Gin review: Hendrick’s Lunar is a giant leap for spirits fans March 31, 2021 Hendrick’s air of cultivated whimsy would be grating if it were not so consonant with the character of their product. Hendrick’s flagship cucumber and rose-flavoured gin is best known, but in all its varieties, Hendrick’s is inventive, impish, and iconoclastic. The spirits are produced at a distillery in Girvan, Southwest of Glasgow. The purpose-built Gin [...]
Cement the Special Relationship with some American Whiskey March 30, 2021 Earlier this month the Biden administration announced it was suspending Trump-era tariffs on the import of Scotch whisky to the US, reducing the price of single malts for American consumers. If you wanted to reciprocate, there are many long-established American whiskeys you could purchase, but if you’re willing to try something new, your adventurous spirit [...]
This is what you should be drinking on St Patrick’s Day March 16, 2021 Tomorrow is St Patrick’s Day, and while Boris didn’t actually order the closure of pubs until 20 March 2020, for most of us this will be the second year in a row that we mark the event at home. This is no time to crowd into a bar with your mates, swilling Guinness while shouting [...]
Cast your net wider when choosing smoky whiskies March 9, 2021 For many casual drinkers, “smoky whiskies” are synonymous with Islay, the Inner Hebridean home of fire-wreathed sea monsters like Ardbeg, Laphroaig, and Lagavulin. But cast your net wider and you can find spectacular smoky whiskies all over Scotland, and a notable new addition is Smoke Season, the most heavily peated single malt ever to be [...]
Spirits showcase Whisky Show: Old & Rare goes digital February 20, 2021 Since 2017 the Whisky Show: Old & Rare has afforded aficionados an annual opportunity to sample some of the most elusive and legendary spirits in the world of whisky. Next week it returns, as a virtual event. This time round, the Whisky Show: Old & Rare will consist of four masterclasses, which will be streamed [...]
Get your lockdown foodie kicks with a YORStory Zoom night February 2, 2021 As the current lockdown drags into its third month, simple pleasures like a meal at a restaurant or a trip to the pub are becoming increasingly distant memories. For those of you desperate for gustatory experiences and human contact, YORStory has launched a weekly series of food and drink themed workshops to rescue your Thursday [...]
No-and-low alcohol spirits are here to stay, so do it in style January 29, 2021 Dry January has always been a challenge, but 2021 has made going sans alcohol even harder. If you have stuck with it this far – through Zoom meetings, home-schooling, and an inescapable sense of existential dread – then you deserve a treat in this final weekend of the month. We’re already well-versed in low- or [...]
Best of travel: Why the best Chinese food is found in Taiwan January 27, 2021 To tide us over until we’re able to travel again, we’re republishing classic travel stories from our archives. This week we revisit Simon Thomson’s trip to Taiwan, home to some of the world’s finest Chinese food. ••• In 1949, after years of civil war, the nationalist forces of the Kuomintang withdrew to an island in [...]
Baby alligators and Everglades – it’s Florida baby! January 22, 2021 To tide us over until we’re able to travel again, we’re republishing classic travel stories from our archives. This week we revisit Simon Thomson’s trip to Florida destination Fort Lauderdale. ••• Florida has a fearsome reputation for hurricanes, alligators and hanging chads, but in this vast sea of crazy, there is an island of tranquility. [...]
Rescue New Year’s Eve 2021 with these Bacardi cocktails December 28, 2020 The government’s pandemic policy has left New Year’s plans in disarray, and millions of Britons asking if there is any way the holidays can be saved. Fortunately, the creative team at Bacardi have invented a range of festive cocktails to help lift the mood. So raid your liquor cabinet or book a delivery slot, because [...]