Pimm's is a brand of fruit cups, but may also be considered a liqueur. It was first produced in 1823 by James Pimm and owned by Diageo since 2006. Its most popular product is Pimm's No. 1 Cup.
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Pimm's was first produced in 1823 by James Pimm, a farmer's son from Kent who became the owner of an oyster bar in the City of London, near the Bank of England. Pimm offered the tonic (a gin-based drink containing quinine and a secret mixture of herbs) as an aid to digestion, serving it in a small tankard known as a "No. 1 Cup", hence its subsequent name. Pimm's began large-scale production in 1851 to keep up with sales to other bars. The distillery began selling it commercially in 1859 using hawkers on bicycles. In 1865, Pimm sold the business and the right to use his name to Frederick Sawyer. In 1880 the business was acquired by future Lord Mayor of London, Horatio Davies, and a chain of Pimm's Oyster Houses was franchised in 1887.[1][2]
Over the years, Pimm's extended their range, utilizing a number of other spirits as bases for new "cups". In 1851, Pimm's No. 2 Cup and Pimm's No. 3 Cup were introduced. After World War II, Pimm's No. 4 Cup was invented, followed by Pimm's No. 5 Cup and Pimm's No.6 Cup in the 1960s. In 1946, the corks were replaced by twist-off bottle caps.[1]
The brand fell on hard times in the 1970s and 1980s. The Oyster House chain was sold and Pimm's Cup products Nos. 2 to 5 were phased out in the 1970s due to reduced demand. In 2005, Pimm's introduced Pimm's Winter Cup, which consists of Pimm's No. 3 Cup (the brandy-based variant) infused with spices and orange peel. In 2006, the Pimm's Company brand was bought by Diageo.[1]
The brand experienced a revival following a 2003 advertising campaign featuring a humorous classic upper-class Hooray Henry called Harry Fitzgibbon-Sims[3] (portrayed by Alexander Armstrong) with the catchphrase It's Pimm's O'clock!,[4] somewhat mocking their own traditional advertising and appeal. Diageo's 2010 campaign features a more diverse range of characters representing different elements of the Pimm's cocktail (Pimm's No.1 being an Englishman in red and white blazer, lemonade being three young women in yellow, ice represented by a mature man), coming together to the theme tune of classic 1970s British television show The New Avengers.[5]
Pimm's is most popular in Britain, particularly southern England. It is one of the two staple drinks at Wimbledon, the Henley Royal Regatta, and the Glyndebourne opera festival, the other being Champagne. A Pimm's is also the standard cocktail at British and American polo matches.[1]
There are seven Pimm's products, all of which are fruit cups, only Cups #1, #3 and #6 are still available at present. The essential difference among them is the base alcohol used to produce them:[1]
Whilst Pimm's only officially ever made Fruit Cups numbering 1-6 in recent years, various bartenders have started to experiment with their own Pimm's-style drinks using different bases. A popular spirit to use as "Pimm's No. 7" is Tequila although Cups based on Bourbon, Absinthe and Islay Whisky also exist. [7]