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News
The week in pictures
This week in the world of drinks: Douglas Blyde travels to the cradle of wine, Georgia, we attend a Cazcabel Margarita Masterclass ahead of Margarita Week, and Ten Locks hosts a cocktail foraging course.
Douglas Blyde travelled 2,670 miles to the cradle of wine, Georgia, whose winemaking traditions date to 6,000 BC, to visit leading producer, Askaneli Brothers which owns over 450ha of vineyards, three wineries and a distillery. As well as conventionally crafted wines, Askaneli is famed for its qvevri collection. “When wine lovers first taste a qvevri wine, such as our Muza Qvevri Gocha’s Collection Kakhuri Mtsvane, Kakhuri Mtsvivani, Kisi, Krakhuna and Rkatsiteli, they often appear confused,” said Askaneli’s charismatic founder and businessman, Gocha Chkhaidze. “Though when they taste it again, they encounter new flavours and characteristics which they gradually acclimatise to – and with time, they actually start craving such a wine.” Chkhaidze also previewed his super-premium, lithesome “Liza Bebo”, named after his late grandmother, crafted from “Usakheldouri”, a variety which translates as “grape with no name”. An infinitesimal proportion of the 500 bottles produced will be available on allocation in the UK in the summer. Spurred by the Russian-Ukraine conflict, Chkhaidze increasingly looks towards strengthening exports markets including the UK and USA, hence the event during the visit whereby international press, sommeliers and merchants tasted a showcase of what he considers the best wines made today in the country. This coincided with the tenth anniversary of UNESCO awarding status to protect the Georgian traditional process of making qvevri wine. To stock Askaneli’s wines, and to find out more about Liza Bebo, contact importer, gardabaniwines.co.uk who will again be present at this year’s London Wine Fair.
We visited a masterclass hosted by UK’s bestselling 100% agave Tequila, Cazcabel, a preview ahead of a series of public events in celebration of Margarita Week. Eight days of masterclasses, events, tastings, partnerships and promotions will take place across the country between 18-26 February.
Purpose-led drinks importer Ten Locks hosted a cocktail foraging course this week to explore how sustainably sourcing shrubs and plants can help elevate the everyday cocktail.
And back home from his trip to Georgia, Douglas Blyde judged the third instalment of the in-house cocktail competition to find a cocktail for spring from the imagination of team members of Clay’s, an interactive digital clay shooting range and bar. Taking place at the new riverside Canary Wharf branch, judges, including Stefan Chomka, editor of Restaurant magazine, Kerin McDonald, marketing director of Clays, and Luke Condell, ambassador for the spirit brand supporter of the competition, Hendrick’s gin named the victor: Fran Popov. Named in honour of his recently deceased dog and “best friend”, the impactful, aromatic, surprisingly sumptuous “Lilo” coalesced Hendrick’s gin, rose liqueur, lemon juice and clarified carrot and parsnip syrup, being finished with a damask rose. The competition is driven by police officer turned Operations Director for Clay’s, Jon Calabrese, son of iconic bar figure, “The Maestro”, Salvatore Calabrese. In time, the cocktail competition will follow the global ambitions of the Clay’s brand. You can taste “Lilo” at both Clay’s Canary Wharf and Moorgate come spring. (clays.bar/canary-wharf)
On Tuesday 7th February Jascots Wine Merchants held its annual portfolio tasting at Westminster Chapel, where they were joined by over 300 guests from the wine trade. More than 300 wines were available to taste, from producers well-established in the Jascots portfolio such as Bolney Wine Estate and Schloss Johannisberg, plus new names De Trafford, Nativo, and Spier Wine Farm from South Africa, and New Zealand’s Prophet’s Rock, the most recent addition to the company.
Yealands Chief Winemaker, Natalie Christensen, met the newly appointed High Commissioner of New Zealand to the UK, Phil Goff, when he attended the Annual New Zealand Trade Tasting on Tuesday at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London.
And finally, a three-year sponsorship deal between The Glencairn Glass and the Bloody Scotland Scottish International Crime Writing Awards has been announced, a continuation of the brand’s current association with the Awards.
Kirsty Nicholson, Glencairn’s Design and Marketing Manager, commented: “We are delighted to extend our sponsorship of such prestigious writing prizes. Like Scottish crime writing, the Glencairn Glass is a truly global phenomenon and we look forward to working with Bloody Scotland in celebrating great crime novels.”
Have you been out and about this week? Got a hot tip for us? Let us know!