One day in June
I’ve made this point before, but if January 25th can be designated No Name Calling Day and the last Wednesday in April marks Administrative Professionals’ Day, then it is only right and proper that the second Saturday of June be set aside for World Gin Day. Instituted by Neil Houston (a.k.a. @yetanothergin) in 2009, today [...]
Road Trip: Sipsmith
Having lived in Scotland for pretty much all my life, I have a fairly well-developed idea of what a distillery looks like. It would be hidden away at the end of a glen somewhere remote where the taxation officers would be unlikely to stumble across it, with a cluster of copper pot stills in one [...]
Road Trip: Balmenach Distillery and Caorunn
Scotland – and it’s likely that I’m not the first person to notice – has a long history of distilling. The obvious product of that history is whisky – single malt or blended – but like any country with that kind of tradition, it’s not uncommon for producers to branch out into other spirits. Up [...]
Leaving the Twentieth Century
I’ve been in the process of working up a small cocktail offering for a function we’re hosting at Sygn in a couple of months time. There are some obvious choices for it – the event isn’t industry-focused so I won’t be going too obscure or bleeding edge with anything – but flicking through various menus [...]
Mirrorball
So cocktail masterclasses have become a thing. This isn’t news but it turns out it’s not a passing craze either. Having been hosting them for birthday or hen (US translation: bachelorette) parties and other groups for a couple of years, I’ve settled into a pretty standard format. Over the course of two hours or so, [...]
Moving on with Lillet
I stopped by a fairly informal tasting session with Sébastian Martinon of Lillet last week. He was on a flying visit from France and had asked to see somewhere outside of London; Edinburgh’s not a bad choice, but I’m pretty biased. (I’m also pretty biased because the tasting took place in the private lounge at [...]
Labwork 2: Two-Step Mojito & Ex Aqua
In which the Company undertakes an excursion to the Capital and returns with a new understanding of molecular mixology, and a surprise.
Leftovers
In which the Company retires to the kitchen to conjure desserts of uncommon alcoholic strength.
The new gin
The sun is out, the flowers are blooming and Easter has come and gone. Spring has sprung like a beartrap and that means that it’s time to add some new things to the backbar. No, really. It’s like a spring tradition. Photo from NOTCOT.com Among our new treats is Greenall’s Bloom, the latest addition to [...]
MxMo: Tea
In which the Company marks the true beginning of the mixological year in true British fashion.
Thirty Nine: Good Yeomen
In which the Company explores the difference between commercial and competition cocktails.
Thirty Two: Drake’s Fortune
I’ve been thinking a bit about gin cocktails of late, which is useful given that all the recipes I’m currently owe various people and competitions are supposed to be rum based. I set myself to making a summery drink that wouldn’t be torture to make – essentially the polar opposite of A Walk In The [...]
Happy birthday America!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRGUqd_M6Mg] It’s been 233 years since the bouncing baby United States of America declared its independence from the United Kingdom, and it’s been thirteen years since a hardy band of patriots led by no less than the US President repelled the alien invaders intent on exterminating mankind. If that’s not worth celebrating, then seriously, nothing [...]
Twenty Two: Twice-Shy Negroni
I’ve been using a bottle of Punt E Mes as my go-to sweet vermouth for a good while now. I’m a big fan of the bitter note it brings to drinks, but I’ve been predominantly using it as a generic sweet vermouth which has slightly warped my expectations of certain drinks at the bitter end [...]
Twenty One: Blackberry
If David Embury is to be believed, mixed drinks fall roughly into two categories – cocktails of the sour type, and those of the aromatic type. The former covers drinks that include – surprise! – a sour element like lemon or lime juice while the latter comprises recipes with some kind of aromatized or fortified [...]
Newsdesk: summer is coming
(splash by Trevor D., licensed under Creative Commons.) It’s summer! It must be, all the clues are there. There was sunlight this afternoon – proper sunlight with warmth and everything! The other big clue? It’s the Guardian’s guide to making the perfect cocktail, of course! Not only that, but they’ve started a weekly series on [...]
Four: a Barbore Martini
There are a number of things I want to talk about. Angus Winchester has promised a bottle of Tanqueray No. Ten and a book from his extensive library of vintage and modern mixellany to the inventor of the drink named as the official Martini of Barbore. This is madness. I am, of course, totally there. [...]
Two: Bloomsbury Cosmo
I’ve been kicking around some ideas ahead of Thursday’s regional for the Diageo World Class competition. The heat could involve presenting up to three different drinks, including one classic or twisted classic gin cocktail. I’m not sure if this one is right for the comp, but y’know, still tasty. Bloomsbury Cosmopolitan 40ml Tanqueray Gin 10ml [...]
In Review: The Much Lamented Death of Madam Geneva
Gin is not dead. Hope I didn’t spoil the plot or anything, but I had some last night and it was quite tasty. Very herby. And junipery. In fact, you could argue that, with the recent births of a number of high quality US gins and the global relaunch of Bols Genever, that gin has [...]
On the Martini
I’ve spent a decent amount of time thinking about gin recently. There are worse things to think about and I’ve sat in on two training sessions on it over the past fortnight. One thing that always comes up in any gin training is the Martini. It’s one of the most iconic cocktails – everybody knows [...]
On selling gin
Tomorrow, I’m lucky enough to be attending a gin training session at work hosted by an ambassador from Diageo’s Reserve Brands division and I reckoned it would be worth doing a bit of homework. I’m pretty familiar with gin, but I figure it’s always worth refreshing myself every once in a while. I don’t know [...]