One Drink, Three Ways: Remy Martin VSOP Cognac

One Drink, Three Ways is the signature feature by The Three Drinkers. Join The Three Drinkers’ Helena, Aidy and Colin as they take one bottle and create a trio of phenomenal serves which you can enjoy anytime, anywhere. From rums and whiskies to gins and wine styles, the three help you get the most out of your glass. It’s time to get liquid on lips.

Many people may still be of the impression that cognac is just for old men playing Boules in the south of France, but they would be wrong. Cognac is having a comeback. This grape spirit made by twice-distilling wine is finding favour with a younger audience thanks to its soft, citrus and fudge notes and its incredible versatility. You can use any cognac for these recipes especially if it's a VSOP, but for these drinks, I’ve chosen Remy Martin as I find it particularly soft and fruity, with a delightful, orange citrus kick, making it perfect for cocktails or sipping alone. Here are three ways to drink it:

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Helena’s Choice: The Highball

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The Highball

Ingredients

Highball glass
25ml (.75 oz) Remy Martin VSOP cognac
50ml (2 oz) Ginger ale
Ice
Orange wheel or twist garnish (optional)

I discovered cognac and ginger as a simple, refreshing sip while on a recent trip out to the region. It’s ideal for when you want something more substantial than a Gin & Tonic with a richer, spicier flavour. My tip would be to use ginger ale rather than ginger beer or else it can be too sweet. Simply pour one part cognac and two parts mixer over ice and stir. Garnish with an orange wheel or twist to pep it up a bit.

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Aidy’s Choice: The SideCar

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The Sidecar

Ingredients

Coup or Nick & Nora glass
50ml (2 oz) Remy Martin VSOP cognac
25ml (.75 oz) Lemon juice
25ml (.75 oz) ) Orange liqueur (triple sec)

For me, there’s nothing quite like a SideCar to brighten up the day. It’s one of those cocktails that you can sip anytime of the year and never fails to bring excitement to my tastebuds! A great quality cognac can make or break this drink, so it’s important to choose wisely, in this case Remy’s VSOP. The orange liqueur (Triple Sec) is equally as important as it becomes the backing vocals of the song, so make sure to choose something with vibrant flavour. Play around with few different liqueurs as each brings something totally different to the party! Finally, I love nothing more than to serve these beauties to people who claim not to like cognac; you’d be surprised how many people I’ve converted! Add all items into a Boston glass or cocktail shaker with ice and shake well before straining into your cocktail glass.

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Colin’s Choice: French 75

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French 75

Ingredients

Champagne flute or coup
25ml (1.25 oz) Remy Martin VSOP cognac
10ml (.25 oz) Fresh lemon or orange juice
10ml (.25 oz) Simple syrup
Brut (dry) Champagne to taste
Shaker & ice
Lemon peel twist to garnish

This classic, aperitif recipe has an elegant, Parisian feel thanks to the bubbles. Be careful though; the combination of sugar and champagne will start your evening with a bang! If the lemon is a bit acidic  for you, you could try freshly squeezed orange juice, which works just as well. Combine all the ingredients bar the champagne into a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a champagne flute or coup, then top up with the bubbles. Garnish with a twist of your lemon or orange peel. 

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This article was created in partnership with Remy Martin.

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The 9 Most Luxurious Gins on the Planet

Words by Aidy Smith

If I tried to create this article two years ago, I wouldn’t have gotten very far. Truth is, the gin market is way oversaturated and new creativity and innovation is often hard to come by. The same botanicals are created in the same fashion and too frequently passed off with a ‘unique story’ to try and capture the attention of the consumer. As a drinks journalist I get inundated with samples of new gins and very few these days stand out. 

That said – all of those within this guide have two things in common. Firstly, the liquid is sensational and secondly, they set the mark for ginnovation (yes, I made that up) and prove that you can do something differently if you put a little thought into it. Sure, some of them are pretty damn expensive, but when it comes to rarity and limited supplies that’s what happens. Either way, if the liquid is good, I’m a happy boy. So, without further ado, Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to the most luxurious gins on the planet. 

Jam Jar Gin Morus LXIV

When it takes two years to produce a gin (which can also only be created from a single 100-year-old Mulberry tree), you know you’re on to something special. In fact, this could very well be one of the rarest gins in existence, hence the price tag. One look at the bottle continues to give the impression of pure craftmanship. The porcelain vessel, cork, cotton paper labels and hide leather case all confirming this. But what about the taste of such an expensive liquid? Exquisitely smooth, with a subtle velvety oak and smoky sweetness, that’s what. Pure juniper rolls off the tongue with pure zesty citrus oils. As for drinking it… just pour in your favourite tonic (I’m kidding please DON’T do that). Their advice is to savour this neat for a true experience, followed by a couple of drops of water, just as you would a cask-strength scotch. Say hello to the world’s most expensive gin. 

ABV: 64%
Size: 730ml
Buy now for £3200

Grand Cru Gin 

Are you a fan of Grand Cru Burgundy? Because I am. I’m also a fan of when people try to do something that hasn’t been done before. – Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t always work, but in this instance, it did. Grand Cru Gin is created with 50% Grand Cru Burgundy (25% cold distilled and 25% hot distilled) which is then blended with 50% gin. The botanicals are pretty luxurious too - with raspberry, strawberry, black truffle, rose and violet all making it into the mix. Presentation box, snazzy decanter, well, it certainly looks the part too, so what’s not to love?

 ABV: 47%
Size: 700ml
Buy now for £495

Anty Gin

I started to become bored of gin when just about everyone started using the same ingredients, only to claim they were doing something otherworldly or special – these guys really kicked it up a notch. The Nordic Food Lab teamed up with Cambridge Distillery to produce Anty Gin, which as the name would suggest, contains the essence of around 62 red wood ants in each bottle. Ants have somewhat of a citrussy element to them, which jumps out quite vibrantly on the palate. It doesn’t stop with just the main affair either, each bottle is equipped with a 5cl dropper bottle of pure ant distillate. Probably the most bizarre, yet equally tasty gin on the list. 

ABV: 42%
Size: 720ml
Buy now for £200

Truffle Gin

I used to joke that if my career ever failed, I’d just create a luxury Truffle Gin and get rich that way – turns out someone already beat me to it. White truffle from Alba in Piedmont is the quintessential ingredient here, which I can tell you from having visited these lands, is bloody tasty. Distilled in a way that preserves the full essence and flavour of the truffle itself, this gin isn’t made for tonic – it’s made to be sipped neat, over ice with a twist of orange rind. When you’re drinking something that’s worth more per gram than gold, you do it the right way. Capeesh?

 ABV: 42%
Size: 700ml
Buy Now for £73

Ki No Bi Gin Edition G

I’d never heard of a gin aged in old champagne casks until now. The two seem to work marvellously together in cocktails, but how about as an ageing method? Henri Giraud tied the knot with Ki No Bi, pioneers of the first well-known gin from Tokyo to create this taste sensation. Only 1,740 bottles were released in total and they recommend concocting a French 75 to enjoy it at its best. Classy, darling. 

ABV: 42%
Size: 700ml
Buy now for £110

Comte de Grasse 44°N

Ultrasonic maceration, vacuum distillation and CO2 supercritical extraction… umm what?! What indeed. Essentially, this is inspired by how perfumes are made, but they decided to try make gin instead. It may sound high-tech and fancy, but in fact this method is incredibly sustainable and efficient which can only add to the intrigue of what is inside the bottle. The list of botanicals is vast, with cade (a species of juniper), verbena, everlasting (a golden flower), horse parsley, samphire, lavender, mimosa, grapefruit, patchouli and Sichuan pepper to name just a few. In sum, modern distilling methods meet cutting edge perfume extraction to create a fusion of flavours that will play with your senses. They did their homework and it shows. Bonus points if you wear it as a perfume (please don’t). 

 ABV: 44%
Size: 500ml
Buy now for £75

Nginious! Vermouth Cask Finished Gin

Cask finishing is a concept that not enough people understand, but products like this help you to get a feel for the beauty that can be created when such an art takes place.  Using the original spirit (in this case the award winning Nginious! gin) you age it further in a cask that has previously held another quality wine or spirit. Doing so maintains the original flavours but adds a divine twist encompassing more personality into the new creation. Nginious!, contains botanicals such as bee balm, blackcurrant leaves, galangala and camomile, which when further aged for 5 months in a Vermouth di Torino cask adds a whole new layer of complexity.  Notes of bitter orange and oriental spices intertwine with the signature herbal aromas this gin has become known for. To top things off the leather case adds that final luxurious twist. 

ABV: 43%
Size: 500ml
Buy now for £65.50

Ferdinand’s Goldcap Gin 

This gem is produced only once a year in incredibly small batches as they only use the heart of the small batch distillation in the final product. Using select botanical including dried Riesling grapes, mirabelles and cocoa beans alongside local acacia and pears, there is no other gin like this. Smooth, sweet and fruit all at the same time. Auslese Goldkapsel grapes make this distillation to a unique limited bottling worth drinking only neat and on the rocks. 

ABV: 49%
Size: 500ml
Buy now for £95

Cambridge Distillery Watenshi $2700 

By far one of the most expensive gins on the market, Watenshi has quite an interesting story. It is created from the ‘angels share’ of their Japanese Gin, the angels share typically being lost to evaporation is preserved during their distillation process. Collecting just 15ml per distillation you can begin to see why this is so hard to come by. The result is a product of undeniable intensity, complexly and expression. Only six bottles of Watenshi can be created within each batch and this product is described as being comparable to some of the world’s finest single malts and significantly aged cognacs from within the gin category. Sweet citrus, gentle spice butter juniper alongside an incredible long and seductive finish are what can be expected. The final product is presented in a hand-blown decanter and finished with silver jewels from a jeweller who Cambridge Distillery claim has other clients include Chanel, Tom Ford and De Beers. Alright folks, no need to name drop... let’s let the liquid speak for itself, eh?

ABV: 45%
Size: 700ml
Buy now for £2000

10 Cheap Whiskies That Taste Expensive

Words by Colin Hampden-White

There are whiskies out there that don’t cost very much at all and yet they taste like they cost a fortune. So that you don’t have to buy hundreds of bottles to find out which ones they are, we have done all the ‘hard’ work for you. Here’s a list of fabulous whiskies that taste incredible but don’t cost the earth, ordered from light and elegant to rich and smoky:

1: Glenmorangie Original

Top of the light and elegant list has to be Glenmorangie Original. This whisky isn’t even listed as a NAS (Non Age Statement) whisky. It is ten years old and 40% Vol. Since 1843 Glenmorangie have been perfecting a light, elegant fruity whisky with lots of orange and vanilla flavours.

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: UK £33.99 // US $52.99

2: Glen Moray Classic

Still light and fruity, but with a little more body there is Glen Moray Classic. With flavours of green apples and lemons, it is an easy going satisfying single malt from Speyside at 40% and is our favourite single malt under £30!

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: UK £22.94 // US $34.99

3: Tomintoul

This whisky is from a distillery hardly anyone will have heard of. Tomintoul is a highland distillery which has an excellent 16 year old single malt at 40%. It is an elegant whisky with plenty of flavour including coffee, boiled sweets, almonds and melted butter with vanilla fudge and cream. This whisky is the best 16 year old at this price on the market.

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: UK £49.94 // US $64.99

4: Hunter Laing

Whiskies sold by the distilleries that make them tend to be more expensive than those released by independent bottlers. Independent companies bottle whiskies which are made all over Scotland, blend their own whiskies and represent incredible value and more often than not taste a great deal more expensive than they cost. My favourite independent blend is from Hunter Laing. Highland Journey is mixture of highland single malt whiskies and is a bold and complex malted blend at a great strength of 46.2%.

Size: 700ml
ABV: 46.2%
Find here: £32.99

5: Old Pulteney 12

For a rich, but spirit led whisky with lots of saline character from the far north of Scotland, Old Pulteney 12 is a whisky at 40% which punches way above its price tag. It’s more difficult to get your hands on now but you can still pick up a bottle for under £30 and it tastes like double that.

Size: 700ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: £25.99

6: Glenfiddich 15

For a whisky which has a more sherried character, Glenfiddich 15 is about as good as it gets for bang for buck. It’s a powerful whisky with spices and sweetness all rolled into one. There is a good amount of oak on the palate making the whisky seem older than it is and at 40% for under £45 it is a bargain waiting to be savoured.

Size: 700ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: £47.69

7: Roe and Co

Whisky doesn’t have to come from Scotland, and some of the best tasting whiskies come from Ireland. A new whisky to Ireland is Roe and Co. Made with a high proportion of first fill bourbon casks with grain and malt whisky this tastes well above its price tag of a touch under £30. It is non chill filtered to keep more flavour and at 45% it is perfect for mixing!

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 45%
Find here: UK £29.88 // US $32.99

8: Johnnie Walker Black Label

Touching on the world of smokey whisky, this whisky is the best value on the list. It is a blend and has a bit of everything. It has an age statement of 12 years old but there are much older whiskies in the blend too so the taste has a hint of aged whiskies to it. There is a mix of sherry and bourbon oak casks blended to give lots of complexity and a hint of smoke as well. A favourite for many in the whisky industry Johnnie Walker Black Label at 40% is as good as it gets. For our UK followers, it can be found for only £20 at the moment (09.11.21) on Amazon.

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: UK £26.89 // US $33.99

9: Dailuaine 16

For the last two we have some slightly more expensive drams, but they too taste like they should cost well above their price band. The first is Dailuaine 16 from the Flora and Fauna range from Diageo. This whisky is complex and full bodied yet smooth and rich. Lots of dried fruit flavours and very well integrated oaky flavours which one expects to find in whiskies much older than this. It is at 43%. Expect to pay a little under £60 for this delicious dram.

Size: 700ml
ABV: 43%
Find here: £57.90

10: Ardbeg An Oa

Whiskies from Islay tend to cost a little more. There is a huge following for peated whiskies and finding those whiskies which have lots of smoke, but also rich fruity flavours and spice is tricky and can be expensive. However, An Oa from Ardbeg has all of those characteristics, it still has the punchy smoky flavours one expects from Ardbeg, but there is sweetness and balance to it too and at 46.6% the strength is good too.

Size: UK 700ml // US 750ml
ABV: 46.6%
Find here: UK £41.99 // US $58.99

*This article was originally published in March 2020 and has now been updated (Sept 2022) to reflect the current change in prices. For more whisky goodness, why not check out The Best Japanese Whiskies to Try or The Best Whiskies in the World

Waterford Distillery - It boils down to soil

Photo Credit: Waterford Distillery

In the wine world we are used to the idea of terroir being one of the most important factors in flavour. Similarly, in the world of whisky the idea of place and flavour going together is also logical and widely-known, for example the peaty whiskies from Islay and Sherry bombs from Speyside. However, in today’s world there is even greater emphasis on flavour than address. Peaty whisky doesn’t just come from Islay, it can come from Glasgow or even Australia for that matter, and sherry styles from Taiwan or Japan, for example in the form of Karuizawa.

Within the new world of whisky and flavour, there is one distillery which believes whole heartedly that a large part of the flavour does in fact come from the land on which the barley is grown, and the variety of barley used. Waterford have their barley grown in eighty six farms across Ireland. Each farm has a different soil type and plants different varieties of the grain. To be certain they can show the difference between them, they ferment and distil the barley from the different farms separately.

I’ve been to Waterford and tasted new-make spirit from at least a dozen different farms and varieties, all fermented and distilled the same way, and the difference is remarkable. One of my questions was: why do they do it? There are two simple answers. Firstly, with lots of different new-make spirits, once matured they have a huge palate of flavours to play with when they blend them together to make their whisky. The second reason is to be able to taste the difference if they do single farm bottlings. Waterford are about to launch their inaugural whisky, and within this whisky there is spirit blended from thirty six farms. We await the result with great delight!

The distillery itself is based in Waterford and is not a boutique style distillery. They have two pot stills and the capacity to produce a million litres a year. Their first spirit ran off the stills back on the 9th of December 2015 and production started in January 2016, so by now they certainly have enough casks to create an excellent whisky.

Rare and Independent Whisky Bottlings

For every experience in life, there is a whisky to accompany it. Whether it’s a dram on your porridge or a glass by a fireside late at night, the joy of a good whisky collection is having a choice of a range of bottles to match your mood and the moment.

First published in Club Oenologique.

Mindful Drinking: Premium no and low alcohol drinks you'll want to sip all evening

With Lent now in full swing after Dry-January and as we slowly head up to Sober October, times of abstention from alcohol are so much easier to bear now thanks to a new wave of truly delicious, premium, non-alcoholic drinks. Some of these no and low beverages are simply lower alcohol versions of what we would like to drink anyway; some plant themselves clearly as alternatives to alcohol and others, cleverly, describe the enemy simply as ‘bad soft drinks’. Whether you can’t drink or are just trying to be more mindful of your alcohol intake, here are some delicious drinks that feel like a treat to taste. 

BEER

Lucky Saint
Alcohol: 0.5% 

This is a bubbly beer that actually tastes like a fully fledged, flavoursome full-alcohol beer. In a slow and meticulous process, Lucky Saint delicately extracts the fermentable sugars from the mash as temperatures increase and leave it unfiltered  to keep all the flavour and complexity. The beer is then distilled in a vacuum, which avoids the burnt and oxidised flavours many other non alcoholic beers have. I tested it with a bunch of beer drinkers and we all thought it was the best ‘non alcoholic’ beer we’ve’ tried (0.5% is considered to be alcohol-free). Now available on draught too.

Find it on Amazon or luckysaint.co for £25 for 12 x 330ml

Small Beer Co.
Alcohol content: 1%-2.8% 

The Small Beer company have ingeniously revived the lost tradition of creating ‘small beer’ that was popular in the 1700’s, when drinking water was dangerous. These are very low alcohol beers brewed between 0.5 and 2.8%. All under 3%, these beers are isotonic, so they are actually good for you! Tonnes of flavour without the hangover. There are four to choose from: Lager, Dark lager, Steam, and Session Pale. See our longer article on them here. 

Find them on Ocado or theoriginalsmallbeer.com for £2.15 per bottle (350ml). £11.99 for 6.

WINE-LIKE

Woodstar
Alcohol content: 1% 

This unique tipple looks like a wine and definitely does the job of wine, but it’s made with açai berries, blackcurrant and blueberries infused with cocoa extract instead of grapes. The result is a moreish, grippy, wine-like red juice. The small amount of alcohol comes from the açai berries being steeped in macerated in alcohol for twelve weeks to help release colour and flavour.

Find it Fortnum & Mason and Sainsburys for £8.50 (75cl).

Aecorn Aromatic
Alcohol content: 0% 

The three Aecorn drinks could be described as aperitifs and are made with wine grapes (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay). They are more silky and full-bodied than wine and you can drink them neat, chilled or with a splash of sparkling water as a spritzer. The most wine-like (and my favourite) is the ‘aromatic’, which is warm, woody and smoky. They also have a ‘bitter’, which reminds me of Campari and a ‘dry’, which is more for Sauvignon Blanc or Gin lovers.

£19.99 from aecorndrinks.com

Everleaf

Everleaf is the result of two passions for founder, Paul Mathew: bartending and botany. A conservationist biologist by trade, Paul wanted to create an aperitif that was plant-based and uplifting with warmth and aromatics. In Everleaf, you’ll find notes of vanilla, gentian, vetiver and orange blossom. There’s even the essence of voodoo lily in there. I’ve no idea what voodoo lily is, but I like the sound of it. Serve with Mediterranean tonic or use in cocktails like non-alcoholic negronis.

Find it on everleafdrinks.com and Sainsburys for £18 

SPIRIT

Hayman’s Small Gin

A great concept, this is a gin with a regular amount of alcohol in it BUT the botanical flavours are so concentrated, you only need - literally - one thimble full for your G&T to taste pucker. They even provide the thimble hanging around the bottle neck. It’s not the strongest, most powerfully flavoured gin, but it definitely does the job. What this means is that you can mix a normal gin and tonic but only consume  0.2 units of alcohol and 15 calories. A great, lower alcohol -and calorie- option.

Find it at Waitrose for  £25 (20cl)

SPIRIT-LIKE

Caleño

A happy, tropical, non-alcoholic spirit, which is actually rather tasty by itself over ice, Caleño makes a stonking, more fruity version of something like a Gin and Tonic. Created by Ellie Webb and inspired by her Colombian heritage, this is an infusion of juniper and inca berry with spice and citrus. There are some fantastic mocktail recipes on the site too. 

Find it at calenodrinks.com for £18.88 (50cl) £24.99 (70cl)

Seedlip Garden

The original, premium, non-alcoholic spirit, Seedlip Garden is the go-to herbaceous choice when you don’t want a Gin and Tonic and soft drinks are too dull. Have over ice with a spritz of any tonic, garnish with mint or basil and you’re away. It’s super refreshing and has that all important bitterness to kill any cravings for alcohol.

Find it at Waitrose for £26.50 (70cl)

TOTALLY UNIQUE

Three Spirit 

There is no category to put these in, but I love them. Three styles of plant-based alternatives to alcohol with a different attitude, that, as they say ‘celebrates what you put into a drink, rather than what you take out.’ Using plants traditionally used in potions and ceremonies around the world, these are non-alcoholic drinks 'with benefits’ such as the addition of ashwagandha to relax in Nightcap or guayusa, guava leaf and green tea in Livener. It’s alchemy, it’s different and delicious. You’ll want to keep the bottles too. 

Memento

Somewhere between a non-alcoholic spirit and a flavoured water, Memento is super dry in taste, like pure water that’s been infused gently with rosemary, verbena and other botanical elements. Inspired by a publication from 1498 that tells of the benefits of blending botanical essences, Memento is very refreshing and pretty bitter. It fares better in cocktails than alone in my opinion, or even just with a spritz of lemonade. 

FInd it at mementodrink.com for 30€

By Helena Nicklin

Watch The Three Drinkers do Scotch Whisky now streaming on Amazon Prime.

Luxury Cognacs You Need to Try

When was the last time you sipped a cognac? More opulent, viscous and citrus-scented than its whisky cousins made from grain, cognac is finding new favour on the global cocktail scene, yet it still delights spirits aficionados with its epic, long-aged, special bottlings. If you’ve neglected this spirit in the past, now is the time to try it again.

Written originally for Luxurious Magazine, February 4th 2020

The Three Drinkers: A Beginner’s Guide to Whisky

Looking to learn a bit more about whisky? Check out our article in Oracle Time magazine where we discuss all things Scotch!