How mead emerged as the drink of summer 2021 April 26, 2021 These are heady times for British mead. The honey-based drink is thought to be the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage. It was probably being made in China in 7000 BC and King Arthur counted it amongst his favourite tipples. Chaucer mentions “braggot”, a form of mead made with honey and barley malt, and the Ancient Hindus [...]
Drinking around the world: The Scots-Armenian wine alliance April 22, 2021 The Scottish Borders are famous for Sir Walter Scott’s old home Abbotsford House, Jedburgh snails and Hawick Balls boiled sweets, as well as being the birthplace of the “voice of rugby” Bill Maclaren. Somehow, it has also become the hub of Armenian wine appreciation and the UK’s centre of south Caucasus viniculture. “I knew Armenia made [...]
TOAD whisky is a disruptive, Oxford-made spirit April 21, 2021 Can you have a disruptive whisky? Is there such a thing as a daredevil distiller? One that breaks boundaries despite taking years to mature, somehow predicting the status quo and refusing to follow it? I present to you TOAD whisky and its Portuguese Master Distiller, Oxford-based Chico Rosa. “Our whisky perfectly showcases our terroir,” he boasts. [...]
Ramsbury Estate beats Russia and the US to win top vodka prize April 20, 2021 North-east Wiltshire had just been crowned the UK’s vodka capital, and one of the best vodka-making regions in the world. Ramsbury Estate, at Aldbourne near Marlborough, won Spirit of the Year, Vodka Of the Year and a gold medal at last week’s prestigious London Spirits Competition. “It was international recognition for our cosmopolitan team,” says [...]
Drinking around the world: Romanian wines to die for April 20, 2021 My introduction to Romanian wine was inauspicious. It came in one of Count Dracula’s tourist castle hotels in Transylvania. We sat around a coffin-shaped table as a black-suited waiter approached and smiled, revealing not particularly threatening canines. As he brandished the wine list he said, “May I have the pleasure of providing sir with a [...]
Captain Tom has his own rose – buy one to support his work April 19, 2021 If you are planning on transforming your outdoor space into an English rose garden, now is the time to act. This most famous and romantic of blooms takes time and care to grow but can be the most rewarding of pursuits for keen gardeners. But if you still need an extra push, you can also [...]
Drinking around the world: The joys of Brazilian wine April 16, 2021 You don’t have to go all the way to Copacabana Beach to taste Brazilian wine – Ipswich will do. Nicolas Corfe founded Go Brazil Wines in 2010, with the Suffolk-based company still the UK’s only specialist importer of Brazilian wines cachaca. “We source directly from mainly smaller producers, seeking out unusual and well-differentiated wines that [...]
Croatian wine is shedding its rep as cheap plonk – here’s why April 15, 2021 Croatia has an ideal climate for wine making, but lacks the reputation as a solid producer of premium bottles. For years its exports would feature in the bottom echelons of wine lists, labeled – mostly fairly – as cheap and cheerful plonk. But not any more. The UK’s first Croatian wine importer is run by [...]
Never go without fizz again thanks to The Finest Bubble’s Champagne Helpline April 13, 2021 There’s no feeling like it. That sinking sensation in your gut. You keep telling yourself it’s not happening; it’s something that happens to other people, not you. You check all the usual places but there’s nothing. No Blanc de Noirs. No Prestige Cuvee. No Extra Brut. So what do you do when you suddenly discover you [...]
Why Champagne is music for your mouth April 7, 2021 Sometimes you just want a bit of whatever Lady Gaga is having. And now you can, by pairing her green crème Chromatica Oreos with Dom Perignon champagne. The iconic Champagne house has teamed up with the pop superstar in “an artistic venture” which sees the launch of her limited edition champagne bottle, a Gaga sculpture [...]
