Damrak Amsterdam Gin

While most people were still under the impression that the world was flat, the Dutch were busy sailing to and from faraway lands in search of exotic cargo. From the early 1600s through most of the 1800s, the Dutch East India Company held a monopoly on the spice trade from Indonesia, Ceylon and the Spice Islands. Ships would return to the DAMRAK (Amsterdams inner harbour). The DAMRAK became an important mooring place for merchant ships arriving from and departing to exotic ports of call around the world. Established as a center of world trade, the city of Amsterdam flourished and expanded. In the early 16th century, Gin (derived from the Dutch word for juniper genever) was invented as a remedy for a variety of ailments. Lucas Bols, with his ability for free thinking saw beyond its curative powers and, according to the legend, began distilling jenever in 1575. Lucas Bols established a simple distillery in the country outside Amsterdam. He used the spices and herbs brought back by the D