Category: Food & Drink

From Reader Neville H:

“Last weekend you talked about “sipping” that new gin you discovered [Sipsmith–K.].  What other liquor do you sip, as opposed to mixing with tonic, water etc?”

Good question.  If I’m in a party mood amongst friends, I generally drink “mixed” spirits — e.g. Myers/Captain Morgan rum & Coke, gin & tonic, J&B and water, Jack Daniels & Coke, Richelieu brandy and ginger ale, and screwdrivers, to mention but some, the choice depending on my mood or the time of day — because when I’m in a party mood, I seldom have a brake pedal and I chug the lovely stuff down by the pint, often with disastrous results.  (When I’m in Britishland, I’ll do the same with Wiltshire’s Wadworth 6x, Fuller’s London Pride and Cornwall’s Tribute ales, by the way.)

But when the guests are over at my place and it’s just a quiet evening spent chatting about this and that and having a civilized (as opposed to raucous) time, I’m more of a mind to sip neat liquor, the choice of which also depending on my mood at the time.

In no specific order, I like to sip Southern Comfort Original, any number of single malt Scotches (I have a few favorites, but mostly Glenmorangie 10 y.o.) and now, Sipsmith London Dry.

Of course, one could add port and sherry to the list of sippin’ stuff (not wine, which is generally consumed like ale, so to speak), but let’s not get carried away now.

And of course if I’m Over There and in the company of Mr. Free Market, The Englishman or The Sorensons, however, all that can get set aside for Adventures In Drinking Gallons Of Whatever.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, my sippin’ choices.  I hope that answers Reader Neville’s question.

I think I’ll go and get one now.  All this writing makes a man thirsty, what?

We interrupt this blogging stuff for a brief (and completely un-sponsored) blatant plug non-commercial message.

As Loyal Friends & Readers know well, I love me my gin.  Mostly, I love it with Angostura Bitters (to make it pink) and a 7-Up/Sprite mixer to make it a thirst-quencher, which it is, oh yes indeed it is.

Because I add the above mixers, the brand is mostly irrelevant, as long as it’s London dry — Booth’s, Beefeater, Gordon’s, etc. — although I will confess to buying Bombay Sapphire or Tanqueray quite often too, especially if they’re on sale.

Most of the “new” gins (e.g. Hendrick’s and Bulldog) have a flavor distinct from London dry, which makes the unadulterated sipping thereof a little problematic for me — others have compared it to sipping the peaty Laphroiag vs. the smooth Glenmorangie whiskies — and in general, I’ve pretty much grown up drinking “pink ‘n lemonade” (Brit-speak for 7-Up) by the pint, rather than sipping the lovely stuff anyway.

That’s all about to change, because I have discovered a fine “sipping” gin at last:

Good grief.  Smooth, clear taste;  no afterburn or bitterness… I don’t even want to try adding bitters and 7-Up to the lovely stuff, so good is it on my tongue.  And it’s relatively new on the market (story here) which may be why I’d never tried it before.

It’s a little pricey — about $15 a bottle more than, say, Gordon’s — but considering that I’ll be sipping it and not (ahem) chugging it down in beermugs with my bacon & eggs in the morning [some exaggeration], the cost isn’t that important.

There are other varieties of Sipsmith, e.g. “VJOP” and “Blue Label”, and the distillery also makes vodka and sloe gin, amongst other types,

…but for now I’m going to stick with the “regular” London Dry until I’ve sampled a case or two before I start going crazy and experimenting.  And the next time I’m in Londonistan, it’s to the Sipsmith Distillery I’ll be going.

Seriously, this is lovely stuff — and if you’re one of those heretics unfortunate souls who doesn’t like gin, you could do worse than to try this on the rocks at first, just to see.  It may change your life*, as gin has done for so many others over the centuries.

*not always for the better, of course, but we’re all grownups here.  Oh, and as always, I get nothing from anyone for plugging their products, and this time is no exception.

Ripped from the headlines:

Mediterranean diet tamps down overeating, study says

Small wonder.  That’s because all that stuff tastes like shit without one of these consumed alongside:

Bloody stupid studies.