The London No.1

Following on from my previous post, I am again working in collaboration with The Paddocks Bar, Blandford. Next up is the original blue gin... The London No.1

Distilled in small batches in the heart of London, this striking, blue-tinged spirit boasts twelve botanicals from around the world, resulting in an exceptionally well balanced Gin. 

Recognisable by its turquoise hue, The London No.1 derives its distinctive tint from the inclusion of Gardenia flowers, a favourite plant of Queen Victoria.  

Owing to the colouration of this gin, I thoroughly dismissed it as a 'gimicky' product, the majority of which have disappointed me substantially. However, having given The London No.1 a fair shot, I have to say I have well and truly eaten my words and I concede that it is, perhaps, deserving of its bold, somewhat egotistical, naming. 

On the nose, this gin throws a hefty helping of juniper with pine and spice additions. To taste, juniper and citrus lead with pine and a gentle sweetness. The high ABV (47%) means there is a slight burn, but it's no so much as to be offensive - over ice, this is somewhat dulled and allows the lighter flavours to come through. If serving as a G&T I recommend a premium Indian tonic such as Fevertree, a twist of lemon and juniper berries. 

Overall, this is a fun and colourful gin which will not only be a visual talking point, but great in a simple G&T or cocktail alike. 

In partnership with The Paddocks Bar, Blandford Forum.

Whitley Neill Handcrafted Dry Gin

Marketed as a British Dry Gin 'inspired by Africa', Whitley Neill is distilled in small batches by Johnny Neill, who just so happens to be a direct descendant of Thomas Greenall. With 8 generations of gin distillation in his bloodline, Johnny has created a unique, and deservedly award-winning gin which holds its own in the increasingly saturated spirits marketplace. 

I first had the pleasure of sampling Whitley Neill over a year ago, so this gin is far from new to me, and still holds its place as a firm favourite and frequent 'go-to'. Boasting a delightful blend of traditional botanicals with the more exotic addition of baobab fruit and cape gooseberries, Whitley Neill offers up an exceptionally smooth gin with distinct spice, juniper and citrus on the nose. 

To taste, the juniper notes hold strong but are well balanced with a delightful earthy spice and a distinctive citrus 'zing'. Pairing for me is undoubtedly a premium Indian Tonic such as FeverTree, and a slice of orange to compliment both the citrus and spiced notes of this gin. 

Enjoy!

In partnership with The Paddocks Bar, Blandford Forum

Whisky Sour Recipe

So, I'm definitely a Gin girl through and through, but if I'm going to cheat on Gin....it's with a whisky sour!

Hands down my go-to cocktail on a night out, and a fairly easy beverage to make at home. 

Ingredients 

2 parts Bourbon Whisky

1 part Lemon Juice

1/2 part Sugar Syrup

1/2 part fresh Egg White

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Cubed Ice

Twist of Orange to garnish

Method

Put the cubed ice and all of the ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake hard for about 20 seconds until the liquid is well chilled. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice and garnish with a twist of orange. 

Tiger Gin and Luscombe Tonic

Thanks to the incredible folks at ILoveGinDotCom, I am lucky enough to receive a monthly  supply of epic gins and tonics to sample.... yeah, dreams really can come true folks! Gin in the post.... who wouldn't love that hey?! But it's not just us Ginfluencers for whom Christmas can come once a month...you too, dear folks at home, can join the club! Find out more over at www.ilovegin.com 

So this months box offered up a couple of tempting looking tonics from a brand I was unfamiliar with- Luscombe, a Devonshire based company. An Indian Tonic, and a fruity little number with Grapefruit were included in this box but do check their website as they have plenty of beverages in their repertoire. I was certainly intrigued by the Grapefruit tonic as I am a fan of sharp, citrus fruits, rather than sweeter flavours, so this was right up my alley. 

To accompany these were a Damson Gin from 6 o Clock Gin (which i'll be chatting about in an upcoming post) and Tiger Gin - I had heard of these guys and was keen to sample Tiger Gin, which some of you may know as the underdog who won their legal battle with a well known beer giant of the same name. 

Having looked into the tasting notes and botanicals, I personally would have probably served the Tiger Gin with an Indian Tonic and a slice of Orange, but as recommended by ILoveGinDotCom I instead paired it with the Luscombe Grapefruit Tonic, and then for added omph, whacked in a cheeky slice of pink Grapefruit. 

Before mixing, I took the time to sample both the Gin and Tonic separately to be able to comment on their individual flavours... the Tonic was thankfully not erring on the sweet side too much although was not nearly as 'sharp' as I was expecting. The Gin I was confused by slightly... notable flavours being juniper, juniper and juniper... there was no doubt that this was gin, but as for determinable botanicals...I was drawing a blank. For me this wasn't a huge issue as this Gin was surprisingly smooth and went down well on its own thanks to a delightful sweetness from the liquorice root, and the juniper-heavy flavours make it a really versatile Gin which will adapt to a multitude of pairings and cocktails...but if you're looking for a Gin whose botanicals leap off the palette, this isn't the one for you. 
As a complete beverage it gets a thumbs up from me. The juniper isn't overpowered by the flavourings in the tonic, rather complimented if anything. Citrus is the way forward with this Gin to balance out the heavy juniper - grapefruit or orange would be the garnish of choice for me. Drink it neat over ice with a slice of orange, or pop in a tonic (flavoured or Indian) and garnish to your hearts desire.

Emma-Louise

ILoveGin Gintern Results

So, as many of you will know, this year I was lucky enough to be a part of ILoveGinDotCom's search for a 'Gintern' (read my previous post on this subject for more info) ....anyhoo, I had originally applied on a whim and ended up making it to the final 8, from over 5000 applicants. Needless to say, I am eternally grateful for the experience and I am thrilled to announce that I will be working with I Love Gin as a 'Ginfluencer' and will be sharing my thoughts on some incredible Gins and Mixers. Can we say 'dream come true???'

Check out the video below courtesy of www.ilovegin.com for a sneak peek at the process and the results of the final GINTERN.

Gin 'Chai Tea' Sour Ft Portobello Road Gin

If you've read my previous post, you'll know a little bit about why I ended up at The Distillery on Portobello Road, serving up a signature cocktail in front of seven other finalists and the team at I Love Gin...not to mention a camera, recording my every slip-up...of which there were many. 

If you haven't yet read it, I wont take it too personally, but should you wish to take a peek, check it out here. I'll pause for a minute for you to skim it over quickly....

Ok, so now we are all caught up, we can get back to the subject matter at hand, my cocktail presentation. 

So, initially my thoughts turned to coastal flavours, to draw on the fact that I live on the South Coast of Engand...flavours such as sea salt and seaweed were ones I played about with, mixed with a tonic and plenty of citrus. But something just wasn't quite right and more importantly, it didn't really represent either me wholeheartedly enough. Back to the drawing board. 

Now, for those of you who follow my insta, you will know that a couple of weeks ago, I lost someone very dear to me. My grandfather. Yes, yes, I know this is screaming 'X Factor sob story'...

Anyhoo, my second, and ultimately 'signature' cocktail, paid homage to this fantastic man by incorporating something he had a great passion for...tea. I have wonderful memories of wandering into Grandpa Davids kitchen, and seeing his array of beautifully decorative tins of loose leaf tea in a variety of flavours. The man knew his teas and favoured a tropical flavour toward the end. Now, I am not personally the biggest fan of overly fruity teas (sorry Grandpa), but instead, drew inspiration from the Gin itself which boasts botanicals such as nutmeg, liquorice root and cassia bark. These strong flavours lent themselves perfectly to pairings with Earl Grey (from which I concocted a beautiful earl grey, lemon and saffron cocktail which I will share with you very soon) but better yet, Chai Tea. 

Base ingredients selected, it was then a case of constructing a cocktail, for which I went straight to a firm favourite of mine...a gin sour. So, with no further ado, here is my recipe for a Chai Tea infused Gin Sour, henceforth to be known as the David White. 

Ingredients:

Portobello Road Gin

Lemons

1 Cup water

1 Cup Sugar

Chai Tea Bags

1 Egg

Angostura Bitters

Cinnamon and Star Anise to garnish. 

Method:

To make your sugar syrup, combine equal measures of sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. When mixture bubbles take off the boil and leave to cool, adding two tea bags to the mixture to infuse. Leave for 4 hours and then strain the mixture to remove all 'bits' which may have escaped from the tea bags. Pour your infused sugar syrup into a bottle or jug ready for use. 

Next its time to prep your lemons and egg. Juice your lemon, ensuring you have at least 25ml of fresh lemon juice. Crack your egg and separate yolk from white, discarding the yolk and shell. 

Serve:

Into a cocktail shaker, add ice and the following measures of ingredients, shake well until creamy, double sieve into an ice-filled glass or teacup and serve with a dash of cinnamon and a star anise to really bring those flavours out of both the Gin and the tea;

2 shots Portobello Road Gin

1 shot Lemon Juice

1/2 shot Infused Sugar Syrup

1/2 Fresh Egg White

3 dashes Angostura Bitters

Gintern Finals with ILoveGin.com

So, last year I applied, on a whim, for the dream job (well, MY dream job more specifically) ... along with 5000 other hopefuls. Three intense rounds later and i'm down to the final eight candidates! to say I am proud of making it this far, would be an understatement, but lets be honest, no one wants to get this far and not win... we are all thinking it, all eight of us. Every one of us hungry for the end goal...the internship of a lifetime. I count myself blessed to have made it this far...10% talent and 90% sheer dumb luck to be perfectly honest! I have enjoyed every second of the journey and if I make it no further, I will be no less proud of my accomplishment (cringe).

Yesterday marked the final challenge on the road to Ginternship; The Ginterview!

ILoveGin.com had pulled out all the stops in arranging this final stage and revealed the location of the interviews to be The Distillery at Portobello Road, home of Portobello Road Gin. 

I have to be honest, my arrival in London was far from graceful, having woken at 4.30am to leave home by car at 5.30, I foolishly assumed that 4.5 hours to make a 2.5 hour journey would suffice, how wrong I was. Murphy's Law 'aint got nothing on yesterday morning, lets just say that! I burst, sweating and panting, through the door of The Distillery in the nick of time, having run across what felt like the majority of London...to be greeted by the team at ILoveGin and the other finalists (all looking decidedly less sweaty and stressed than myself). Not the best start I grant you. 

Stage One:

So for this stage we had been asked to prepare a pitch, including questions, for the team at Portobello Road Gin. Selling them on the idea of signing on with ILoveGin and at the same time, ascertaining their suitability as a prospective brand partnership. I'd prepared a few notes and dutifully met with the Brand Ambassador - Paul Gillan - to chat....made somewhat more nerve wracking by the presence of one of the ILG team, quietly note-taking in the corner. Selling someone on a company partnership - no problem! Selling someone on a company partnership whilst representative from said company is in the room assessing you....whole different story!

Stage Two: 

The cocktail/signature serve round!

A couple of weeks prior to yesterday, we had been asked to prepare a signature serve to present on the day, with some semblance of reasoning as to why...a back story or basis to the serve we were presenting, if you will. 

I wont go into the umming and ahhhing which preceded my eventual decision, but needless to say it involved a fair amount of research based G&T's! (I'd like to take a moment to thank my good friend James here, who selflessly joined me on my quest to find the perfect pairing, despite nearing death-by-man-flu)...I toyed with the idea of a salt and seaweed based G&T on the basis that I am from a coastal part of the UK. However, I eventually settled on one of my original ideas which was to involve tea. Now, after a couple of (rather delicious) attempts with Earl Grey, I headed on to the spicier notes of Chai, which paired beautifully with the botanicals of Portobello Road. My reasoning behind the involvement of tea, is as a nod to my incredible Grandfather who unfortunately passed away only two weeks ago. I have wonderfully fond memories of his love of tea, and his kitchen filled with beautifully decorative tins of loose leaf tea in a multitude of flavours. So, thank you Grandpa David, you're my inspiration in so many different ways. Sleep well old man. 

I will follow this blog post up with a recipe post detailing my final cocktail so definitely check that out if you're intrigued (or bored) enough to find out what I presented. But for now, here's a sneak peek. 

I have to take a second to raise a glass to my fellow competitors who seriously wowed me with their Gin creations. Everything from chilli G&T's to magical colour changing cocktails! 

Interview and signature serve completed, the awesome team at ILoveGin had a little treat for us up their metaphorical sleeves. 

Not only a complete gin-crafting lesson from the folk at Portobello Road Gin, including nosing and tasting of botanicals at their incredible 'Ginstitute' .... but the opportunity to then use this information, and create our very own 70cl bottle of gin infused with our very own unique blend of botanicals. 

I feel so privileged and grateful to have been part of this entire experience. Thank you so much to the team at ILoveGin.Com, Paul and the team at Portobello Road Gin, and of course, my fellow finalists. 

Win or lose, its been one hell of a ride. 

For more information on the 'Ginstitute' at Portobello Road, click HERE

For more information on ILoveGin click HERE

I Love Gin - Gintern Application - Featuring Isle Of Harris Gin

When an email popped into my inbox, asking if I would be interested in applying for a 'Ginternship', I have to be honest, I assumed it to be a bit of a gimmick and promptly disregarded the email. After the 7th time of being tagged in a post on Facebook, featuring the same company and job offer, I realised that perhaps this was actually a legitimate position for which the company 'I Love Gin' were seeking a worthy candidate, and this immediately piqued my interest. The role offers the opportunity to not only sample new Gins and mixers for a dedicated website who offer a monthly 'Gin and Tonic Box' subscription to members of their Gin and Tonic Club, but to forge new brand relationships for the company, visit distilleries, discover new and gin-spiring pairings and dramatically build on their knowledge of the industry.
So far as my friends and family are concerned, 'I love Gin' need look no further, I am somewhat renown for being a fan of the G&T, and for sampling new and exciting combinations of the two. However, I knew that it would take a little more than borderline alcoholism to be eligible for this highly coveted position and I wasn't wrong!
Over 5000 initial applications (including mine) were made following the social media post going somewhat viral - I blame the sudden surge of hipster kids jumping on the Gin bandwagon and bringing it very much into the 21st century. A part of me is moderately disgruntled, wondering where these mustachioed gin-drinkers were when I was being ridiculed for favouring an 'old ladies drink' back when no one but your Nan was drinking Gin and Tonic, however, on the plus side, the resurgence of the G&T has meant that my options have somewhat broadened and a plethora of Gins available to me on a night out, that would previously have been limited to 'is Gordons ok?'

Joking aside, I am utterly thrilled that the humble G&T is having its 5 minutes of fame, with dedicated bars, festivals and even hotels popping up all over the UK. A previously shunned beverage, seemingly favoured by the elderly alone, Gin and Tonic has stolen the show in the last couple of years, storming its way into the spotlight, and looks very much set to stay!

Back to the matter at hand and the application for what I can wholeheartedly refer to as 'my dream career'. I Love Gin have asked each applicant to review a Gin which is new to us... any excuse to try a new Gin hey!

So here we go:

Isle of Harris Gin

Nestled in the Outer Hebrides is the Isle of Harris Distillery, home to the Isle of Harris Gin. Promising its drinkers 'maritime pleasures', this Gin encapsulates the Islands deep connection with the sea with the inclusion of Hebridean sugar kelp, alongside eight other botanicals which make up its distinctive flavour. 

Bottled, labelled and sealed by hand, this Gin is produced in fairly small batches to ensure not only its high quality, but the sustainability of the local sugar kelp crop, which is hand harvested by local diver Lewis Mackenzie. 

Despite this Gin being an extremely new addition to a previously Whiskey focused distillery, it has very swiftly found its feet and made its mark within the Gin community. 

I cannot help but start by commenting on the visual appeal of the bottle itself: The sweeping, ridged glass and wooden stopper certainly lend themselves to the coastal feel of this Gin, while the simple yet distinctive label, carefully applied by hand, features a subtle nod to the craftsmanship behind the Gin with its unique flecks of copper (in reference to the distillery's small copper still - affectionately known as 'The Dottach') and sugar kelp. The bottle seal is again applied by hand, and bears the co-ordinates of the distillery, alongside the batch number. 

Sold separately, yet alongside the Isle of Harris Gin, is the distillery's Sugar Kelp Aromatic Water. This dropper-bottle offers drinkers the option to adjust the flavour of the gin to suit, so I will be reviewing it both with, and without. 

Serving suggestion on the Isle of Harris website, recommends Scottish tonic and a slice of either red or pink grapefruit. I do not, unfortunately have a Scottish tonic to hand so will be mixing mine with Fever Tree Indian Tonic and garnishing as recommended.

As this task was set to be a 'brief' review of our chosen gin, and I have rambled on thus far, I will keep this part short and sweet. 

Pine needles and citrus on the nose, a seaside presence is notable but not as overpowering as I was expecting in the slightest. Taste wise the citrus again takes centre stage with peppery additions and an overall dry and crisp taste to the Gin. The Aromatic Water certainly lends to the maritime feel to the drink, although not at all in the way I was expecting. A distinctive seaside taste yet slightly sweet, I highly recommend a good few drops added to make the most of this pairing. 

So far as garnishes are concerned, I agree with the suggested red or pink grapefruit, however, I would like to try a slice of orange to bring out the slightly sweeter notes, or a crisp lime wedge to really make those citrus flavours pop. 

My rapidly depleting supply speaks volumes for the quality of this kelp-infused offering, and I am thrilled that Isle of Harris completely exceeded my expectations and offered up a Gin which certainly ranks pretty darn highly in my books! 

Here's to the summer, and sun-drenched beaches where this Gin is just begging to be enjoyed. Cheers!

Isle of Harris Gin is exclusively sold by the Distillery in Tarbert, Isle of Harris, or via their website www.isleofharrisgin.com and can be shipped to UK addresses.

For more information on either Isle of Harris Distillery, or I Love Gin, please click on the respective logo below.

Image credits are my own and were shot at Lulworth Cove in the South of England with the Olympus Pen EPL-7