And anyone else who’ll be in the Big A next week. Hendricks Gin are throwing another Fantastic and Ridiculous Monday of the Unusual Rose & Cucumber Society, this time at a secret venue in New York on the 20th October. Tickets for this amazing night are really limited but you could win entry for two at
www.nerve.com/promos/hendricks
Beefeater Gin has been hanging with the stars of the fashion world at the Vivienne Westwood after party at London Fashion Week. There London’s fashion pack sipped Beefeater cocktails whilst mulling over this season’s contribution from London’s queen of fashion. Oooh, and the Beefeater website has had a style makeover too and now boasts an interactive map uncovering London’s secrets, highlighting must do things in the capital from the coolest ‘underground’ bars to hidden away retro shops and little known landmarks. Check it out at www.beefeatergin.com
The London Gin can now be found in Edinburgh’s best bars such as….
The Goodwood Revival celebrates the romance of motor racing as it used to be and the lovingly restored Goodwood Motor Circuit is the only sporting event in the world set entirely to a period theme. As well as old style car races, there was entertainment in the form of actors playing out scenes from a bygone era - Spivs selling nylons and watches from beneath their coats; Mods and Rockers hanging out and then being ‘moved on’ by the local bobbies; joke workmen preparing to dig a hole in the most inappropriate places; iconic figures such as ‘Marilyn Monroe’ and even the Dad’s Army home guard. Visitors looking to rest their weary feet sought refuge on the Brooklands Lawn over a deliciously refreshing Hendrick’s Gin and Tonic served over ice with a slice of cucumber. The delightfully peculiar team from Hendrick’s were also on hand with their penny-farthings and croquet lawn for those brave enough to take part!
Broome & Delancey in Clapham, The Larder in Farringdon and Buddha Bar in Central London now serve The London Gin in loads of great drinks. And you’ll find London Gin in all branches of Selfridges now including the one in Trafford Square Manchester.
Don’t forget the next Hendrick’s Gin Fantastic and Ridiculous event, a homage to the great Oscar Wilde.
Monday 6th October
9.00pm till 01.00am
Costum Obligatoire
L’Hotel, 13 rue des Beaux-Arts, 75006, Paris
See: www.l-hotel.com
Think British Empire meets French post-impressionism. Rumour has it a Hot Gin Punch will be served.
After six rounds in six cities, 1253 Gin and Tonic’s, 83 competitors from 62 bars the Miller’s oadshow finally rolled back into London in September for the Grand Final of the 2008 Gin Cocktail Competition at the opulent Miller’s Academy in Notting Hill. There the transatlantic judging panel declared Rebecca Almqvist of Lonsdale in London, the Martin Miller’s Gin Mixologist of 2008 for her fabulous Pink Gin Buck and the feat of mixing 17 G and Ts in one minute in the Speed Round. Congratulations to Rebecca for beating some of the best in the biz such as:
The judges were an equally cosmopolitan group consisting of Dan Dunn – American drinks writer supreme and friend of Martin Miller’s Gin. Jon Santer – Martin Miller’s San Francisco brand specialist and head of the US bartenders guild San Francisco. Martin Miller – the man himself, Jeffrey Morgenthaler – renowned drinks blogger and bartender from Oregon. Btw check out his account of his road trip with Martin Millers Gin at www.jeffreymorgenthaler.com
The winning recipe…
Pink G Buck #7
Put 3 ice Cubes in the bottom of a Catalina glass, squeeze in the half lemon into the glass (might want to cut it up first), add more ice and the rest of the ingredients. Cap shake (Take a smallish tin, put it on top and shake quite gently), top up with Ginger Beer and garnish with a few Mint sprigs.
The August bank holiday weekend saw Edinburgh bustling with festival visitors, many of who made their way to Festival Square and the Sheraton Hotel for Foodies at the Festival. The sun shone on the multitude of stalls in the square, offering everything from speciality seafood to organic veg and fine wine, while inside the more stalls tempted festival goers with tasty samples.
Plymouth Gin had a major presence at this year’s Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans with a whole series of top bartender led events to celebrate both the iconic gin and the recent launch of Plymouth Sloe Gin in the US. The one we particularly wish we had been at was the Midnight Bartenders’ Breakfast with Plymouth Gin hosted by Audrey Sanders and Simon Ford - a n evening of live jazz music, burlesque, food by Chef Duke and cocktails by Audrey Saunders, Willy Shine, Aisha Sharp & Simon Ford with guest bartenders including Dale DeGroff, Dave Wondrich, Gary Regan, Francesco Lafranconi, Allen Katz, Jacques Bezuidenhout, Kenta Goto, John Deragon, Don Lee, Chris Patino, Matt Gee, Leo DeGroff and special overseas guests Wayne Collins, Tony Conigliaro and Jason Crawley. Some people have all the fun and next year we’ll definitely be there. Meanwhile watch some New Orleans action including Simon Ford talking about Bartenders’ Breakfast .
The winners of this year’s Hendrick’s Gin Croquet Tournament were David Piper and Nick Saunders from ‘The Rakehells’ - a group of Dandies and Cads who organise parties in cool bars in London and Paris. They narrowly beat Salvatore Calabrese and Peter Dorelli, the ‘Gladiators’ team, to clinch victory for the second year running! It was a tough competition with around 100 bartenders entering the fray including teams from Germany, France, Switzerland, Spain and Dale DeGroff & Charles Hardwick from the US.
