IT’S KNOWN as the ‘water of life’, it’s a cultural icon, has David Beckham as a fan, and sometimes only a wee dram will do – whisky is as much a part of the Scottish landscape as golf, Shetland ponies and tartan bagpipes.
As Scotland continues to celebrate the Year of Food and Drink 2015 and with more women and younger people expected to visit than ever before the demographics of the modern whisky drinker are changing. With May being whisky month and coming to a close – here’s two cocktails to try at home.
Bird Cage
This is one of the most popular cocktails on the menu at Panda & Sons, a new speakeasy-style bar on Queen Street, Edinburgh.
Ingredients: Johnnie Walker Gold Reserve, rhubarb and lemongrass shrub, Aperol
Angostura bitters, encased in cinnamon and clove smoke
Shake all ingredients (except clove and cinnamon) with ice before fine straining into a stemmed cocktail glass. Put the glass in a cloche – the bell shaped glass dome that the drink is served in – then fill the cloche with cinnamon and clove smoke
Robinson Crusoe
A twist on a classic whisky ‘water serve’, served according to taste.
Ingredients: Talisker 10year old, grilled pineapple syrup, Gabriel Bouldier Apricot Brandy, fresh ginger, Angostura bitters, Gancia Bianco
Talisker is served on its own, with the other components shaken up and served on the side.
WINE OF THE WEEK
Barkan Classic Cabernet Sauvignon, Sainsbury’s, £8.
This aromatic and intense wine was produced from 100 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, meticulously picked from the vineyards of the Barkan Winery in Galilee. It is full-bodied, yet maintains a superb freshness of fruit. Classic Cabernet Sauvignon character of blackcurrants and dark cherries are given further complexity but some oak-ageing, adding notes of cocoa and spice.taste.2013/#ixzz3bLmpwgMJ
