ONLY 10 YEARS AGO what is now happening in the global gin market would have been unimaginable. With or without a crystal ball it would have taken a brave analyst to say that, come the end of the noughties adjectives such as ‘dynamic’ and ‘robust’ would be used to describe gin’s state of play – but that is the happy reality. It is…

ARMAGNAC has so much going for it that it’s difficult to know where to start. The fact that it begins with the first letter of the alphabet can only help when novices are seeking out the runners and riders of the spirits world. At more than 700 years, the spirit of Gascony in south west France can claim to be one of the…

It’s wood, not age that matters most, reckon the people at Auchentoshan. And there we were thinking Chivas Regal had it right with its campaign The Age Matters. To the Lowland scotch brand, flavour comes from the quality of oak in the barrel, not the time spent inside. Almost to prove the premise they’ve created a range of wood-forward whiskies, exclusive to global travel…

AS THE THIRD consecutive “great” Beaujolais vintage reaches market and glasses, the talk in the region has turned to another newcomer, the newly formed appellation of Coteaux Bourguignon. A rebirth of the now-defunct Bourgogne Grand Ordinaire appellation, AOC Coteaux Bourguignon is a new entry-point Burgundy that can be sourced from anywhere in the Grande Bourgogne region, from Auxerrois in the north,…

At times it appears premium drinks only move from west to the east. The Asian thirst for cognac, whisky and claret is seemingly unquenchable. But in recent years a number of Asian beer brands have begun to swim against the eastern current, hoping to establish themselves on western shores. To many outside of Asia, brands such as Kingfisher, Chang, Asahi and Tiger have a familiar ring,…

THERE USED TO BE a sensitivity that, while millions of hectolitres of Chilean wine were drunk annually, hardly anybody seemed to know where the place was. Well, possibly due to the miraculous rescue of those miners then the devastating earthquake in February 2010, that is now far less the case. Possibly its world class wines have contributed to that increasing awareness of…

LET’S GET THE MARGARITA out of the way, first. According to Don Julio’s global ambassador, Brian Van Flandern, it is the number one cocktail in North America.  So what should be in it? Over to the experts at Mayahuel – number 44 in the World’s 50 Best Bars and named after the goddess of agave: 2oz 100% [agave] Tequila; 1oz Cointreau;…