Curiosity Killed the Tom Cat...

This story, like so many, begins with a man walking into a bar, the man engages the bartender and over the course of the conversation the subject of Jamaican Gin arrises, a gin made by Wray & Nephew exclusively for the Jamaican market, of course it isn't long till word of this gin finds it's way to a certain gin enthusiast and a search begins...

A few calls later it would seem a family member is holidaying in Jamaica, two weeks later a bottle of this cheeky looking Jamaican gin arrives...

The bottle bears an uncanny resemblance to certain own brand supermarket spirits, this impoverished attire made me weary of the gin from the start but we shouldn't judge a book by it's cover now, should we... The labelling is rather simple standing out yet does not reveal much about the liquid inside, simply 40% and 750ml, oooh an extra double, one must remain calm and not leap for joy as of yet.

Considering it's Caribbean background I am going to make the brash assumption that this gin is distilled from molasses, i'm also curious as to weather it meets the EU criteria of being distilled to a minimal 96%, as this is made exclusively for the Jamaican market it is doubtful much consideration is given to the laws governing gin production on the other side of the world.

So enough of the mystery surrounding the gin, time to crack it open... dear lord! A whif from the bottle was not appealing in the slightest, slightly reminiscent of every studious evening spent imbibing cheap vodka, but in the interest of fairness let's decant the gin to a tasting glass to allow it to breathe and release it's finer aromas.

Once I acclimatised to the potency of the alcohol I began to pick up slight notes of citrus, an ever so soft hint of juniper and a surprising hint of cookie dough ice cream, although it wouldn't be to much of a stretch to imagine vanilla being used in a Caribbean gin.

And now time for the taste test... gulp!    

Despite it's potent aroma the taste is remarkably bland, giving away little, perhaps slight peppery notes but little more. The mouth feel is extremely oily which initially masks the alcohol burn, a burn which continues to evolve long after the liquid is gone.

So Jamaican gin... there seems to be more than one reason why rum is so popular in the country and this token gin would do little to sway anyones preference, so on the gin shelf you go Wray & Nephew Old Tom, at the bottom, towards the back, categorised under morbid curiosity.

I hope you never attempt to enjoy,

Umpleby

Sangaree for Every Season

Most people aware of Gins place as our national spirit, how it has become intertwined in the history and tradition of merry old England, and what a damn fine thing tradition is. Like the consumption of Port wine, another great English drinking tradition, a tradition which grew out of one of our many fisticuffs with the French, terrible times when our supply of wine was rudely interrupted, times when our dear Portuguese allies were so willing to step in and fill this void.

So any way, point is tradition is lovely, what is ever more endearing though is when two traditions meet, creating something new, something unusual, and dare I say it when speaking of Port, but something cheeky... Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you, the Sangaree

Sangaree is a corruption of the Spanish Sangria, the very same fruity beverage many of us have imbibed on the beach on the Costa del Sol or in a cheap latin themed restaurant, this drink however wasn't always made with cheap red wine, budget brandy and artificial orange juice, it was originally a simple mix of fortified wine such as sherry, port or madeira, diluted with a brisk shake, slightly sweetened and dusted with nutmeg. Jerry Thomas makes mention of several styles of Sangaree in The Bon Vivant's Companion, one with Brandy, the predecessor to what we drink today and a rather interesting one with gin.

The recipe calls to make the Gin Sangaree in the same way as a Gin Toddy with a float of Port Wine and a dust of nutmeg, a recipe which would look a little something like this;

Gin Sangaree

Gin - 50ml

Still Water - 25ml

Simple Sugar Syrup - 5ml

Port Wine - 15ml (float)

An interesting origin of the modern Sangria, not quite as fruity, shorter and considerably more fortified. I prefer a slightly different method, swizzling the gin and syrup over crushed ice to achieve the desired dilution whilst adding sufficient chill to the'. The beauty of this drink is it works with a wide variety of gin's although those on the heavy juniper side of things fair rather well.

As much as the simplicity of this drink works to it's advantage there are some additions which can add some rather interesting twists to this drink, tailoring it to your mood, your guest or even the weather...

Around Christmas I began experimenting with mulled wine inspired port, cooking up a mulled port concentrate by adding sugar and various herbs and spices, most notably cinnamon, nutmeg, bay leaves and citrus peel before lengthening this concentrate with more of the Port used to create it. When I discovered the Sangaree I was immediately tempted to put my mulled port to use.

Mulled Sangaree

Martin Millers Gin - 50ml

Simple Sugar Syrup - 5ml

Mulled Port Wine - 15ml (float)

Swizzle the gin and syrup in a wine glass with crushed ice, float the mulled port and garnish with a dusting of freshly grated Nutmeg.

An interesting twist on the Gin Sangaree with plenty of winter warming spice complementing the black pepper and orange notes of Martin Millers, as with the Gin Sangaree there is no need for citrus to balance this drink, the dilution works wonders. A lovely little winter beverage which also works particularly well served warm, combine the above ingredients with 25ml of water, warm in a saucepan but try not to heat over 78 degrees, we wouldn't want to burn off the alcohol, serve in a small glass tea cup with that aromatic dusting of nutmeg. 

So a winter warmer to see you through the rest of the cold months but summers just round the corner (hell who am I kidding this is England) but just in case, heres a twist on the Sangaree especially for those sunny days;

Summer Sangaree

Whitley Neill Gin - 50ml

White Port - 20ml

Velvet Falernum - 5ml

Swizzle all ingredients together with crushed ice in a wine glass, cap with crushed ice and perfume with a grapefruit zest. 

Velvet Falernum is an alcoholic syrup made from rum, lime and a variety of spices, most notably cloves and star anise, it is often used in Tiki style drinks but adds an interesting tropical spice to many libations. This style of Sangaree is rather different to the two above but still maintains the basic elements of the original drink. The soft orange notes of Physalis from the Whitley Neill work so well with the white fruit notes of the Port and the citrus and spice of the Velvet Falernum, the grapefruit zest adds a lovely aroma slightly better suited to a summer beverage than nutmeg.

Ingredient Notes

Mulled Port
Inspired by the English Christmas tradition of mulled wine whereby red wine is infused with various botanicals and served warm as a tasty winter treat.
To make mulled port start by concentrating the flavours and spice in a small  portion of the wine, this allows you to boil up a small portion of the wine to really infuse the flavours, although this sacrifices the alcohol content you are only using up a small volume of Port so not all is lost. For my mulled port I took 200ml of Ruby Port, heated it up in a saucepan with 100 grams of granulated sugar and the following botanicals;
- Orange Peel
- Lemon Peel
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Cloves
- Black Pepper
- Dried Bay Leaves
- Juniper Berries       
Bring the port mix to the boil then allow to simmer for about 4 minutes before straining out the botanicals. After you have your concentrate lengthen it with the remaining port until your happy with the flavour.


I hope you enjoy,

Umpleby

The Country Bumpkin

Summer is upon us and the gin world is full of lovely fresh summer cocktails, although the majority of these are refined libations, drink with class and sophistication. My summers are not always suitable for such refined drinks, I often spend time outdoors with barbecue food and it's a tad difficult to mix up a Basil-Gin Smash or a White Lady in such surroundings. Rum on the other hand has a variety of rustic beverages, the Caipirinha arguably being the the simplest and easy to concoct with limited means.


My discovery of a Gin Caipirinha came a few months back when Mark Scott, the bartender at one of my regular haunts could not furnish me with Brazil's finest so we opted to substitute it for gin instead. The result was a rather Gimlet-esk beverage, ice cold with a beautiful zesty freshness, by opting for gin as opposed to Cachaca the beverage is somewhat cleaner, we originally used Plymouth Gin which shone through well giving the drink an additional botanical complexity.


The simplicity and rustic charm of the Caipirinha is it's beauty, originally it was made as a peasants drink, drunk in the slums of Brazil as a way of taming the raw, fire water that is Brazils sugar cane rum, Cachaca. I have always been a firm believer that premium, smooth Cachaca has no place in the Caipirinha, it was this line of thinking which led me to conclude the gin of choice for the Country Bumpkin, but first a note on the name.


Caipirinha translates a peasants drink and as I was giving Brazils national drink a British twist it felt only right to furnish it with it's own name, however the direct translation was missing a little charm. A Country Bumpkin is defined as 'someone usually from the midwest, whom lives in a small town but does not live on a farm and do all that labor. usually on the poorer side' it could not better sum up the areas in which I spend most of my sunny down time.


So back to the issue of what gin to used. As nice as Plymouth and a few Martin Miller's Country Bumpkins have been it did not really fit with my thesis of the quality of Cachaca to use in a Caipirinha. It's turns out that super premium gin is an unnecessary addition to such a simple drink and after all there is only one gin widely available in the taverns of every small village, Gordon's.

The Country Bumpkin Photographed by Sofia Miranda

The Country Bumpkin
Gordons Gin 50ml
Lime Wedges 4/8th's
White Sugar 2 Bar Spoons


Now before we discuss the recipe for the Country Bumpkin, white sugar is being used because gin doesn't have the rustic sugar cane notes of Cachaca which may benefit from brown sugar, i'm using granulated to really exfoliate the zest of the lime and to help grind the last drop of juice out.


So pop the lime wedges in to a suitable, short receptacle, any old thing will do, lets not be picky with this, perhaps... a jam jar? Sprinkle with your sugar and muddle (crush), spoon on crushed ice, pour on a healthy dram of England's Oldest, stir, top with crushed ice and serve with straws.


Being a punchy gin Gordon's big juniper flavour shines through nicely with a great sweet sour balance in a slightly raw yet refreshing drink.


Hope You Enjoy,


Umpleby  





   

The French Martini

When most people speak of a French Martini they conjure up thoughts of a fruity based vodka drink, a simple mix of vodka, Chambord and pineapple juice, the signature serve of the French, berry liqueur, until recently this was certainly my perception of the drink.

Whilst trawling through vintage liquor advertisements to decor my house, I stumbled across a Seagrams Gin advertisement from the 1970's promoting the Seagrams French Martini, a martini twist that calls for a few drops of cognac to be added to your usual martini. At first I was a little taken back by advertisment, not because of the gentleman's amazing, bushy, facial hair, but rather unusual mix of gin and cognac. After a little considering though, this isn't the first drink to use gin and and aged spirit in a martini twist, i'm thinking the smokey martini, and the fact that Seagrams is a gin which is already acquainted with oak I threw caution to the wind and mixed one of these bad boys up...    

A 1970's advertisement for a Seagrams Gin, French Martini

As suggested I mixed up my regular martini, slightly moist with Noilley Prat vermouth, i'm usually partial to a spot of bitters, rather than the classic addition of orange bitters I felt the need for a spot of aromatics, my French Martini looked a little something like this; 

The French Martini

Seagrams Extra Dry Gin - 50ml

Noilley Prat - 15ml

Martell VSOP Cognac - 1.25ml

Bitter Truth Aromatic Bitters - 1 dash

Stir all ingredients over ice, strain in to a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

The French Martini, Photographed by Sofia Miranda. (No snails were harmed in the taking of this picture)

Having used Seagrams along side bitters and cognac the martini wasn't it's usual crystal clear self, it had a light lemon colour similar to that of a young chardonnay, the aroma was rather interesting with the usual welcome juniper hit supported by light vanilla and a vibrant zest of lemon courtesy of the garnish. The first sip was lovely and smooth with a slight alcoholic bite, the juniper was very dominant with the lemon still hanging around, the subtle vanilla notes from Seagrams made an appearance alongside an unusual oak and winter spice from the cognac and the bitters.

I was very impressed with this drink and will look forward to a bit of experimentation with the proportion and ingredients in my martini, perhaps a perfect martini (equal measures of sweet and dry vermouth) would stand up nicely to a few drops of cognac, I would limit the experimentation of what gin to use to those aged expressions, Seagrams Barrel Proof would be interesting as would Citadelle Reserve, hmmm....

Hope You Enjoy,


Umpleby  

Vesper's are Forever

The Vesper Martini is one of the cocktail worlds most famous libations, the recipe first appeared in Ian Flemmings 1953 book Casino Royal and was given a new lease of life in the 2006 movie of the same name.


In Casino Royal (2006), Bonds whilst indulging in one of his glorious vices, this time gambling, switches his now famed Vodka Martini for a Vesper, the recipe for which he recites; 'Three measures of Gordon's; one of vodka; half a measure of Kina Lillet Shaken over ice' with a thin slice of lemon peel. 


True to his character Bond is 'Keeping the British end up' with his choice of gin although there has been a fair few very British brands released since the original 1953 recipe, i'm thinking for a reasonable juniper hit but a little more complexity Plymouth Gin, a softer style of gin is a delicious choice. Ian Flemming recommends a nice Polish vodka for the Vesper, one can assume either Rye or Potato which I find a 'trifle over powering', my preference is for something a little more subtle and given the British nature of the drink Tanqueray Sterling is a fine choice. 
Kina Lillet is a bitter aperitif which is no longer available and has been replaced by Lillet Blanc, I usually opt for a carefully controlled tear drop of Angostura Bitters in an attempt to recreate the classic recipe.


As for this 'Shaken, not Stirred' business, my preference for a stirred martini was made clear in my post about the Gin Martini although there is a rather interesting study in favour of the shaken martini I feel compelled to share with you. The Department of Biochemistry at the University of Western Ontario in Canada suggests a shaken martini is more effective in deactivating hydrogen peroxide than the stirred variety, thereby helping prevent diseases associated with ageing. Any one interested in checking this study out please click here.


It would seem I am beginning to digress so without further interruption;


The Vesper Martini

Plymouth Gin 45ml
Tanqueray Sterling Vodka 15ml
Lillet Blanc 10ml
Angostura Bitters 1 tear drop


Stir or shake over ice (dependant on age and health) strain in to a chilled Martini glass and garnish with a thin slice of lemon peel.

The Vesper is a rather interesting twist in the classic gin martini, at first I was rather sceptical of vodka's use when mixed with gin, assuming it would simply dilute and weaken the flavour, turns out it plays it's part rather well. The vodka smoothes out the gin just enough to take the edge off, the lillet being slightly sweeter than the usual dry vermouth works wonderfully with the toned down gin with the hint of bitterness balancing out the sweetness.


A while back I treated myself to a bottle of Chase Marmalade Vodka,a lovely if not slightly sweet vodka flavoured with Seville Orange Marmalade and Seville Orange Peel. As nice as this is I was at a bit of a loss of how to mix it when it occurred to me that the sweet orange notes of the vodka would combine perfectly those of Whitley Neill and The Breakfast Vesper an amalganation of the Breakfast Martini, a delightful libation containing gin, cointreau, lemon juice and marmalade and the Vesper Martini was born.


The Breakfast Vesper

Whitley Neill - 45ml

Chase Marmalade Vodka - 15ml

Campari - 5ml

Stir all ingredients in a large mixing vessel, ensuring the drink is ice cold, strain in to a chilled Martini glass and garnish with a thin slice of pink grapefruit zest.

The Breakfast Vesper, Photographed by Sofia Miranda

As expected the Whitley Neill is a perfect pairing with the Marmalade Vodka, however with a reasonable sweetness already present I wanted to avoid using Lillet. Rather than going back down the vermouth route I popped in a little Campari for something to to balance the sweetness, it turns out Campari's bitterness was just the ticket. The Whitley Neill shines through followed by very subtle orange marmalade flavour with little sweetness, the campari is only just detectable plays its part of balancing the sweetness well. A rather cheeky twist on the Vesper but probably a little too hard core for breakfast... only just.

So thinking this post was over with I stumbled over a rather rare vodka, Chase Smoked, the first flavour released by the Herefordshire Distillery, a flavour I had the pleasure of tasting when I visited the distillery a year or so back. When I first tasted the vodka I immediately had the urge for a smoky martini, with gin of course. Usually made with scotch in addition to gin and vermouth I was looking forward to using this cleaner smoked spirit... wait a second, gin, vodka... oh here comes another Vesper Twist...


The Smoked Vesper

William Chase Gin 45ml

Chase Smoked Vodka 15ml

Noilly Prat Vermouth 15ml

Stir all ingredients over ice and strain in to a chilled cocktail glass, garnish with a lime twist.

The Smoked Vesper, Photographed by yours truly.

As much as this drink makes me look like a whore to Chase Distilleries, the William Chase gin and smoked vodka are a sensational pairing, something about smokey apples really seems to work, I went for a Noilly Prat as the spicy botanical mix works well with the complexity of William Chase Gin.The aroma of this drink is sensational, fresh lime lest with a hint of smoke, a type of smoke I would describe as cleaner than that of a scotch, some really floral elderflower notes shine through as well as some crisp green apple.

We Hope You Enjoy

Umpleby & Brown

We Live in an Unusual World...

Hendrick's Gin, photographed & Edited by Sofia Miranda

Hendrick's Gin is a cheeky little bottling, a New Western Dry style of gin distilled at William Grant's spirit production plant in Scotland.

Hendrick's is a small batch gin, well, small, small batch (the usual still size for small scale being 1,000 litres and the still used to produce Hendrick's being 450 litres). Hendrick's pride themselves on being a rather unusual product, and why not, the gin is bottled in a unique apothecary style bottle, distilled in Scotland and uses random botanicals such as chamomile flowers, meadowsweet as well as the distilled oils of rose petals and cucumber. To me the above aren't what makes Hendrick's unusual, the botanicals and the bottle certainly make it unique, but there are a fair amount of gin's being distilled in Scotland now day's. What truly strikes me as unusual is the use of two different methods of distillation and blending the two together to create the final product.

Blending spirits is a rather common practice in the world alcohol, brandies, whiskies and rums are commonly subject to blending, to achieve consistency, complexity or simply to cut costs by blending well aged products with some with not so much wood contact. As for gin, some gin producers prefer to distill each individual botanical separately and blend them together to give them more control over each flavour. What Hendrick's does different is to distill it's selected botanicals in two types of still, a style of pot still known as a Bennet still, and a carter head still. When using the Bennet still the botanicals are steeped in the neutral spirit before distillation, this method stews the botanicals and the final distillate has a more intense, full on deep flavour. When using the carter head still the botanicals are blaced above the neutral spirit and are infused as the vapour passes through them, this style of distillation produces a rather delicate and subtle flavour. The two distillates are then blended together, two get the best from both styles of distillation, before the distilled essence of cucumber and rose are added to the mix.

The resulting gin is a rather pleasant change from the norm, arguably one of the pioneering gins of the New Western Dry style. Hendrick's has a wonderfully fresh, floral aroma notes of rose petals, violets and a slight hint of lavender all spring to mind, the cucumber is less dominant than one would be led to believe although it does impart an almost melon like freshness, lovely subtle pine notes from the juniper but as one would expect from a New Western Dry these do not take centre stage.

On the palate its much of the same story, very floral with the rose being the more dominant than it was on the nose, juniper makes a welcomed appearance, also more dominant on the palate,  this is followed by a lovely citrus zing and a once again subtle fresh cucumber notes.

Hendrick's is a very unique, approachable gin, between this and its rather odd advertising campaign I believe it has done great things taking consumers out of their comfort zones and introducing them to a new style of gin.

We Hope You Enjoy

Umpleby & Brown

Does it Really Get Better With Age?

Citadelle Reserve Gin, Photographed & Edited by Sofia Miranda

After sampling Seagrams Extra Dry Gin I decided to dig out my bottle of Citadelle Reserve, another aged gin from a more premium producer. Having been surprised by the quality of Seagrams and with a slightly hazy memory of Citadelle I was hoping for big things...

Citadelle Reserve is the combination of the original Citadelle Gin a vibrant French gin containing a staggering 19 botanicals, with a few months ageing in what one can only assume given their cellar master would be ex Cognac casks. The bottling I am sampling is from the 72nd bottle from cask 9 of 21 from 2008.

Usually I skip the aesthetics of gin during tastings, Clear? Yes! Good is the usual format of such things, obviously with an aged gin it is necessary to take a gander. The Citadelle Reserve has a lovely light golden colour, slightly reminiscent of a crisp, fresh white wine.

At first on the nose I was met with a surprising amount of juniper, something the unaged expression of Citadelle isn't known for, this juniper hit was quickly followed by a rather unusual yet welcome vanilla nose with some spicy peppery notes, a classic aroma courtesy of the coriander. After a breif break and a breath of fresh air I nosed the gin a second time, to my amazement the aroma had transformed and I was greeted with a fresh lemon citrus hit, I also got the aroma of what I can only describe as hops, a little bit of an unusual one for gin but very interesting nonetheless, highly complex on the nose now on the the main event, the palate!

The complexity of this gin continued on the palate, most notably the oaky sweetness, i'm thinking vanilla and a hint of caramel, this was followed by a light citrus tingle with the juniper taking a step back from the dominant aroma I first encountered, other notes include spicy coriander and bitter orange as well as a wide variety of other flavours not identifiable but minglng to form an incredibly complex and interesting bottling.

All in all a thoroughly pleasant experience, aged gin however unusual it may seem is begining to make a name for itself if not only among a small number of those in the know, whether it will ever be the next big thing is yet to be seen, Seagrams is a super large brand but whether this is more to do with advertising and mass production rather than the quality and interest in it's unusual production methods is a debatable. Either way, Citadelle Reserve is an exceptional and very unusual gin, one I would encourage ever gin enthusiast to indulge in. I look forward to sampling the next aged gin to hit the market, rumour has it this will be launched at Gin Fete 2011!

We Hope You Enjoy

Umpleby & Brown