Following on from Glenmorangie's A Tale of Cake, the magnificent distillery has gone and created A Tale of Winter. Director of whisky creation Dr. Bill Lumsden wanted to evoke the feeling of winter, of sitting in front of a fireplace while the snow fall outside, and to do so, he finished a bourbon barrel-matured single malt in ex-Marsala wine casks. All those rich, comforting, chocolatey notes certainly put this one in the 'winter warmer' category.

Nose: Honeycomb, chocolate digestives, fragrant lavender, sultana, and cinnamon.

Palate: Cocoa, Brazil nuts, vanilla tablet, jammy red berry sweetness developing, crystallised ginger.

Finish: Spicy ginger remains, mellowed by vanilla and chocolate mousse.

This vodka is made with the finest Irish grain and is flavoured using Irish nettles and fruit from the Kigelia Africana tree found in Africa and known locally as the ?Sausage Tree? ? and whose curative and purifying powers are highly sought safter.

Remember Pimms? Of course, you do. Well, Sipsmith takes it up a notch. Sipsmith is the brainchild of a couple of likely lads, who saw the opportunity for delicious craft-distilled gin and vodka and decided to do it themselves.

Mix 1 part Summer Cup to 3 parts lemonade, add cucumber, strawberries and ice. Drain, and start again. Drink with: Cucumber sandwiches. Based on our award winning London Dry Gin, it is then blended with a host of carefully selected summery ingredients including infusions of Earl Grey tea, Lemon Verbena and Cucumber. Aromatic yet surprisingly dry, it's crying out for lemonade and fruit. The Sipsmith Summer Cup 1 part Summer Cup3 parts Lemonadecucumber and strawberriesIce Fill a big jug with ice, add cucumber and sliced strawberries. Add the lemonade and Sipsmith Summer Cup, and enjoy summer. Source - www.sipsmith.com

Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski

Drink Date: 2023 - 2035
A 60-40 blend of Grenache and Mourvèdre aged in a combination of demi-muids and new barriques, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Renaissance shows plenty of smoky, toasty nuances laid over the top of roasted cherries. Full-bodied, rich and velvety in texture, it finishes long, with overtones of mocha lingering on the finish. It's oaky now, but it should improve with short-term cellaring. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.

I confess to being slightly disappointed in the offerings from this fine domaine this year. The Grangeon family owns vineyards in some superb sandy sites, including the lieux-dits of Cristia and la Font du Loup, but the 2019s and 2020s (to a lesser extent) are too easy in style, and some cuvees are overly marked by wood. Still, there is no denying their commercial appeal. The 2020 white, however, showed well on both occasions I tasted it. Baptiste Grangeon is picking those grapes a bit early "to keep the freshness," then compensating by using a bit more new oak and bâtonnage.

"I was a big fan of 2019 and less of 2020 in the beginning," Grangeon said as we tasted through the range. "But with time, I like '20 more and more." Alcohol levels here were close to 16% in 2019 but more like 15% in 2020. "You can't get in '19 what we got in '16—that was a perfectly balanced vintage. Chateauneuf is supposed to be a fine and elegant wine," Grangeon added in closing.

Looking at the older wines, the 2011 (there was only a single cuvee produced) should be consumed without further delay, and the 2001 came across as tired and of only academic interest at this point (no review given). As a rough rule of thumb, I would suggest drinking these wines within their first decade.

Published: May 06, 2022

VINEYARDS Parcels of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon were hand-picked from selected sites on the  gravel soils of the old Ngaruroro River, and old vine Merlot from the Bridge Pa region.  Bridge Pa Triangle soils feature fine silt loam over red metal gravels, while the gravel sites protected by Roys Hill, feature gravel over fine silt. These sites are free draining and low in fertility, resulting in struggling vines producing fruit of great concentration. Low yielding vines, open canopy management, managed irrigation and Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand farmed were common to all sites. Bridge Pa Merlot delivers ripe, dark plums which compliments the spicy brighter fruits from the gravels. Cabernet thrives on gravel sites and contributes structure, acidity and fragrant berry fruit notes. 

WINEMAKING Batches of hand harvested fruit was chilled overnight before processing the following day. Chilled bunches were hand sorted and de-stemmed, and whole berries were transferred to open fermenters with some foot stomping. Whole bunches were also incorporated in some of the Merlot fermenters. The berries were cold soaked before fermentation, with pumping over twice per day then pressed to barriques at the  end of fermentation. The Merlot and Cabernet matured for 21 months in new and  seasoned French oak barriques. Blended in December 2019 and bottled in January  2020, the final blend is approximately 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. 

SENSORY An elegant Merlot Cabernet blend which exhibits lifted aromatics of fragrant  berry fruits, sweet French oak, and underlying lavender and thyme. Complex and  textural, seamless tannins harmoniously support red and black fruits, earthiness,  and spice. Tautly poised to develop beautifully with bottle age.

Made using barley grown on Macallan's Speyside estate, distilled once a year in a single week, this single malt has been matured exclusively in sherry seasoned oak butts and hogsheads. Warm, comforting aromas of cinnamon, dried fruits, sweet lemons and caramel fill the nose, and the palate initially offers notes of warm spice, dry oak and fresh figs. Sweet orange and dried fruit flavours develop slowly, alongside delicate citrus and sweet toffee.

Macallan Estate is presented in a striking box inspired by the landscape of Speyside. Featuring an inlay of hand-cut slate, this unique box reflects the sense of place found in the whisky.

Compass Box Whisky - At their best, aged in good quality American oak casks, brimming with vanilla and echoing rich pastry cream on the finish, they are amongst the most delicious whiskies in the world. At their best, grain whiskies are the perfect whiskies to name...Hedonism.

The inspiration behind our whisky HEDONISM is just that ? pleasure, enjoyment, a celebration of that ideal marriage between distilled spirit and high-quality oak maturation. The aromas and flavours hint of vanilla, caramel, a delicate fruitiness, accented by flashes of coconut in the finish. This is a whisky that will appeal to both the ardent whisky enthusiast and newcomers to whisky alike.

12x330ml

Beautiful layered flavours superbly balanced. There’s dark fruit in the forefront (prunes, cherries), and bright, slightly bitter notes in the back (orange peel, hints of clove and coriander seed) Great mouthfeel. It’s syrupy, but not overly sweet. This is an almost perfect quad, quite probably my favourite.

10% ABV

Shipping from our bond warehouse in Hamilton

From Suntory’s mountain forest distillery, nestled deep in Mt. Kaikomagatake, Suntory Single Malt Whisky Hakushu is a fresh and gently smoky single malt whisky with herbal notes.

Straight from the untouched forests, soft and crisp waters and mountains of the Southern Japanese Alps, it is no wonder that Hakushu is a "green and fresh" whisky. Created by the dream for a new type of whisky of Keizo Saji, the second master blender, the unique taste made in distinct

Color: Light gold
Nose: Peppermint, melon, cucumber
Palate: Yuzu, grapefruit, lemon thyme
Finish: Refreshing, subtle smoke

Alc 43%

It is a blending of Calvados aged a minimum of 15 years. In fact, it contains percentages of older Calvados that gives it all its nobleness.

It lets in the mouth a subtle taste of apple that gradually gives way to the refined alliances of the tannin of old Calvados. It is perfect harmony between the apple and the wood, with underlying aromas. The Calvados of all the nice moments.

Amrut Distilleries recently launched an umbrella brand, the Single Malts of India, to showcase the hidden gem malts of India. Neidhal is described as a single malt eponymously sourced from a Neidhal or coastal region and is said to exhibit traits that uniquely spring from the locale. 

Tasting notes make mention of tropical fruits, vanilla punctuated by soft phenols and above all sea salt on the nose. On the palate, it is fruit cocktail and mesmerising phenols with a touch of iodine. The middle ground is an essay in chewability and a finish that is phenolic with a touch of sweet vanilla.

46% ABV

Thomson Rye and Barley is made from New Zealand grown grain.  This we've crushed, mashed, fermented and finally double distilled through our hand beaten copper pot stills.

Small cask aged for maximum flavour.