3 Simple, Smoky, Whisky Cocktails For Your BBQ

Words by Helena Nicklin

Ardbeg, one of our favourite Islay distilleries has created ‘Smoke Sessions’ video guides to barbecuing meat and smoky drinks with grilling legend DJ BBQ (you can read about those here). The cocktail recipes looked so good however, that we got the lowdown for you on how to make them. Here they are: three epic, seriously smoky whisky cocktails for your summer barbecue. You’re welcome!

Smoky Apple Cider

Ingredients:

• 50ml Ardbeg Wee Beastie
• 50ml apple cider
• 50ml ginger beer
• 25ml freshly squeezed lime juice
• Demerara vanilla sugar to taste

Method

Add all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice, then stir and strain into a tumbler or a jar. Garnish to your taste with a cinnamon stick, star anise or even a slice of red apple. Take this from summer to winter by making it in a batch, warming it up and serving with a ladle. Amini toffee apple, if you can find one makes a special garnish for halloween too.

Maple & Bacon Old Fashioned

Ingredients:

• 50ml Ardbeg Ten Years Old
• 15ml maple syrup (to taste)
• 3 dashes orange bitters

Method

Stir all the ingredients together and serve over a large cube of ice. You can have fun with the garnishes here: try a rasher of streaky bacon as a stirrer, add a spring of torched rosemary or simply, an orange twist. 

An Oa Bloody Mary

Ingredients:

• 50ml Ardbeg An Oa
• 100ml roasted tomato juice (find one with garlic and herbs if you can)
• 1 dash hot sauce
• 1 dash Worcestershire sauce
• 25ml lemon juice
• 12.5ml Pedro Ximenez sherry

Method

Combine all the ingredients into a mixing glass, add ice and then pour again into a second mixing glass, straining the liquid as you do so. Repeat a few times until the mixture is super smooth and well blended. Rim your glass with celery salt and add your garnish. For this, we recommend dill or even grated horseradish. 

Like this? Read about Ardbeg’s Smoke Sessions with DJ BBQ here, or look at the best sherry matured whiskies or even best bang for buck sipping bourbon.

This Summer: The Smoke Sessions with Ardbeg Whisky and DJ BBQ

Words by Helena Nicklin

It’s great news for fans of smoked meat and smoky whiskies as world-renowned Islay Distillery Ardbeg teams up with the brilliant master of the grill: Christian Stevenson aka DJ BBQ.

Launching today, The Smoke Sessions is an online series designed to offer the ultimate guide to barbecuing and smoking meat as well as the preparation of smoky whisky cocktail serves. In the sessions, DJ BBQ will explain and demonstrate the fundamental laws of smoke, wood and heat while spinning the decks in his inimitable style. All the while, Brendan McCarron, Ardbeg Distillery’s Head of Maturing Whisky Stocks will help creating spectacular, smoky drinks using Ardbeg Ten, An Oa and Wee Beastie.

“The taste of braided beef fillet alongside an Ardbeg Ten Old Fashioned is just awesome, and a sip of hot Wee Beastie punch with a slow smoked pork shoulder is unrivalled,” says DJ BBQ. “My smoky barbeque recipes share so many characteristics with the flavours of Ardbeg whisky, and they complement each other perfectly. The laws of wood, heat and smoke are so important to barbecue and single malt alike, and once mastered, you’ll become a barbeque boss!”

Watch  DJ BBQ create amazing recipes such as the 18-Hour Whisky-Smoked Pulled Pork, served with Ardbeg Wee Beastie Hot Apple Cider, Coal-Roasted Beef Plait served with Ardbeg Ten Maple & Bacon Old Fashioned, and Whisky Planked, Pit-Smoked Salmon served with Ardbeg An Oa Bloody Mary.

How to Watch

To watch the Ardbeg Smoke Sessions, tune into Ardbeg’s Instagram Live on Friday 24 July at 8pm BST to watch DJ BBQ kick it all off. Keep an eye on all of Ardbeg’s social channels and the videos can be watched at any time on YouTube here: 

Law of Heat 

Law of Smoke 

Law of Wood

How to Taste

Cocktail fans will be able to order DJ BBQ’s Maple and Bacon Old Fashioned for delivery across the UK, via Mothership on the Drinks At Home platform, for a limited period from 21 July 2020.

Like this? Try this piece on the Ardbeg releases ranked by smokiness and What is peated whisky?

6 Perfectly Premixed Negronis for the Summer

Words by Helena Nicklin

From what we can see at The Three Drinkers, one of this summer’s top drinks trends is bottled cocktails and drinks subscriptions services. There are several new companies that have sprung up recently, all offering some seriously good, balanced and beautiful looking premixed cocktails. Being huge fans of the Negroni however, we thought we’d highlight some of those specifically that have really turned our heads. All these are available to be delivered and make great gifts in the process, both for your friends or even, yourself!

Halo

Halo have won lockdown drinks. It’s official. Their selection of expertly prepared, super-fresh cocktails don’t just look the part and taste the part, but they are offered as a Zoom team drinks delivery service and are also available on a monthly subscription. Their Negroni comes in a 50cl bottle and comprises of London Dry Gin, Vermouth and Campari. A little softer than some you might get offered in a real bar, it’s dangerously drinkable. Serve over ice with an orange slice. Every month, they support a charity and this July it’s Black Minds Matter. Even more reason to taste!  £32 for 50cl. See more here. 

Cambridge Distillery Negroni

This luxury gin producer Cambridge Distillery has smashed it with the presentation and preparation of this pre-mixed Negroni. Deliciously aromatic with a warming, spicy kick, this Negroni is a limited edition, so get it while you still can. They are also donating 10% of all proceeds to a teaching hospital nearby. What is not to love about that? Find it here for £30 for 50cl.

Bottle Proof Negroni

Created for the hospitality industry to help train bartenders and to offer a high quality, reliable cocktail product that takes seconds to prepare, Bottle Proof makes both single serve measures (in the cutest bottles) as well as 70cl bottles. Buy one small bottle of each and it makes the greatest, most colourful drinky gift! I loved their Negroni; more fruity than some with pretty, perfumed notes thanks to the addition of bitters. Find it here at Laraza Cambridge, in 60cl bottles for £29.70 or single serve, 95ml bottles for £4.75.

Batch

This SE London cocktail bar has pivoted prettily during lockdown to offer some of its most famous cocktails in batches for local delivery. All small-batch and handmade, their Negroni is famously good, thanks in part to an extra splash of Bathtub gin. Why have we never tried this before? You can order online or through Uber Eats and Deliveroo. Find the Negroni here for £15.

Cocchi Negroni In A Box

Here’s a Negroni that fits through your postbox and can be carried in your handbag! Using one of our absolute favourite Italian vermouths ‘Cocchi’, this is a delicious version with equal parts Cocchi vermouth, London dry gin and Campari. Perfectly balanced with a smoothness that‘s characteristic of Cocchi, this is a cocktail that upgrades your picnic and park drinks. Find it here for £8.25 per 100ml or £39.95 for a 5 pack. 

SendANegroni.com

Another letterbox Negroni with the added fun of being able to personalise it with a message. From the team behind Porter’s Gin, it's a blend of this with Campari bitter and a new Parisien vermouth called Baldoria Rosso. There are two versions to choose from: the Classic One, which uses Porter’s gin or the Tropical One, using Porter’s Tropical Old Tom. They make brilliant alternatives to a birthday card and a fun gift for anyone of drinking age. Find them here for £10 for 50cl, message and delivery all in. Banging.

Like this? Try our latest Drinker Discovery post, 7 Rums That Scream Luxury, and the World’s best Sipping Tequilas

Drinker Discoveries: 5 New Products For Your Next Socially Distanced Gathering

A The Three Drinkers, we love all things drinky, be they wine, beer or spirits-related, no and low drinks, bitters or even gadgets and lifestyle products. Here’s a selection of some things that have delighted us recently and tickled our tastebuds. This week’s list curated by Helena Nicklin. Find her @Winebird (Insta) @TheWinebird (Twitter).

Russell’s Hand Sanitiser

The team at Copper Rivet Distillery in Kent are some of the unsung heroes of the Covid-19 pandemic, switching production of their spirits to alcohol for hand sanitiser that will kill viruses as well as bacteria. The result here is Russell’s Hand Sanitiser, which at 70% alcohol is powerful enough to kill the nasties but the addition of Jojoba oil and vitamin E mean your hands stay soft while you use it. The beauty is you can get it in handbag sized 60ml bottles, 500ml bottles and even 5 litre bottles for businesses. I got the 5 pack of 60ml bottles: one each for the family. Find them here and while you’re at it, stick a bottle of their brilliant, premium gin, vodka or whisky into your trolly to support them. They deserve it. 

Instagram: @copperrivetdistillery

Mead: Loxwood Mead

Mead is back. Who knew? This fermented, honey-based drink was popular with Henry VIII and his medieval buddies but evidence of mead has been found in China from 7000 BC! At Loxwood Meadworks, they are reimagining mead for a modern era. This ‘honey wine’ uses 100% honey rather than grapes and you drink it chilled in just the same way. Crisp and floral with a delicate, honey flavour and just a hint of natural sweetness, this is a delightfully different drink and perfect for summer. Find it for £15 here.

Instagram: @loxwoodmeadworks

Vodka: Pure Vodka Lite

This brand new British vodka has just hit the market. Their aim was to be the ‘good guys’ in the spirits market with this uber clean and crisp vodka distilled from organic wheat and cut to just  20% (rather than the usual 40%). We tested it and you would never guess it was lighter in alcohol. A great choice for more mindful drinking. They have regular vodka too. Find it for £30 here. 

Instagram: @pure_WM

Beer: Duette Beer

Is it a beer? Is it champagne? No, it’s Duette! Created by House of Après, this sparkling brut beer was produced using champagne and Kölsch lager yeast. The result is a richly flavoured beer with the fine bubbles and complexity of champagne with the freshness and hoppiness of a pilsner and brewed to 11.5% like a sparkling wine. Totally unique, produced sustainably, unfiltered, unpasteurized and made for sharing. Find it for £14.99 for 75cl or £8.99 for 35.7cl here.

Instagram: @duettebeer

Bitters: Bitter Union Aromatic

Bitter Union has a fantastic range of flavours for their bitters, which are all produced in England in micro batches using natural ingredients and no added sugar. There are five flavours currently and I love the Aromatic, with its complex, warming notes of cherry and cinnamon. Splash some into tonic (it’s also great with lemonade) for a more interesting no - alcohol thirst quencher, but it also really rounds off whisky or rum cocktails such as a Dark & Stormy or an Old Fashioned. Find them all here for £12.95 each for 100ml along with some cocktail recipes. 

Instagram: @bitterunion

Like these? See out last Drinker Discovery post as well as our guides to underrated Irish drinks, Mindful Drinking and the best Scottish gins to explore.

Want us to consider your product? Email sophie@thethreedrinkers.com

One Drink, Three Ways: Aloha 65

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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.

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This brand new style of spirit isn’t quite a gin, a vodka or anything else. It’s a refreshing, all-natural spirit with a tropical vibe, infused with fresh pineapple, ginger and lemon, a few herbs and a wonderful kick from local scotch bonnet chillies. Invented on the west coast of the U.S in a surf bar, it became so popular, the owners decided to bottle it. Delicious as a chilled shot, it's also extremely versatile; a great ingredient for relaxed cocktails at sundown and is vegan to boot, so a great crowd-pleaser. At 27% abv, it's also more social and session-able than other spirits. Here are three ways you can try it this summer at your barbecue. ..

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Helena’s Choice: The Alohan

A refreshing, long summer serve with a burst of flavour and spicy kick. Perfect for batch cocktails and so simple to make. Simply pour 1 part Aloha 65 into a jug or pitcher. Add 2 parts ginger ale, a tonne of ice, lemon slices and sprigs of mint. Serve in highball glasses, jars or a copas.

The Alohan

Recipe

1 part Aloha 65

2 parts Ginger Ale

Ice (lots)

Lemon and mint to garnish

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Aidy’s Choice: The Aloha Colada

The Pina Colada was recently tipped to be the number one cocktail ordered when bars reopen after lockdown, thanks to its celebratory, summery vibe! Here’s a much more interesting version of that, using Aloha 65 and its super simple to make. Just stick everything in a blender and blitz it for a few seconds before pouring into cool, large wine glasses or tiki glasses. Umbrella optional!

The Aloha Colada

Recipe

Ice

60ml Aloha 65

50ml coconut milk

75ml fresh pineapple juice

1 tbsp sugar syrup (2 parts white sugar to 1 part water)

Juice of ½ lime

Slice of pineapple and cocktail umbrella to garnish

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Colin’s Choice: The Aloha Old Fashioned

Those who know me know I love all kinds of Old Fashioned recipes from the classic to the quirky. This is definitely the latter but it really works and is a much better option for sunny evenings. Stir all the ingredients together with ice, then strain into a tumbler and garnish with orange and a cherry, if you have one. Superb!

The Aloha Old Fashioned

Recipe

40ml Aloha 65

20ml Bourbon

2 dashes of bitters

Large ice cubes

Orange peel and a maraschino cherry to garnish.

Like this? Try our other One Drink, Three Ways articles: The Macallan, Tanqueray Gin and Noilly Prat Vermouth.

Drinker Discoveries: CBD Bitters, New Spirits, Great Wine and Gadgets

At The Three Drinkers, we are lucky enough to receive various samples of new drinks and lifestyle products over time. In these Drinker Discovery guides, we pick our absolute favourites as well as entertaining drinks news snippets we’ll think you’ll appreciate. Here are some that I have particularly enjoyed recently.

OTO CBD bitters

Not just good for cocktails, I have this in my morning coffee. OTO’s non-alcoholic, CBD bitters adds a warming, spiced aromatic note and depth of flavour to many types of drinks and none of that acrid, hemp note. The CBD element is a huge added bonus that really does feel like it calms anxiety and assists sleep. I love this. Find it and other luxury CBD products including face creams and roll on oils here. RRP £79 for 100ml (2500mg CBD).

Instagram: @oto_cbd

Winesave Pro

We’re always interested in products that can prevent us wasting wine and recently, I’ve been using the Winesave Pro when I’ve already popped a cork (usually on that extra bottle I probably shouldn’t have opened). Simply stick the thin tube in the bottle and give it a couple of squirts so the Argon gas can replace the oxygen and keep your wine fresh for longer (make sure you replace the cork or screw cap straight away). I tested it on various styles of wine over three weeks and was really impressed. A great, budget wine saving product. Find it here for £29.99.

Instagram @Winesavepro

Aloha 65

This brand new, spirit-based drink blew my minds when I tasted it as it does not fit into any regular drinks box easily. With its vibrant packaging, it promises a taste experience that delivers too. The team infuse spirits at 27% abv with fresh pineapple with lemon, ginger and other herbs and spices as well as local chillies for a fabulous kick. It’s vegan too. Have it as chilled shots or in a plethora of cocktails. They make an epic hot sauce too. Summer barbecues, here we come! Find it here for £26 for 70cl.

Instagram @alohasixtyfive

White Wine: Mar de Frades Albarino 2019

White wine of the week for me is this citrussy, saline Albariño (that’s the grape) made by the winemaking legend that is Paula Fandiño in Rias Baixas in northwestern Spain. This is THE region for world class Albariño and this vintage from Mar de Frades also has peachy, tropical flavours underneath those Atlantic, wet rock and sea spray notes. It’s a must with fish and seafood even on a cloudy day. A little blue ship appears on the bottle when its chilled to perfection too. Lovely touch! Find it here for £18.95.

Instagram @mardefrades

Red Wine: DV Catena Malbec 2018

My red wine of the week punches so far above its price tag, I had to look twice at it. Rich and concentrated with notes of cocoa, coffee bean, grilled meat and violet, this is a serious red wine that will love a barbecue. While it is drinking very well now, you could actually leave this for a couple of years to mellow further. Truly excellent value. Find it here at Sainsbury’s for £10 (down from £12) on offer for July.

Instagram @catenawines

In The News: God Save The Clean!

This tickled me. I love how carpet stain remover company Dr Beckmann commissioned artist Fanny Gough to paint a portrait of the queen in red wine on a carpet to demonstrate how good it was. I’m stocking right up. It’s got my vote! Find it here for £11.26

Like this? Check out some of our other guides : Gift Ideas for Drinks Lovers, Best Gins for a Martini and Must-Know Premium Californian Wine Producers.

Sherry Bombs: The Best Sherry Matured Whiskies in the World

Like Marmite, sherry matured whiskies split whisky drinkers. However, those who like them are some of the most ardent fans in the world, being hugely loyal to their favourite brands. There are the superstars of the sherry whisky world like Macallan and Glenfarclas, but then there are other distilleries producing incredible drams. Their fans will probably not be too pleased I’m putting this list together as some of the whiskies are not made in huge numbers and the more popular, they become, the harder it will be to find them. But for those die-hard fans, they will always find a way.

Macallan

Lets start with the king. Macallan is the undisputed king of sherry matured whiskies. It is the most expensive and the best known brand of sherry whiskies in the world. But this doesn’t mean to say it is the best. There will be many who argue it is, but the rest of this list will show you something to compare it with. But for now, let’s start with a classic.

ABV: 43%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £1499.95 // US $2499.99

Glendronach

The contender. This whisky is becoming better known. The distillery has a cracking 18 year old which is a big and powerful sherry bomb, fulfilling the most ardent of sherry bomb lover’s desires. Each year the distillery also releases some special single cask expressions. These are less expensive than Macallan and rarer, and some would say even more delicious. They are hard to come by, but the 18 is a great place to start.

ABV: 46%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £97.94 // US $179.99

Tamdhu

The sleeper. This distillery came under new ownership in the not too distant past, and they pledged to cask all the liquid that will find its way into a Tamdhu bottle will be matured in a sherry cask. They have a batch released cask strength bottle which is epic, and their regular expressions are exceptional with the oldest at the moment being a 15 year old. An 18 year old is on the way we’re told. I can’t wait.

ABV: 46%
Size: 700ml
Find here: 18 year old UK £78.95 // 15 year old US $72.99

Glenfarclas

Always good value. Glenfarclas has been under the same family ownership for its entire existence. This means the stock they hold has never been re-valued and sold in a distillery sale. This means that they can sell the whisky at a very reasonable price. Although prices have been creeping up over the years to keep roughly in line with other brands, they have a 15 year old which is fabulous, and the best place to start trying sherry style whiskies if you haven’t already.

ABV: 46%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £48.95

Kavalan

Kavalan is in Taiwan and has been making excellent whisky since only 2005. Since then they have become a cult name in whisky and even won the best single malt whisky in the world in 2015. I know how good it was, I was one of the judges. They now produce a series called the solist, of which some are sherry matured whiskies and there is certainly the same DNA in these whiskies as the world-beating dram in 2015.

ABV: 56.3%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £340

Glenmorangie

The hybrid. This whisky isn’t purely matured in sherry, is has spent the first ten years of its life in a bourbon barrel and then a further two in a sherry cask. I would say this is another great place to have a go at a sherry style whisky. With soft spices it gives an introduction to the genre without scaring the horses. For those who like bourbon matured whisky, this will still please, but for those about to start their sherry adventure, it will give you a taste of what might come in the future.

ABV: 43%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £41.75 // US $44.99

The Glenrothes

The little brother. The Glenrothes distillery is owned by the same company as Macallan. For many years another company owned the brand, and they were an old school company called Berry Bros & Rudd founded in 1598. This old school thinking used old school technics and they worked. They used a lot of sherry in their maturation and were not nearly as expensive as Macallan. The Edrington Group, owners of Macallan have now taken the brand back from Berry Brothers & Rudd and are keeping the emphasis on sherry. Still much cheaper than Macallan, but for how long is anyone’s guess. Classic whisky, and deservedly on this list.

ABV: 43%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £99.79 // US $159.99

The Dalmore

The old timer. The Dalmore has been known for their sherry style whiskies for many years. But they have kept innovation going. Rather than maturing in a single style of sherry cask, like an oloroso cask for example, they mature their whisky in multiple styles of sherry casks. For example with their King Alexander III expression, they mature the whisky in no less than six styles of sherry cask. Including Oloroso, but also Matheusala and Apostoles. The results are divine and although one might pay a premium for premium whisky, it is well worth digging deeper into your wallet for this one.

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Find here: UK £159.80 // US $279.99

There really is a sherry whisky for everyone, at every level of sherry from bomb to balanced and at every price point too. If you haven’t tried a sherried style of whisky before, give it a go. What’s the worst that can happen? You find out you don’t like it and can drink the other 90% of whiskies produced. But if you do, you will open up a whole new drinking experience.

I think that the next big thing in sherry whiskies is going to be Tamdhu, and if you’d like to learn a little more about this Macallan beater, read on with a Tamdhu attitude.

From Zero to Hero: Two of the Best No and Low Drinks

Words by Colin Hampden-White

There are quite a few no and low drinks on the market at the moment, so many in fact that it is beginning to get hard to find the good and interesting ones. We are becoming more discerning and are wanting not just no and low, but healthy ingredients too and so organic products are being sought after more and more.

I have recently found two such products. One a no alcohol product which is great by itself and the second a lower alcohol product that goes incredibly well with the first.

Let me introduce you to Archibald Tonic and Folle Envie Aperitif. Both hail from France and both can be drunk very well by themselves, but where they really come to life is together.

Folle Envie is made from organic grapes and is only 11.2% so when the two are mixed together, they create a delicious long low alcohol drink.

Archibald tonic is made not from Quinine but from Gentian root and is produced like a gin using a century-old copper still in the south west of France. It makes a great non-alcoholic drink in its own right. Gentian is a flowering plant found globally and has a natural bitterness which helps with digestion. The Gentian is macerated while the juniper is distilled separately. The two are combined with water from a local spring in Cognac and then finally distilled. This process produces a complex tonic with aromas of orange citrus and a smoky herbaceous note with a subtle bitter touch. Should you want to make a classic G&T, these flavours enhance rather than obscure the flavour of any gin used. As well as being organic, this tonic has even more to prevent it from harming the planet. The labels are made from recycled sugar cane fibre and printed using vegetable ink. It is being used by some great chefs including Alain Ducasse and Anne-Sophie Pic, and you can find them in the Trinity and Portland UK Michelin restaurants. Why not try a distilled tonic water to go with your distilled gin!

Folle Envie, as well as going very well with Archibald Tonic, can also be drunk by itself (I’d suggest on the rocks), and it makes a very good wet martini. Created by Estelle Sauvage using an old recipe from her great grandmother Zelda, this aperitif is very versatile.

Organic grape must from the Charentine wine region is used as a base, and dried lemon rind is then distilled and macerated to give fresh zesty flavours as well as sweetness. This is then combined with macerated cardamom pods before a final distillation. This gives a fresh and fruity drink with plenty of complexity. All the ingredients are organic and like Archibald tonic the labels are made from recycled sugar cane fibre and printed with vegetable ink.

These are two of the best new no and low alcohol products being brought into the UK at the moment. They are not just tasty but can both be used in multiple styles of drinks to give pleasure at many percentage points. I’d suggest starting at zero and working your way up!

Check out our other no-low drink discoveries here and one of our favourite low-alcohol beers here