Drinks Cabinet
Six new tipples we can't wait to add to our drinks cabinet after lockdown
Wade Bales handpicks a range of tipples, from Japanese gin to Connor McGregor's Irish whiskey, to add to your collection
1. NAME TO KNOW: HERRADURA
This ultra-premium tequila is crafted using the most mature blue agave, and nothing else. Fermented naturally with wild yeast, expect a touch of anise and spice on the nose, followed by a palate that’s as sweet and smooth as vanilla butter.
2. RUM ROYALTY
Hailing from Barbados since 1705, Mount Gay prides itself on being the oldest existing rum company in the world. Its premium label, Black Barrel Rum, is a small-batch, handcrafted blend of matured double-pot distillates and aged-column distillates. It’s then matured for a second time in deeply charred bourbon-oak barrels. The result? A bold rum with balanced notes of pepper, spiced fruit, oaky vanilla, and sweet caramel.
3. STARK-CONDÉ STELLENBOSCH SYRAH 2017
Here’s an elegant wine to lift your mood. A deep purple hue alludes to the depth that awaits as you drink it. Concentrated dark fruit aromas with liquorice, violet, and white pepper notes abound. The palate is rich and broad with layers of fruit and a fine-grained tannin structure. Pair with a slow-roasted lamb shank, new potatoes, and lightly charred vegetables.
4. FROM KYOTO WITH LOVE
The first Japanese gin made in the sacred mountains of Kyoto, Ki No Bi is created with yellow yuzu, hinoki wood chips, bamboo, green tea and green sansho (Japanese peppercorn) berries. Possessing a recognisably dry style, its accent is decidedly Japanese, no doubt thanks to its indigenous ingredients and rice-spirit base.
5. HILLTOP HIGHLIGHT
Situated high in Scotland’s Cairngorm mountains lies the Tamnavulin Distillery — “The Mill on the Hill” in Gaelic, named after the old wool mill on the banks of the River Livet and Corrie Stream. Its Tamnavulin Speyside Double Matured single malt offers aromas of toffee, apple, and zesty marmalade, which lead into fresh pear, creamy peaches, pineapple and demerara sugar flavours. A signature Speyside malt.
6. IT'’S A KNOCKOUT
Launched in 2018, Proper No Twelve is a blended Irish whiskey produced by former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion, Conor McGregor. Crafted with the help of former Bushmills distillery manager David Elder, it is triple distilled at one of Ireland’s oldest distilleries and matured in ex-bourbon barrels before being bottled at 40% alcohol by volume. Look out for fruity, honeyed notes first, backed up by a kick of white pepper. Twelve is named in homage to McGregor’s hometown Crumlin, located in the Dublin 12 area.