About Me, Books & Films, Christmas, Citrus Notes, Food & Drink, Recipes, Review, United Kingdom, What's Happening

DECEMBER 11: Getting ready for Christmas with some homemade flavoured vodka, or gin as I like to call it.

THE LEMON GROVE CHRISTMAS ADVENT CALENDAR: December 11 All gins must be distilled or steeped with juniper berries and then with any botanicals you fancy.  Here I’ve got three bottles of The Lemon Grove Flavoured Gin ™ 😉, each of 500ml.  First in the lineup is Vanilla and Lemon; then Chilli and Lemon, and finally Lemon […]

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Citrus Notes, Food & Drink, France, italy, Recipes, Review, What's Happening

Snap the peel to make the perfect Martini

Want to make the perfect Martini? Well it’s all in the squeeze, apparently. Get a sliver of fresh lemon or orange peel about 4-5cm long and about 1.5cm wide at the middle, pinch the longer edges in you fingers and ‘snap’ over your cocktail, says Richard Ehrlich, martini aficionado, prolific food writer and stalwart of […]

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Food & Drink, Recipes, United Kingdom, What's Happening

A deliciously creative mess of choc and choctails

Would you be tempted by goats cheese smothered in dark chocolate, or perhaps white berries with Bailey’s liqueur served in a dark chocolate tapas cup? Well I was and so found myself at Temper Temper, a delightful cookery school tucked away in Southborough, just north of Tunbridge Wells. The school has chocolate at its heart […]

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Food & Drink, Recipes, Travel & Places, What's Happening

Gin, vodka and the original still

Gin and vodka distilleries are popping up all over Britain and are using basic ingredients and flavourings as diverse as milk, sloe berries and damsons. Many of these artisan, small batch distilleries were started by enthusiasts, quickly becoming micro-businesses with several now winning national and international awards. A parallel renaissance in label design has given […]

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Books & Films, Food & Drink, Recipes, Travel & Places

Steeped in Rebellious Spirits

Alchemist and drinks genius Ruth Ball has written a thrilling history of people and events surrounding the intoxicating world of spirits. Her book, Rebellious Spirits: The Illicit History of Booze in Britain, is a treasure trove for the curious drinker. From the gin dispensed from a cat’s paw at the Puss and Mew shop, which […]

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