Fellow Wine
Lovers,
Thank God it’s
Friday, we’ve worked really hard this week!
Ok, it may not actually look like that to you, having been closed Monday
and Tuesday but trust me; we were putting our livers on the line for the
greater good!
So, as mentioned,
we were closed Monday and Tuesday to travel to the very north of the country to
visit the fine folk on the moors at Hepple.
We have sold the high fidelity gin from Hepple pretty much since they
started to share it with the world, I think Fortnum’s were the only people to
pip us to the post and frankly we don’t mind coming second to Piccadilly’s
finest…
Anyway, having
sold their Gin for such a long time (October 2015 to be precise) we finally
managed to save up enough groats for the return trip to Alnmouth in order to go
visit these distilling deities and Monday was the day. Emerging into the blistering sunshine we were
met at the station by Walter, the major-domo of the Moorland Spirit company,
who whisked us the 45 minutes inland to the Northumberland National Park and
the home of Hepple, assuring us on the way that we should not get used to
having to wear sunglasses and in fact Wayne was sensible to have bought
waterproof trousers.
This was sound
advice from a local we soon discovered.
Walking on the
moors having had a restorative martini, we saw sunshine, we saw horizontal
rain, we saw heather, then some more heather and just round the corner from
that, some heather. We also saw, more
importantly some of the Hepple botanicals in their element.
Douglas Fir, Bog
Myrtle and Juniper all grow on the moor here and as a result are at the front
of the Hepple story, as is blackcurrant but these bushes were having a sleep. To be honest, raw Bog Myrtle of the branch is
an acquired taste, Douglas Fir has a strong citrus element that surprises us
still and the Juniper cones are just delicious and spicy. The fact that Hepple has its own Juniper
makes it unique amongst British Gin producers and allows them to add a different
nuance to the blend. The bushes are old,
old, old and are referred to as ‘the ladies’ since they are all named after
Aunts in Walter’s family tree – names like Phyllida, Miriam and Tamsin are less
often heard nowadays but are alive and kicking in the hills of the Coquet
Valley!
The darkness was
falling, as was the rain so we repaired inside for some refreshment and sleep –
Gin was perhaps sampled but purely in a professional manner – what goes on tour
etc etc…
Tuesday morning
brought a tour of the distillery and a chance to meet Chris Garden, who has
quickly become a big name in the world of craft Gin. He was the distiller at Sipsmith’s until 2014
when he elected to move up to Newcastle where his wife’s family live. As a result of his career in Hammersmith, and
now the 5 years at Hepple, it is likely that nobody has greater experience in
small-batch distilling than Chris in the UK and as a consequence his role is
vital to the operation.
And boy does he
know what he’s talking about. His
enthusiasm is infectious, his chemistry lesson was the clearest I’ve ever
experienced and might have helped my GCSE’s and his clear joy in the juniper
just makes you want to give up drinking anything else – so we slowly sliced a
lemon and polished some glasses….
I won’t bore you
much longer apart from to say the Hepple story is not just one story but a
whole panoply of riches that many other Gin’s would give their right tentacle
for, too many stories almost but I’ll list them here in no particular order:
- They
have their own juniper
- They
have Chris Garden
- They
have Walter and his lovely wife, Lucy, to tend the Juniper and in fact to plant
out more as part of their Juniper Project to try to regenerate growth on the
moor
- Wayne
and Alex have also planted juniper now but as neither of us are Walter’s Aunt
we fear for our long term future
- The
other partners in this venture are famous foraging chef Valentine Warner and
legendary barkeep Nick Strangeway who both bring decades of flavour experience
to the table for the renowned distilling and flavour developer Cairbry Hill to
turn into liquid magic – some sort of dream team!
- They
don’t just make a London Dry, London Dry is their base and they then go beyond
that
- ‘Beyond
that’ involves using vacuum distillation for freshness and then a supercritical
extraction that draws out flavours from the juniper that cannot be found using
other means.
There
are, I’m sure, things I’ve missed out but suffice to say a Gin that we already
knew we loved has just reminded us why we love it so much!
Hepple Gin – £38
‘it might just be the best
Martini Gin I’ve ever tasted’
– Victoria Moore, Daily Telegraph;
‘by revealing the hidden
complexities of the ancient, overlooked and natural, it encapsulates the pulse
of the place’ – Dave Broom
Back at the ranch
Our
sojourn in the North had to come to an end, not because Wayne had finished all
the Gin as reported elsewhere, that’s an unfair rumour and Alex feels that all
his efforts have gone unnoticed but because we had a shop to run. So, back at the ranch we now are and after a
few days of glorious escapism in England’s least populous county, London feels
a bit busy and bright but it’s nice to be back and see what has been going on.
Trump
got off, as expected, and is taking it all in his stride like the grown-up that
he is. Whilst on the subject of
Darwinism, a bodybuilder claiming a fear of heights and an inability to lift
weights due to an accident, was caught out when he posted multiple photos of
him weightlifting and riding a 33 metre waterslide that amazingly the insurance
company saw on his social media accounts – numpty! Speaking of numptiness, Alex has decided that
England will win on Saturday and has even bet one customer a fiver to this
effect – did he not watch the game last week?
Still, at least all his predictions can still pan out, especially when
Italy whip France on Sunday – although I’m not sure if he’s taking bets on this!
Got your backs
If
it’s Friday 7th February today that means that next week is the 14th
– just saying…
So,
you might be needing some pink fizz to celebrate and with this in mind can we
recommend one of the following:
Domaine du Landreau Cremant
de Loire Rosé – £15.99
Hailing
from Anjou, Domaine du Landreau has passed through four generations of vine
growers. This is made from Cabernet
Franc and Grolleau, hand harvested fermented in the traditional method and then
aged for 3 years on the lees. A cracking
sparkler with raspberry fruit character that is an absolute joy.
Hawkins Bros. Rosé Reserve
– £29.00
These
English wine producers are based just south of Guildford, growing and making
wine on the south-facing chalk of the Hogs Back. Made in the Traditional Method from 95% Pinot
Noir, 5% Pinot Meunier, this is a supremely elegant rosé with a subtle flavour
of summer berries, a delicate pink hue, notes of strawberry, and fresh brioche
from 30 months pre-release ageing.
Champagne Delavenne Père et
Fils Grand Cru Brut Rosé – £45.00
Based
in the aptly named village of Bouzy where the Pinot Noir grape is the
King. Made entirely from Grand Cru
grapes, this is a lovely elegant style with strawberries and red berries on the
nose and perhaps a hint of rose petal.
The palate is juicy and creamy with a persistent mousse from start to
finish. This oozes class, much like that
special one in your life!
Knocking it back and
kicking back
As
suggested above, it’s Friday and thus the end of the week – time for some much
needed r’n’r. To aid this we’ll have
some wine open this evening and tomorrow to lubricate your journey home which
will be a pair of Kiwi’s I believe:
Southern Dawn Sauvignon
Blanc 2019 – £11.99 – an
excellent Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with all the trademark passionfruit,
citrus, nettles, cut grass and hints of capsicum that you would hope for. These aromas light the path to a soft, well
rounded palate with a luscious mouth feel and pronounced fruit characters.
Southern Dawn Pinot Noir
2013 – £14.49 – this is
a wine we have had on the shelf pretty much since we opened. I could give you all the guff about the soil
in the vineyards, the angle of the slope the vines are planted on and the
winemaker’s collection of 19th century corkscrews, but none of that is really
relevant. We sell this wine because we
think it tastes brilliant: light with red cherry fruit character, a nice bit of
age and a lovely fresh finish.
Of
course we will also have the Hepple open, if there’s any left after our midday
martinis, so do swing by and say hello!