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Spirit Special
Chairman's
Reserve Rum
Our
new house rum is a blend of double distilled pot still & continuous
still rums.
Rich vanilla, spices and fruit make it a brilliant rum, whether you're
drinking with a mixer, in a cocktail, or just straight up.
Winner of Gold Medal 'Best in Class' International Wine and Spirit
Competition 2008.
In your Mojito from the end of the month. Launch party on
Thursday the 30th July.
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Shepherd Neame
Spitfire
"Crafted
from traditional varieties of English malt, this golden ale combines an
underlying depth of maltiness, tinged with a subtle hint of toffee,
with the bold citrus and fruity spiciness of Kentish hops, to produce a
well-balanced, thirst quenching, popular drink."
Tasting notes by Peter Ogie, the beer writer.
Now serving at The Hide (but only in bottles we're afraid).
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Shunt
For
those of you who regularly visit the Shunt Vaults under London
Bridge, there's a treat in store. They are taking over the warehouse
opposite The Hide and launching the Shunt Space, starting with 'Money'
on July the 9th to the 11th.
Shunt is a collective of 10 artists
creating large-scale performance events in unexpected, abandoned or
derelict buildings throughout London.
If you want to find out more about 'Money': "What Napoleon was
unable to do with his sword we shall do with our pickaxes and our
gold..." see the link below...
www.shuntmoney.co.uk
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Featured Drink
Hellfire
Old-Fashioned
£7.00
Chris's recent competition entry that received a big thumbs-up from the
judges.
50ml
Don Julio Anejo tequila
10ml
Agave syrup
2
dashes Hellfire bitters (Chris's home-made coffee & jalapeno
marinated in overproof rum)
Slowly add the tequila and syrup whilst stirring constantly over ice.
Add bitters and continue stirring until nice and syrupy. Add dark
chocolate chunks to garnish.
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Aperitif
Dear all,
A
little late this month due to some technical issues I'm afraid (my
computer frying itself from the inside out), but still in plenty of
time to tell you about the fantastic tasting this month (Bollinger on
the 14th), and about the launch of our new House rum on the 30th July.
The former will let you taste some fantastic fizz (in my opinion, the
Grande Annee is one of the best Champagnes available), while the latter
will give you the opportunity to drink some discounted Chairman's
Reserve cocktails, try some authentic Caribbean cooking, and wallow in
some classic reggae. Tickets for the Bollinger tasting are a bargain at
£10;
no tickets necessary for the rum launch, making it even more of a
bargain!
On top of those two events, we have the usual collection of new
products, including a great white Spanish Verdejo-Viura blend from
Rueda, a deliciously light and summery Moscato d'Asti and a wonderfully
old-world style red from Australia's Barossa Valley - Torbreck's
'Juveniles', a blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Mataro blended for the
Parisian bar of the same name. We'll also be getting the eagerly
awaited Ocho Anejo tequila in later in the month. If we don't finish it
all ourselves, you're welcome to try and persuade us to sell you
some!
We have at long last updated our list of tastings and courses for 2009.
If you're interested in doing a varietal wine tasting for 10
friends, learning how to make the boss's favourite martini, or
designing a new cocktail for the bride-to-be, have a look at these and see if
anything catches your eye. If those don't, we'll happily tailor
something to your needs.
Finally, congratulations to
Paolo and Chris for putting in sterling performances at a couple of
cocktail competitions this month. The competition titles - 'World
Class' & 'Best Bartender' show you the level of competition. Sadly
no trophies this time, but plenty of kudos for getting that far!
Cheers,
Paul
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Tuesday Tastings
Our
Tuesday Tastings cost £10
per person. Tastings start at 7pm and last around 2
hours. They are a mixture of tasting, talk from one of us, a wine
maker, spirit producer or expert of some kind, general chat, plus a
little bit of food to pair with the tastings.
They are held in our back room, so we are limited to 25
participants on a first-come basis. We can take reservations for the
tasting, but due to no-show bookings, we need to take payment in
advance. Please let us know if you would like a table in the bar
afterwards as well.
Click here to reserve space at a tasting
Tuesday 14th July, 7pm
Bollinger
We
are delighted to be hosting Bollinger for a Champagne tasting on 14th
July. After starting with Ayala's Brut Nature Zero Dosage (Ayala being
Bollinger's second house), we will be tasting the non-vintage Special
Cuvee and Rose, followed by the vintage La Grande Annee and La Grande
Annee rose. Blimey.
All for £10. As you
might expect, spaces will fill up quickly, so please use the link above
to book your place.
Ayala
Brut Nature Zero Dosage
Bollinger Special Cuvee NV
Bollinger Rose NV
Bollinger La Grande Annee 2000
Bollinger La Grande Annee Rose 2002
  
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Digestive
Why
you should drink better
Whilst
this may seem to go against what we stand for (and good business
practice), I think you ought to drink less.
Let me clarify that a little. Whilst there is a lot of talk in the
government and amongst other concerned individuals about the social and
medical impacts of alcohol consumption in the UK, that's not my point,
I think we ought to drink less rubbish.
If you're reading this, the chances are that artificially flavoured,
mass produced, nutritionally poor fast food is not necessarily high up
your list of daily intake. Actually, if you're reading this, I'm
probably preaching to the converted, but I'll finish now I've started!
I drink for pleasure. Unlike food, and despite what some might think,
alcohol is not essential. However, while many people would balk at the
idea of eating a couple of fast-food burgers or a bucket of chicken, I
wonder how many would think twice about a cheap bottle of wine? In the
case of a supermarket wine at £4 a bottle (assuming it's not being sold
as a loss leader), 25p will have gone on growing the grapes, making the
wine, labelling and bottling. The grapes will have been grown to
maximise yield in the shortest possible time, sacrificing flavour in
the process. The winemaking will be hurried and clinical. If you're
lucky the wine will be bland and uninteresting, though perhaps not
offensive. Where's the pleasure in drinking that?
The
same goes for spirits. I like to compare whiskies to steak. At one end,
you have cheap, young, blended whiskies which pack a big hit of grain
up front, but have little to hold the interest (the pallid pink
supermarket steak); at the other end, the rich, soft malts that have
mellowed in barrel - or a 28 day-aged Longhorn rib eye. I'd so much
rather have the latter occasionally than the former regularly. The same
goes for gins, with fresh botanicals adding life and depth of character
- even if they take slightly longer to produce and have more costly
ingredients. I recently compared a cheap gin, flavoured with oils and
extracts, to Beefeater. I might as well have been tasting mouthwash
against Bordeaux, and Beefeater is very reasonably priced!
In the case of cocktails, I personally find the disparity in quality
even more frustrating. A well-made cocktail is a fantastic thing.
Flavours balance each other perfectly. The use of seasonal fruit is
enough to complement the flavours of the spirit and enhance without
overpowering; quality spirits and liqueurs made from real fruit shine
through the drink; super-cooled blocks of ice cool the liquids quickly
without too much dilution, and the bartender knows what I want and how
I like it.
Sadly they are often not well made, and the resulting atrocity is
enough to put the consumer off cocktails for life. I've recently been
trying out some random bars on a bit of a discovery tour - the good and
the bad. In the course of my travels, I've been unlucky enough to have
a mint-flavouring Mojito, a sickeningly sweet shaken Manhattan, a
gloopy, syrupy Stinger, a sweetened vodka-cranberry Cosmopolitan, a
raspberry syrup-vodka-cranberry Cosmopolitan, a slushy daiquiri that
reminded me of washing up a rum-raisin ice cream bowl and more limp,
watery, pathetic excuses for an Old-Fashioned than I'd care to think
about. My ice has been disappointing half-cubes and my fruit flaccid.
They have taken 15
minutes - or 15
seconds to come, but worst of all, they have all cost the same as the
superb examples. It's as if some greater power has decreed that a
cocktail should cost between £6.50
and £7
whether it is little more than an alcopop, or made with 8
year old bourbon and angel's tears!
Whilst I could go on, the newsletter is rather limited in length, so I
will end with a suggestion. Wherever you're drinking, have a quick
think about what you're ordering, and if possible, have a look at the
quality of what other people are drinking. Do you want to drink a batch
of sugary margaritas with 'sour mix' and wake up with a headache, or
would you prefer something with lovingly aged reposado tequila, lime
squeezed fresh for the occasion and organic agave syrup? Chances are it
will cost you the same.
Paul
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