Top new products: December

Taylor’s Very Old Tawny

Port producer Taylor’s has launched a limited-edition Very Old Tawny Port in collaboration with filmmaker Matthew Vaughn to celebrate the forthcoming film The King’s Man, due to be released on 12 February 2021. Matured for almost nine decades in seasoned oak casks, the Port is sourced directly from the Taylor’s cellars in Porto. A selection of Ports, including some made in the 1930s, were selected before being blended and left to marry in casks for several months. Released in 50cl crystal decanters in a presentation box, just 700 bottles have been released.

RRP: £2,950.

Contact: Mentzendorff, info@mentzendorff.co.uk

Bottega Prosecco Rosé

Prosecco specalist Bottega has released its new Il Vino dei Prosecco Rosé. The pink sparkler is made from a blend of Glera and Pinot Noir as per the new DOC regulations that have allowed the production of pink sparkling wine labelled as ‘Prosecco’ for the first time. According to the producer, the wine has aromas of apple, white peach and citrus, with fresh and delicate flavours of wild stawberries on the palate. Bottega recommends serving the pink Prosecco with sushi, vegetable risottos and cold meats.

RRP: €13.50.

Contact: Bottega, info@bottegaspa.com

Hine Bonneuil 2010

Hine has unveiled its Domaines Hine Bonneuil 2010, the latest in its series of single-vineyard Cognacs. Made using fruit from its 80-hectare High Environmental Value-certified vineyard in Bonneuil, only grapes from the best vintages are set aside for the single-vineyard release. Just 450 bottles from 18 casks are made of the vintage spirit. Bottled on 21 July 2020 at 42.1% ABV, the Cognac is said to have flavours of peach, toasted bread, tangerine and blossom. Hine has also released a single-estate version from grapes harvested in 2006 and 2008.

RRP: £90.

Contact: Speciality Brands, +44 (0) 20 8838 9367

Magic Rock Murk Life Balance

Huddersfield-based brewer Magic Rock has added a hazy pale ale to its core line-up called Murk Life Balance. The 5% ABV beer pays homage to the ‘new normal’ as large numbers of people swap their office desks for home-working. The New England-style pale is made using a high proportion of wheat and oats in the grist, which adds body and aids the formation of the beer’s characteristic haze or cloudiness. Suitable for vegans, it is said to have low bitterness levels, with a dry hop blend of Australian hops, and it is and fermented using Magic Rock’s house yeast, WLP066. Magic Rock is also phasing in a brand refresh, giving the beer name and style more prominence.

RRP: £2.40.

Contact: Magic Rock, ebshop@magicrockbrewing.com

Amarula Ethiopian Coffee Liqueur

Cream liqueur brand Amarula has launched a coffee-flavoured variant. The Ethiopian Coffee Cream Liqueur combines Amarula’s classic Marula fruit expression with “the full-bodied, fragrant mocha-chocolate undertones of single origin Ethiopian arabica coffee beans”. The producer says the complex fruit and floral notes from the coffee beans complement the citrus and caramel flavours found in the marula fruit. The Coffee Cream will join the brand’s other flavour variants – the Vanilla Spice and Raspberry and the Chocolate and African Baobab. Available in one-litre bottles, the recommended serving is over crushed ice with espresso.

RRP: £19.99.

Contact: Distell, info@distell.co.za

Last Drop Buffalo Trace 1980

The Last Drop Distiller has released just 240 bottles of its Buffalo Trace 1980 whiskey, made by the former master distiller Gary Gayheart. Gayheart worked for the distiller before its name changed to Buffalo Trace in 1999; it had been known as the George T Stagg Distillery. Having spent almost 20 years in barrel, the whiskey has notes of figs, dates, saddle leather, pipe tobacco, toffee, walnuts, and butterscotch, according to Drew Mayville, the master blender at Sazerac, the owner of Buffalo Trace.

RRP: £3,500.

Contact: The Last Drop Distillers, info@lastdropdistllers.com

Copper Crew Merlot

Premium canned South African wine start-up Copper Crew has launched a third expression to its range: a 2019 Merlot. Available in 25cl cans, the Merlot is sourced from the Western Cape and also includes 9% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot. The wine is matured for two years in seasoned French oak barrels and, according to Copper Crew, has flavours of juicy cherry and ripe blackberry, cocoa, liquorice and dark chocolate. The Merlot joins the Cambridge-based company’s Chenin Blanc and rosé, and can be bought individually or in mixed cases of six, 12 or 24. A three-pack Christmas gift box is also available this month.

RRP: £12.50 for three.

Contact: Copper Crew, info@coppercrew.co.uk

Cockburn’s x Musa Beer

Port house Cockburn’s has teamed up with Portuguese craft brewery Musa to release two beers, one of which has been aged in Port casks. The original is a 9.5% ABV Belgian blonde ale, which is said to have flavours of citrus, apple, hops and yeast and pairs well with salads and fish dishes. Meanwhile, the Remistura, which has been aged in Cockburn’s Port casks, has notes of peach, pear and vanilla on the palate, and is said to complement flan or crème brûlée.

RRP: £6.09.

Contact: Honest Brew, frank@honestbrew.co.uk

Undurraga Red Field Blend

Chilean winery Undurraga has released a red field blend made from grapes growing in dry-farmed vineyards in Maule. Made from a mixture of vines that are over 60 years old, the blend is predominantly Malbec, with small percentages of Carignan, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and País. Grown in Coronel del Maule, which is on the border between Cauquenes and Itata, all of the vines are grafted onto old País rootstocks, and are bush-trained. The varieties are co-fermented and released in a limited run of just 1,359 bottles.

RRP: US$160 per nine-litre case.

Contact:  Grupo Vinos del Pacifico, mvillasante@gvp.cl

Juvé & Camps Singular

Juvé & Camps has unveiled an organic Gran Reserva Brut Nature Cava made from 100% Xarel.lo called Singular. Made from grapes grown in the producer’s Espiells and Can Rius vineyards, the Spanish sparkler spends an average of 36 months on its lees. According to the producer, it has aromas of green fruit and fennel, the latter a characteristic of Xarel.lo, as well as flavours of brioche and pastry from the long lees ageing. Singular is the latest 100%-Xarel.lo Cava released by Juvé & Camps, joining other expressions such as the reserva Cava Essential and the Cava de Paraje Calificado La Capella. Described as a food-friendly Cava, it is said to pair well with marmitako (tuna and potato stew), bonito (white tuna), or salmon dishes, as well as poultry casseroles, stews and rice dishes.

RRP: €19.

Contact: Juvé & Camps, juveycamps@juveycamps.com

Viña Albali brand refresh

Félix Solís-owned Spanish wine brand Viña Albali has unveiled new label designs for its range. The brand refresh follows the inclusion last year of a range of Viña Albali Vino de la Tierra, as well as a new online campaign and communications strategy. According to Nielsen figures supplied by Félix Solís, the brand is the best-selling DO wine in the Spanish off-trade, and is present in 93% of food stores in the country. Viña Albali is also the wine group’s best-selling brand abroad, performing well in markets such as the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Russia and Scandinavia.

RRP: The Viña Albali range is priced between £5 and £9.50 for the gran reserva.

Contact: Felix Solis, info@felixsolis.co.uk

Villa Massa Amaretto

Limoncello producer Villa Massa has expanded its range to include an Amaretto. Made with Sicilian almonds, the liqueur has signature aromas of marzipan, with almond, vanilla, cherry and cacao on the palate. Bottled at 30% ABV and packaged in a ridged transparent glass bottle, Villa Massa recommends serving the Amaretto over ice as a digestif. Brand owner Zamora Company initially launched the product in both the on- and off-trade in the Netherlands, and it will later be sent out to as many as 40 markets.

RRP: €23.49.

Contact: Zamora Company, info@zamoracompany.com

Chosen Family brown ale

A collaborative project between South London’s Mondo Brewing and the Queer Brewing Project, founded by Lily Waite, Chosen Family is an American Brown Ale. Proceeds from the sale of the beer will go to MindOut, a mental health service for members of the LGBTQ community. According to Waite, the ale was brewed with a seasonal autumn focus, and has flavours of toffee and dried fruit with a subtle bitterness. The can design was created by Brighton illustrator Sam Prentice. The 5.2% ABV Brown Ale marks the first brew in Mondo’s progress series.

RRP: From £3.42 per can.

Contact: Mondo Brewing, hello@mondobeer.com

Blue Spot Irish whiskey

Irish Distillers and Mitchell & Son have joined forces to recreate the historic Blue Spot Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey, a range that was launched in the early 1900s. According to Irish Distillers, the last record of Blue Spot whiskey dates to 1964, making this the brand’s first launch in over half a century. The name ‘blue spot’ refers to dollops of paint put on the side of barrels to indicate they must be matured for a minimum of seven years. Consulting information from Mitchell & Son’s inventory, the reimagined Blue Spot contains whisky that has been matured in Bourbon, Sherry and Madeira casks.

RRP: €80.

Contact: Irish Distillers, Sophie@rtc.london

Scratch sloe rum

Hertfordshire-based rum maker Scratch has added a new spirit to its line-up. Its sloe rum is made with sloe berries picked near the distillery. These are then added to Scratch Faithful white rum and British-refined molasses, and left for a year to marry together. This base was then re-distilled with more sloe berries “to impart a nutty, caramel flavour”. The 42% ABV rum is then bottled, and no extra sugars or artificial colours are added after distillation.

RRP: £24 per 35cl.

Contact: Scratch Spirits, doug@scratchspirits.co.uk