hidden from view.We certainly had no mains water in C18 to pressurise such a device anyway.

It appears that the link, and World Features Syndicate is wrong. Sorry.

Water is not what you put in martinis ! If you bottle gin you are likely to choose a distinctive design that is fitting. The cocktail shaker design would make sense.

'Tanqueray' brand is virtually unknown here, though made here. It sounds as though it is yet another product sold abroad on a spurious English image of quaint antiquity and tradition when in fact it was so packaged and labelled by marketing men to be sold for export ! Fire hydrants indeed!

If you want a gin that is recognised here buy Gordon's ( Tanqueray and Gordon's are, of course, made by the same company!)