It’s unsurprising that the dominant approach within sambuca prioritises tradition over innovation, given the nature of the category, not to mention the volumes sold in its domestic market where much of that traditional consumption occurs. But with those volumes declining while other markets show promise, those who talk of bringing this classic Italian liqueur into the 21st century may have a point.  In spite…

Think of Argentinian wine, and your nose anticipates the concentrated plum and cherry aromas of a joyful Malbec, tastebuds salivating at the umami sizzle of a medium-rare rib-eye, its perfect partner. Perhaps it’s barrel-aged Malbec from the elevated Cafayate Valley or Perdriel grapes freshened up with carbonic maceration. No matter the style, the branding of Argentina’s bountiful red is clearly the country’s biggest success…

It’s safe to say that American whiskey has had its fair share of tough breaks in recent years. The trade dispute over steel and aluminium during the Trump administration saw the UK and EU place a 25% retaliatory tariff on American whiskey imports. This was followed by the global pandemic which, of course, devastated the on-trade and forced brands to completely flip their business…

The industry was left scratching its figurative head in late 2021 when Patrón discontinued its much-loved XO Café expression. The coffee liqueur had become a popular shot among the global bar trade, so when the news broke of its redundancy it made headlines in both trade and consumer titles.  XO Café was no new phenomenon. The expression launched in 1992 and steadily built…

Calvados is the underdog of French spirits. Fiercely championed by a small in-group of spirits aficionados, foodies, and bartenders it has been viewed by a wider section as an unsexy relic – but a wave of new forward-thinking brands is changing that.  “Calvados has never been trendy. It was that dusty bottle your grandma had at the back of her cabinet and poured…

My first job was in whisky, my dad used to love Scotch and on Sunday mornings when I was seven or eight years old, I would get one or two rupees to dust my dad’s study, including his amazing collection of whiskies and Cognac. I also always had the nose – when I was growing up, my friends would put pencils under my…

Manzanilla-Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Vinagre de Jerez. Saldaña is referring to some large-scale changes to the sherry category that were announced in September 2021 and mooted to come into effect in November last year.  Nine months later and said changes are still sitting on the fence – not for long though. Saldaña is confident that, come summer 2022, a lot…