Luxury New Year’s Eve Drinks Guide 2015

It’s time for our luxury New Year’s Eve drinks guide. This year we have some spectacular tipples to get your teeth into, to make sure you see in the New Year in style.

Suntory Hibiki Japanese Harmony

An utterly exquisite whisky, we cannot recommend the award winning Suntory Japanese Harmony enough. Superbly smooth and delicate, this is one of the finest whiskies out there. But don’t take it from me, it is hugely respected by whiskey connoisseurs and intrigues and delights those new to whiskey.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony is a delicate and harmonious blend of malt and grain whiskies from the Yamazaki, Hakushu and Chita distilleries in Japan. It uses the same key malt and grain whiskies as its aged counterparts, which are aged in White Oak and American barrels. Finishing the whisky off in Mizunara and Sherry Casks, gives Hibiki Japanese Harmony its honey notes and dark amber colour.

90 years of blending experience has resulted in this terrific tipple and it is one you should not rule out this Christmas or New Year. 70cl is RRP £53.49, available in Waitrose and The Whisky Exchange.

Nyetimber Classic Cuvee 2010

Bubbly and beautifully British! Why not toast in the new year by raising a glass of this gorgeous English sparkling wine. Pale with gentle bubbles, this is a fantastic alternative to the usual glass of Champagne. This is a very delicate wine, which makes for a perfect aperitif or just to sip on.

A true pioneer, Nyetimber was the first producer of English sparkling wine to exclusively grow the three celebrated grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. Nyetimber is made from one hundred percent estate-grown grapes and is regarded as England’s finest sparkling wine.

The result of this care and attention is a wonderfully elegant sparkling wine with a delicate touch and yet an intense flavour. RRP: £31.99 (75cl). Available from Waitrose & Majestic.

Gin Mare

Gin Mare is a really unique and exciting Spanish Gin. The gin takes on influences from the Mediterranean thanks to four principal botanicals: basil, thyme, rosemary and, most unusual of all, the Arbequina olive. To give this gin a further twist, you will find juniper, cardamom and citrus, to give another layer of complexity. For us, the Mediterranean taste, which comes mainly from the arbequina olive, is a pleasant one and makes this gin really stand out amongst its peers.

Each botanical is steeped for more than twenty-four hours, then individually distilled to create a versatile full-bodied gin with notes of juniper, balanced with aromas of tomato plants and olives.

Why not try the Gin Mare Med Snapper cocktail?

Gin Mare Cocktail – Med Snapper

50ml Gin Mare
25ml spice mix (Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt, black pepper, fresh chilli)
25ml fresh lemon juice
10ml sugar syrup

Top up with good quality tomato juice, then serve in a 15oz glass over ice, garnish with a lemon wedge. Gin Mare is available to purchase here, for £35.25.

Fine wines from Berry Bros & Rudd

With over 315 years of history, Berry Bros. & Rudd is justly proud of its past. In 1698, the Widow Bourne established a shop at No. 3 St James’s Street. Over three centuries later, with two Royal Warrants and eight Masters of Wine, the family business continues to flourish, with its heart still very much at No. 3.

BERRY BROS. & RUDD SPY, FIVE-YEAR-OLD, DRY MADEIRA

Desert wines are a great way to indulge after a meal and to prolong a fantastic dinign experience. Berry Bros & Rudd have created a Ship Series of Madeiras to reflect the old practice of naming wines after the ships that carried them. According to Berry Bros the Spy was a sloop from Bermuda carrying grain to Madeira and wine back to the West Indies until shipwrecked in 1714. We love the idea behind this range of Madeiras and we are happy to report they taste fantastic too. Quite a distinctive Madeira, you get lovely notes of walnuts and a hint of floral there too. Deep and full of mocha and dried fruit flavours too, this is perfect for a cold Winter’s day. Plus, it is available for a mere £17.95 a bottle.

2010 CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE, VIGNOBLES BRUNIER, DOMAINE DE LA ROQUÈTE, RHÔNE

This is a tremendous examples of a Chateauneuf-de-pape. Farmed on soils which are both sandy and pebbly, La Roquète is a poised and complex wine. Comprised predominantly of Grenache, this wine has a sweet fruitiness, which compliments the Syrah and Mourvedre. The result of this combination is a complex wine with savoury notes and a luxuriously sulky texture. Pick this up for £25.95 a bottle. Find out more here.

Patrón XO Cafe Incendio

Patrón is known the world over for producing one of the finest tequilas on the market. So when we heard they had a new and exciting offering in the form of XO Café Incendio, we couldn’t wait to give them a go. This unique drink utilises Patrón Silver Tequila, which has then been laced with Criollo chocolate and Mexican Arbol Chilli’s. The result is a fiery and interesting flavour that will not be to everyone’s taste. Personally, I love the taste of chilli and chocolate, so this was right up my street. Fun, exciting and warming, perfect for the Winter season.

Perfect as a shot, or as the base for a high quality cocktail, Patrón XO Cafe Incendio is distilled at 30 percent alcohol by volume, 60 proof. Produced and bottled at the Hacienda Patrón distillery in the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, Patrón XO Cafe Incendio is crafted with the same attention to detail and quality as all Patrón tequilas and liqueurs. It is packaged in the eye-catching Patrón XO Cafe glass bottle, a frosted version of the iconic cork-closed Patrón tequila bottle. The red, yellow and black label features imagery evocative of smoke and fire. 70cl is RRP £29.99 from The Whisky Exchange.

The Trading House Christmas Cocktail Selection

If you are looking to go out and enjoy a drink this winter, we would recommend popping along to The Trading House for a dose of fine cocktails. The Trading House, 89-91 Gresham Street, London, has added a splash of Christmas spirit into their world famous cocktails perfect for an after work festive tipple throughout December. The Christmas and New Year Eve cocktails are priced from £7.95.

Lemon & Anise Sour