It’s been another busy month with an awful lot going on, so why not read all about it?

Booze News

Things don’t seem to be getting any better in the drinks industry at the moment. I was incredibly sad to hear that Neil Harrison, founder of Nelson’s Distillery, passed away recently and also that Kent’s Anno Distillers has entered into liquidation. Meanwhile Devon’s Salcombe Gin seem to have found themselves being sued by English sparkling wine producer Nyetimber over an alleged infringement of a somewhat baffling ‘Product of England’ trademark!

New Gin Alerts

A couple of new gins have caught my eye this month. From Manchester Gin comes Neapolitan Lemon made by soaking lemon zests in a Mediterranean-inspired recipe for three days before finishing the gin with a touch of sugar. Along not dissimilar lines, Melifera have released Édition Évasion, described as a fruitier gin and featuring lemon verbena, orange blossom, citrus and apricot alongside their signature immortelle flowers. Meanwhile Marco Pierre White has re-launched Mr. White’s Gin, and Sipsmith have relaunched their Chilli & Lime Gin (despite co-founder Jared Brown not long ago admitting that Sipsmith had lost its way focusing on flavoured gin!).

And last but not least, Electric Spirits have launched their first ever bottled cocktail: a blood orange negroni made with Achroous gin, a custom, house-distilled citrus spirit, Bitter Fusetti and Valentian Vermouth.

My Month in Gin

Alongside plenty of judging and writing I’ve also had the pleasure of attending some fantastic events. First up was the press launch of Angel’s MakeShift Bar, so called because it is a bar without a bar. In response to this challenge owner Josh Powell (of The Natural Philosopher) created a menu of just six classic cocktails that are pre-batched and weighed to precision on the shelf in the large picture window. But if that sounds boring, you could not be more wrong. This is an adaptable drinks menu meaning that each of the six cocktails comes with a choice of two spirits and four different flavour profiles, creating a total of 48 variations and something for absolutely every palate! The bar snacks menu is equally tempting, featuring pickles, gildas and scotch eggs but you must not miss the Big Schnitz; a dangerously delicious chicken schnitzel served in a potato brioche bun with lemon caper butter, chive mayo and pickles. With just 16 seats indoors (and the same number outdoors) standing is strictly prohibited (much to my delight!) and the vibe is warm and welcoming but very chilled and low-key.

I also had the great pleasure of attending Below Paired at The Bar Below; a one night only pop-up event featuring a menu of four Renais cocktails (one each made by Dram, Archive & Myth, Scales and The Bar Below) each perfectly paired with a Michelin-star quality bar snack. I absolutely loved everything but a special mention must go to Archive & Myth’s Soixante Quinze accompanied by my very first cavier bump from Jack Sotti himself! The Bar Below was also recently awarded a pin by The Pinnacle Guide and, as you’d imagine, the atmosphere and service were both outstanding.

I also couldn’t resist an invite to another award-winning bar in the form of a press evening with non-alcoholic spirit The Pathfinder at Satan’s Whiskers. I’m already pretty familiar with the fermented and distilled hemp-based liquid, but it was a great pleasure to meet UK brand ambassador Rish Ravalia and learn more about The Pathfinder while trying it in some delicious concoctions.

Next up was London’s newest late-night listening bar. Small and intimate with great sounds and laid back vibes, Under The Counter serves bold spice-led cocktails and Turkish-inspired small plates alongside a high-quality music experience and curated DJ sets. The small but inventive menu includes Ghost Lotus made with Baijiu and szechuan, the zero waste 3anana, and my favourite – the gin-based Cardamom Whispers. And the food is definitely worth trying too.

Finally, I was delighted to finally make it to Cooper King just outside of York on my travels up north. I’ve written about the distillery a fair bit so it was wonderful to see everything in its small but perfectly formed glory including their two rotovap stills, NASA paint-covered whisky still and shipping containers full of barrels! Quite how they achieve so much in such a small space has to be seen to be believed, so do pop along if you’re in the area.

Welcome to My Collection

What a lot of goodies this month! Thanks to Renais for my special personalised bottle of gin and to Hepple for one of their stunning new bottles too. Thanks also to Urban Rhino for both their London Dry Gin and African Spiced Rum and to Cooper King for their Dry Gin. I was also delighted to receive Vinca‘s new 100% recycled aluminium bottles of red and white wine, and samples of MOTH‘s new Spicy Margaritas and Passionfruit Martinis as well as a few of their Negronis. Finally, it was also a treat to receive the latest issue of Tonic magazine.

Catching Up and Looking Forward

If you haven’t already seen it, why not check out The Gin Guide’s article on What Makes an Exceptional Gin featuring yours truly? As for next month, keep your eyes peeled for my next Drinksbiz column as well as some silly little thing called #GinADayMay. See you on the other side (if I survive!). 🍸🛎🛎