Best Spirits for Christmas
Best Spirits for Christmas
“LET’S GET INTO THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT(S)!”
THE HAY WINES CHRISTMAS WINE LIST (PART 5 OF 5)
Every year, around the end of November, we used to host our Annual Portfolio Tasting at the fascinating medieval Ledbury Market House.
A fantastic event, where more than 80 different products are put on tasting.
A fantastic event, where our customers have the opportunity to try the best wines for Christmas, selected by our own team of Sommeliers.
A fantastic event, where everyone has an interesting, fun and educational tasting evening.
This year, clearly, things are going to be different, and we will not be able to do all that.
For this reason, we have decided to put together a selection of our most recommended wines to have during the festive period.
Our festive wine selection will show you everything you might need for Christmas, from sumptuous Barolo, to fine Champagne.
Let us continue our journey… what are the warmest and best spirits for Christmas for the Hay Wines Team?
Best Spirits for Christmas: Whisky
Glenfarclas, 10YO (was £38.69 – now £30.99)
Tempting sherry-sweet malty tones combine with delicate smokiness, releasing subtle spices. Warming the glass reveals honey, vanilla and pear drops. Delicately light with a mouth-watering combination of maltiness, smokiness and sherry sweetness. Hints of dried fruit, vanilla, cinnamon and cloves tempt the taste buds further.
Tullibardine, “500” Sherry Finish (was £41.99 – now £34.99)
For about 12 months, Tullibardine Sovereign has been finished off in Sherry Butts, which are 500 litres in size. This has created an intense, dark, rich brown whisky. There are hints of toffee and apples with an edge of cereal notes. On the palate, vanilla and toffee abound with dates and spice.
Penderyn, Madeira Finish (was £45.99 – now £38.99)
Single malt whisky which beautifully defines the Penderyn ‘house style’. Distilled in their unique copper pot still the whisky is then matured in bourbon barrels before being finished in rich Madeira wine casks. Bottled at 46% vol premium strength creating a whisky which is smooth, light in character and softly golden in colour.
Tomatin, 12YO Single Malt (was £39.99 – now £35.99)
Smooth and silky, having been matured in traditional Scotch Whisky, ex-Bourbon and ex-Spanish Sherry casks. A rich, fruity aroma is the prelude to sweet flavours of ripe apples, pears and a subtle hint of nut before the long, pleasantly oily finish.
Best Spirits for Christmas: Whisky – Continue…
Lagavulin, 16YO (was £75.49 – now £63.99)
One of the smokiest noses from Islay. It’s big, very, very concentraded, and redolent of iondine, sweet spices, good, mature sherry and creamy vanilla. Stunning! Very thick and rich. A massive mouthful of malt and sherry with good fruity sweetness, but also a woonderful sweetness. Big, powerful peat and oak. Long, spicy finish, figs, dates, peat smoke, vanilla.
Talisker, Distillers Edition “Amoroso Finish” (was £74.99 – now £59.99)
A full-bodied and wonderfully rich version of Talisker. There is smoke and spice on the nose with hints of bitter Seville orange marmalade and cracked black pepper. Quite an oily nose. Thick, rich fruit notes on the palate. A mix of marmalade and wood smoke meld with allspice linseed oil, cracked black pepper and hints of dried herbs. Long spicy finish with black pepper and butterscotch.
Bunnahabhain, 12YO Islay Single Malt (was £49.99 – now £46.99)
The 12 year old Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky was the beginning of the Bunnahabhain range, launched to fanfare and praise alike. Taste the origins of Bunnahabhain with an alluring balance of sweet fruit, nuts, vanilla and a delicate coastal influence.
Tullibardine, Sovereign (was £37.49 – now £30.99)
Having been matured in first fill Bourbon barrels, this is a lovely, balanced whisky. It exhibits barley, pear drops and creamy chocolate notes, which develop on the palate with a lingering finish.
Best Spirits for Christmas: Gin
Sly Gin, London Dry Lemon Verbena Gin (£36.99)
A new London Dry Gin which is produced in very small batches using low temperature distillation methods to capture the bright, fresh flavours of the botanicals, some of which are grown in their own herb garden. The final product is hand crafted, distilled and bottled in Dilwyn right here in Herefordshire.
Chase, Rhubarb & Bramley Apple Gin (£40.99)
Rhubarb & Bramley Apple Gin is carefully crafted by blending GB gin with freshly pressed rhubarb and Bramley apple juice, straight from the farm. This tangy and tart gin pairs perfectly as a G&T.
Ludlow, Dry Gin (£39.99)
Core botanicals of juniper, coriander, angelica and orris. They are skilfully blended with subtle notes of lemon and orange peel, cardamom and hand-picked gorse flowers; a truly premium dry gin with exceptional length.
Piston, Douglas Fir Infused Dry Gin (£39.99)
Piston Douglas Fir Dry Gin created in partnership with Harborne Kitchen. A recipe inspired by chef Jamie Desogus, infused with Douglas Fir creating the perfect winter G&T.
Best Spirits for Christmas: Gin – Continue…
Penrhos, Rhubarb Gin (£37.99)
The second born and a match made in heaven (well Herefordshire actually). A gorgeous pink and tangy gin made with 250ml of pure Raspberry Red Rhubarb juice blended with our own Penrhos Dry to create a memorable gin.
Dorothy Parker, American Gin (was £41.99 – now £36.99)
A blend of traditional and contemporary botanicals including juniper and elderberries, citrus, cinnamon, and hibiscus – is as delicious in a Gin & Tonic as it is in a Gin Daisy. There is classic Juniper aromas upfront together with distinct hibiscus petals, then elderberry and cinnamon with cranberry and coriander in the background. The palate has more piney juniper combining with the hibiscus and spiced cranberries. The finish has a pine freshness and zesty citrus peel.
Salcombe Gin, “START POINT” (was £39.99 – now £37.99)
The perfect balance of aromas and flavours from the heady, earthy and resinous pine notes of the finest Macedonian juniper, selected for their high limonene content, to the warming spiced citrus notes from English coriander seeds and fresh citrus peels, hand peeled by us just prior to distillation.
Eden Mill, Love Gin (was £32.99 – now £29.99)
Soft subtle juniper on the nose. A touch of warm, spiced berries – strawberry and raspberry. Sweet vanilla and green fruits – green apples and pears. Finishes with a delicate citrus pink grapefruit and a drop of rose water at the very end.
Best Spirits for Christmas: Brandy
Baron de Sigognac, 10 YO Bas Armagnac (£44.49)
Fine nose, marked by notes of vanilla, cinnamon and candied orange. Round in the mouth with floral, woody and spicy notes leading to a long and pleasing finish of grilled almonds and vanilla. Mild yet fiery at the same time like a gently toasted Arabica coffee.
Maxime Trijol, XO Cognac (£94.99)
On the nose there are spices, very fruity, oaky and tangy with mixed peels, mainly orange. The palate is woody, dry, all sorts of intense caramel, very fruity, butterscotch. The finish is medium to long finish, tangy and toasty.
Best Spirits for Christmas: Rum
Ron Botran, Solera 1893 18YO Rum (£42.99)
Mahogany colour, with aromas of honey and caramelised fruit. On the palate, the honey character develops in to that of molasses and pepper with a creamy smoothness enhanced by vanilla and subtle oak flavours.
Smith & Cross, Traditional Jamaica Rum (£37.99)
A blend of approximately equal parts Wedderburn and Plummer, the former is aged for less than a year, and the latter is blended from rums that have spent between 18 months and three years in white oak barrels. Blended at 57% ABV, or 100° English proof, this was the traditional strength required by the British Royal Navy.