Top new products: February 2017

UB40, featuring Ali, Astro and Mickey, Red Red Wine

Three original members of the Brummie reggae hit-making band UB40 have launched a ‘Red Red Wine’. The Red Red Wine is a collaboration between original UB40 band members Ali Campbell, Astro and Mickey Virtue (who are now no longer part of the official band) and Eminent Life, a company that creates limited-edition products connected to the arts. In May last year Eminent Life launched a limited edition ‘Cuvée Roger Daltrey’ Champagne to coincide with the 50th anniversary of The Who. Produced from a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the Red Red Wine cuvée has a fruit profile of sweet blackcurrant, plum and cherry, ‘oh baby’…

The Red Red Wine is being launched alongside the release by the trio of a new album of acoustic reggae, entitled Unplugged, featuring some of the band’s biggest hits. The song Red Red Wine was written in 1967 by US singer-songwriter Neil Diamond. It was picked up by UB40, who used it on their 1983 album of covers, Labour of Love. The track reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in August 1983.

RRP: £28.50

CONTACT: www.eminent-life.com

Johnnie Walker’s Year of the Rooster

Capitalising on the Chinese New Year, Johnnie Walker has unveiled its collector’s Blue Label range, which marks the Year of the Rooster.

The limited edition range depicts ‘four aspects’ of the feathered Chinese Zodiac sign, including the Herald, the Prospector, the Pioneer and the Adventurer. Printed in gold with Chinese calligraphy, just 90 bottles make up the limited-edition range, which have been released exclusively to the Singaporean market and are available from premium retailer, Asher BWS. Johnnie Walker’s Blue Label is the brand’s premium no-age-statement Scotch, and is one of the most expensive blended Scotch whiskies available on the market.

“The Year of the Rooster signifies fresh starts and new beginnings as we move into a brand new year,” said Rajesh Joshi, Moët Hennessy Diageo’s marketing director.

The 10th animal in the Chinese Zodiac, the Rooster is traditionally associated with good fortune and confidence in Chinese culture. This year, the Chinese New Year started on 28 January.

RRP: SG$330 (£188)

CONTACT: Diageo, +44(0)20 8978 6000

1987 Hine Cognac

Hine has released a pair of 30-year-old vintage Cognacs from the 1987 harvest, which was a year of extremes, according to Bernard Hine. 1987 in Cognac was characterised by a cold wet July followed by a prolonged hot sunny period, he recalls.

“The winter of 1987 was very cold, it poured with rain after mid-summer making that July one of the wettest on record. In August, we heaved a sigh of relief when the sun finally came out and a prolonged very hot, dry period lasted through until the end of September; perfect conditions for ripening the grapes ready for harvest.”

Although both Cognacs come from the same harvest, one has been matured at Hine’s cellars in Jarnac, and the other in the UK – the producer has maintained a tradition that dates back to the 19th century – ageing a proportion of its production in Bristol, calling these Cognacs ‘Early-Landed’. The Bristol-matured Cognacs tend to age more slowly than those in the warmer and less humid conditions of the Cognac region in France.

“Our 1987 Jarnac matured has an orange marmalade nose, developing into soft spices, vanilla, honey and gingerbread on the palate, while the 1987 Early-Landed has a delicate nose of lime, citrus fruit and orange blossom with a fresh, citrus palate,” notes Hine.

RRP: £245

CONTACT: Pol Roger Ltd., +44 (0)1432 262 800

Rod McDonald Wines’ ‘Mister’ range

UK wine importer Buckingham Schenk has unveiled a new line from New Zealand producer Rod McDonald Wines, with the aim of offering the curious consumer something a bit ‘left of centre’.

The ‘Mister’ range, produced by the family-owned winery in Hawke’s Bay, comprises six wines: a Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, rosé and Syrah. The importer proclaims the new brand to be “as clever as it is curious, as bold as it is beautiful” and “modern to the core”, and will target consumers looking for something ‘quirkier’, a spokesman from Buckingham Schenk said.

McDonald set up the company in 2006 after nine years as winemaker at Vidal Estate in Hawke’s Bay. Aimed at the multiple and specialist retail channel, the Mister range, along with Rod McDonald’s premium Te Awanga brand and Trademark Syrah, was presented at the New Zealand Winegrowers Tasting in London in January. It marked Buckingham Schenk’s first appearance at the annual tasting.

RRP: £12-£13

CONTACT: Buckingham Schenk, +44 (0)1753 521 336

Hawkshead Brewery Tiramisu Imperial Stout

UK craft brewer Hawkshead has released a new brew produced in collaboration with Wayne Wambles – head brewer of Cigar City Brewery in Tampa Bay, Florida.

The 10% abv Tiramisu Imperial stout was brewed with coffee beans and eight types of malt, inspired by the classic Italian dessert. Available on draught keg and in bottle, the brewer boasts “rich, luscious layers of coffee, mocha and cream flavours”.

Hawkshead, founded in 2001 in the Lake District, primarily produces “real ale”– cask-conditioned beer – alongside a range of lagers, speciality brews and limited edition ales.

RRP: £5 per bottle

CONTACT: info@hawksheadbrewery.co.uk

Barefoot Pink Pinot Grigio

With the tastes of younger wines consumers in mind, US-based producer Barefoot Wine & Bubbly has launched Barefoot Pink Pinot Grigio in the UK. Released with the aim of driving value in the rosé category,

Barefoot’s new Pink Pinot Grigio carries an abv of 11.5% and is described as dry, crisp and fruity in style with notes of “tart apple, peach and raspberry flavours”.

Barefoot recently added two other products to its UK portfolio – Barefoot’s Californian Malbec and Chardonnay, with the latter intended to “inject some fun” into the variety and make it more relevant to consumers in an “otherwise stagnant category”.

RRP: £6.99

CONTACT: www.barefootwine.co.uk

Taylor’s 1967 Single Harvest Port

Port house Taylor’s has released the fourth wine in its series of 50-year-old limited-edition tawny Ports – the 1967.

Made in the same year that The Beatles released Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Port is described as having aromas of honeysuckle and marzipan, with apricot and guava on the palate.

Taylor’s managing director, Adrian Bridge, said: “Since we launched the first 50-year-old Single Harvest with the 1964 vintage four years ago, we’ve enjoyed strong consumer demand. Port is one of the few wines which can withstand the passage of time and still deliver complexity and youthful freshness half a century later.

“Having one of the most extensive collections of cask-aged Ports of any company, Taylor’s is in a good position to offer consumers these extraordinary Ports for years to come.”

The wine is being released in the UK through Mentzendorff.

RRP: £175

CONTACT: Mentzendorff, +44 (0)20 7840 3600

Lagavulin 1991 single malt

Islay whisky producer Lagavulin has marked its bicentennial with the release of a 1991 single malt, with the profits set to benefit charities based on the island.

Just 522 bottles of the 24-year-old expression, which have been released to celebrate the distillery’s 200th anniversary, have been produced, with the cask used selected by the distillery team and Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes.

The bottles have been priced at £1,494 each to reflect the date of the earliest documented record of distilling in Scotland, in 1494, found within the tax records of the day – the Exchequer Rolls. Proceeds from the sale, which are expected to exceed £500,000, will be divided between seven Islay charities.

Bottles can only be purchased via a special ballot on The Whisky Exchange, which will be drawn on 12 February at random. Bottle No. 1 will be auctioned separately, with one bottle each donated to the Diageo Archive and The Whisky Exchange.

RRP: £1,494

CONTACT: www.thewhiskyexchange.com

Príncipe de Viana Garnacha Blanca

Spain’s Príncipe de Viana has launched a single-varietal Garnacha Blanca, in keeping with its aim of recovering the native grape varieties of the Navarra DO.

Neighbour to Rioja, Navarra is flanked by the Atlantic to the west, the Pyrenees to the north, and the dry sandy plains of the Ebro River Valley to the south, allowing it to produce a wide range of wine styles.

The region has previously been known for its production of rosé using Garnacha, but since the 1980s has been working to carve a name for itself by bringing forgotten grapes native to the region back to the fore. Garnacha Blanca, or Grenache Blanc, has strong roots to the winemaking history of Navarra, but according to Príncipe has been neglected “for decades”.

On the nose, the wine “exudes typical aromas of citrus fruits, pear and a hint of florality”, with the palate described as “full and fresh with balanced acidity”. It joins a wider range of single varietal wines, which already includes a Graciano, Syrah and Tempranillo.

RRP: £8.99

CONTACT: www.principedeviana.com