Xmas Drinks 2021: The spirits you need on your cabinet over the holidays December 15, 2021 The Botanist Islay Dry Gin is ideal for seasonal cocktails. Made by the experimental Scotch whisky-makers at Bruichladdich, using a rare, salvaged Lomond still, the Botanist combines nine traditional gin botanicals with a further twenty-two ingredients foraged from the island. The resulting spirit is incredibly smooth, enlivened by citrus, mint, and harmonious floral flavours, that make [...]
Measure For Measure at Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review December 8, 2021 Government sleaze is on display again, but at least in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse’s latest Shakespeare production, it’s entertaining. In Measure for Measure, the Duke of Vienna delegates power to an outwardly righteous advisor, with the hope he will restore moral order in an increasingly licentious society, but remains in the city in the guise [...]
For a one of a kind gift check out this unique whisky auction from Sotheby’s December 1, 2021 The Distillers’ Charity, the philanthropic wing of the Worshipful Company of Distillers, has teamed up with Sotheby’s for a charity auction that promises to net some lucky bidder some rare and rarified bottles. Taking place at Barnbougle Castle on the outskirts of Edinburgh on Friday 3 December, the theme is “One of One”, with each [...]
The whisky-maker putting the ‘fun’ in Non-Fungible October 13, 2021 Glenfiddich is putting the “fun” into non-fungible, with NFTs you can drink. The pioneering single malt whisky brand is partnering with BlockBar, a new platform for buying, collecting and trading non-fungible tokens (NFTs) related to luxury wines and spirits. The service will launch next week, with the sale of limited edition Glenfiddich NFTs: fifteen unique [...]
Collection of rare and unusual single malt whisky to go on sale August 17, 2021 “Prime” and “ultimate” connote excellence, but they also mean first and last. Diageo’s Prima & Ultima collections play with that ambiguity, by bringing together a selection of exquisite single malt whisky, which are also the first or last of their kind. The age and rarity of these spirits would make them enticing enough, but each [...]
How to mix… The perfect New Orleans Sazerac August 17, 2021 August is hurricane season in New Orleans, a time when oppressive heat and torrential showers mean it’s foolish to do much more than sit on your balcony with a frosty drink and watch the world pass by. The extremity of London’s weather in recent weeks, from floods to heatwaves, put me in mind of the [...]
Paradise at National Theatre: Kae Tempest play a partial success August 13, 2021 Everything old is new again. The National Theatre is back with its first full-capacity show since lockdown, and like the Young Vic it has decided to run with a modern reimagining of a work from antiquity. Directed by Ian Rickson, with a script by the Ted Hughes Award-winning and Mercury Prize-nominated spoken word artist Kae [...]
Changing Destiny at The Young Vic is a disappointing return August 4, 2021 The Young Vic is rolling out the big guns for its first post-lockdown production. Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah helms a new play by Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri, with sets and costumes from architect David Adjaye, whose design for a Holocaust memorial was approved last week for installation next to the Houses of Parliament. Expectations were [...]
I’ll be toasting International Tequila Day with a Maestro DOBEL July 23, 2021 National and international awareness days for foods and drinks might have begun as cynical marketing ploys, but some have evolved into annual events that the public have embraced with genuine enthusiasm. One of the most successful of these pseudo-holidays is International Margarita Day, which takes place on 22 February, and in pre-Covid times was widely [...]
Bitter Summer: Asterley Bros’ Vermouth and Amaro July 16, 2021 Summer might finally be arriving in London this weekend, with a forecast for sun and temperatures expected to hit 30°C on Sunday. It’s the perfect weather for a tall, refreshing cocktail made with ice-cold tonic water and an Italian aperitivo. But if England’s loss in the Euros has left a bitter taste in your mouth, [...]