Top 10 new products

Cubanisto in a can

Rum-flavoured beer Cubanisto has launched in sleek sliver cans in the on-trade in a bid to piggyback off the resurgence of the can in restaurants and bars. Featuring a “disruptive” design with the brand’s skull logo taking centre stage, the 330ml can is lighter, more durable and chills faster than its bottled counterpart. The aluminium also helps reduce exposure to both oxygen and light. Brand owner AB InBev hopes the new format will help give the beer fridge stand out, enticing more consumers to try it. The can also unlocks a variety of social opportunities within Cubanisto’s target market, from outdoor bars to festivals, where bottled beers aren’t always allowed.

Absolut Colours

Luxury London department store Harvey Nichols has launched Absolut Colours, a limited edition design inspired by Gilbert Baker’s iconic pride flag. Available nationwide, the bottle pays homage to Baker’s message of solidarity, love and respect for diversity and celebrates liberalism. “We’re thrilled to be working with Absolut Vodka on another of its stylish and colourful launches,” said Marion Carpentier, group food and hospitality director. “This artistic expression not only complements our portfolio, but also our reputation for delivering the best in luxury hospitality and retail.” To coincide with the launch, Harvey Nichols stores will be shaking up Absolut Colourful cocktails at their bars, made with Absolut, lime, agave syrup, passionfruit, crushed ice and a lime wedge.

RRP: £23.

Nytimber Classic Cuvée 2010

If Prosecco stocks run dry this summer, UK residents can always support local producers and spend a little more for a bottle of English sparkling wine. Among the best on the market is Nyetimber from West Sussex, which has just released the 2010 vintage of its Classic Cuvée. Made from 51% Pinot Noir, 36% Chardonnay and 13% Pinot Meunier, 2010 stays true to Nyetimber’s house style, defined by the use of its own grapes in the blend and a parcel-by-parcel approach. Having spent three years on its lees, the result is a pale gold, fine-bubbled fizz boasting notes of “toasty spice, honey, almond, pastry and baked apple”. Head winemaker Cherie Spriggs said, “A slow, gradual ripening of the fruit has produced a fine, elegant wine with a great combination of intensity, delicacy and length. It’s a wine that we’re all very proud of.”

RRP: £30.

Kopparberg frozen fruit cider

Claiming to be “the world’s first frozen cider”, Kopparberg has launched a range of frozen drinks pouches in time for summer. The Strawberry & Lime and Elderflower & Lime flavour variants tap into the “American trend for frozen drinks”, according to the brand. The 4% abv ciders take up to eight hours to freeze and are recommended to be served with a lime wedge for the Strawberry & Lime and a slice of cucumber for Elderflower & Lime. Kopparberg claims that the brand extension was inspired by an April Fool’s prank shared with its online community last year that showed a Kopparberg ice-lolly, which “quickly turned into a national phenomenon”.

RRP: £2.99

Innis & Gunn Hot Rocks

Those innovative bods at craft brewer Innis & Gunn have come up with a canny new limited edition beer, caramelised with “searing hot” granite rocks. Dubbed Hot Rocks, the brew is inspired by the style of ale made in the Stone Age. To create it, the brewery used ancient archaeological artefacts for clues. In the production process, hot granite rocks were used to caramelise the cereals at the heart of the ale. Sweet gale and meadowsweet have been added for bittering, as well as horehound and pink heather. A touch of honey lends it a “brioche-like sweetness”. Just 120 bottles of the caveman brew have been made, which are selling like hot cakes.

RRP: £15

Ledaig Dùsgadh 42 year old

If you’ve got a spare £3,500 lying around, then why not indulge in a bottle of 42-year-old single malt Ledaig Dùsgadh? Whisky nuts will have to be quick as only 500 bottles have been released. Burn Stewart’s “rarest and oldest” expression of Ledaig, the whisky offers flavours of “dark chocolate, coffee and cherry liqueurs with spicy ginger and black peppercorn overtones”, leading to a “long, salty, smoky finish.” Meaning “awakening” in Scottish Gaelic, the limited edition Ledaig Dùsgadh, with packaging inspired by copper stills, was first distilled on the Isle of Mull but has retained its “peaty intensity” over the last four-decades. The expression was aged in several casks before Burn Stewart master distiller Ian Macmillan transferred the liquid into González Byass oloroso casks in 2001. “I’ve been distilling for 40 years and the smoky aroma retained in Ledaig 42YO is the highest I’ve ever come across,” said MacMillan.

RRP: £3,500

The Wine Atlas Range

Asda’s new Wine Atlas range scooped the award for best design and packaging at our db awards last month, and deservedly so. Our judges were unanimous in their praise of the range, priced at £5-£7, which romanticises the idea of travelling through the wine you drink. The labels are designed to look like postcards, while the wines shine a light on lesser-known varieties like Bobal and Catarratto. The 17-strong range includes hidden gems such as a Feteasca Regala from Romania and a Furmint Tokaji from Hungary as well as lesser-known varieties from France and Spain. “I’m proud of the range as the team have scoured the globe to source some really unique wines,” said Ed Ashley, senior wine buying manager for Asda. “I’m confident we’ve managed to pinpoint exactly what excites the nation and give customers something fresh and new that they won’t have seen before.”

RRP: £5-£7

Bruichladdich Octomore 7.1

Bruichladdich has released its final expression made by master distiller Jim McEwan, who retires in July. The seventh annual release in the Octomore series is one of the most heavily peated in the range at 208ppm. Originally due to launch in May, the release was pushed back to June to coincide with McEwan’s departure. Octomore Scottish Barley 7.1 was created using barley harvested from mainland Scotland, rather than from Islay alone. Matured for five years in American oak casks, the liquid, bottled at 59.5% abv, is described as having notes of “smoke, soft fruits, vanilla, honey and citrus”. McEwan has clocked up 52 years in the Scotch industry, spending the last 14 as master distiller of Bruichladdich.

RRP: £110

Green Spot Châeau Léoville Barton

Pernod Ricard’s Irish subsidiary, Irish Distillers, has unveiled the first single pot still Irish whiskey to be finished in Bordeaux casks – specifically, the casks used by grand cru Château Léoville Barton.

The brand extension is hoping to highlight the Irish heritage both of Green Spot whiskey and of Château Léoville Barton. The Château’s owners, Anthony and Lilian Barton, are direct descendants of Irish émigré Thomas Barton, who left Ireland in 1725 to found a wine merchant company.

Green Spot can trace its roots back to Dublin-based wine merchants, Mitchell & Son, who matured, bottled and sold the original Green Spot under bond. Established in 1805, Mitchell & Son aged whiskeys bought from John Jameson’s distillery in Dublin in their own casks up until 1968, when the practice of selling whiskey to bonders in cask ceased.

RRP: $65 (£40) per 70cl.

Provetto Spumante Bianco Brut

With Roberto Cremonese of Bisol having warned db of an impending global Prosecco shortage, we’re keeping our eyes out for alternatives to the Italian sparkler. Keen to capitalise on the Prosecco drought is Spanish producer Felix Solis, which launched new brand Provetto at the London Wine Fair. Hailing from La Mancha, the brut and rosé sparklers are designed to mirror the taste of the Italian fizz. The brut is made from Airén and Viura and has 11g/l of sugar, while the pink is sweeter at 20g/l and is crafted from Tempranillo and Airén. “Retailers have been dependent on the Prosecco engine for driving sales, and as it runs out, they will be asking for an alternative – so we’ve come up with a strong proposition that gives them a chance to expand beyond Italy,” said Richard Cochrane, managing director at Félix Solís UK.

RRP: £6