The sun is shining and with both the rhubarb patch and the hens exuberantly prolific at the moment it seems almost a necessity to adapt that most summery of puddings, the Pavlova, to the fruits of the Scottish springtime. The result is a Rhubarb Pavlova perfumed and gently flavoured with the musky sweetness of our Traditional Mead 14% and a tiny smidgen of Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%.

Ingredients

• 3 egg whites
• 200g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%
• 400g pink rhubarb stems cut into 5cm lengths
• 50g caster sugar
• 300ml double cream
• 4 tbsps Traditional Mead 14%
• 4 tbsp full fat yoghurt

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 100 degrees celsius and line a baking tray with non stick paper. Whisk the egg whites until stiff then add 200g sugar in 3 stages until all combined .Whisk in the Rhubarb Vodka. Spread the meringe mix onto the baking tray in a circle leaving a slightly higher rim around the edge and bake for 2 and a half hours. Then allow to cool and remove the baking paper before moving it to a serving plate.

Lay the rhubarb in a shallow pan one layer thick and sprinkle over a little water and 50g sugar. Poach over a medium heat for 10 minutes then allow it to cool. Meanwhile whip the cream and 1 tbsp Traditional Mead together. Fold the yoghurt and remaining Mead into the cream then gently fold in half the rhubarb until it looks marbled.

Spread the cream and rhubarb mixture onto the meringue base then top with the remaining rhubarb and its syrup.

I absolutely love pasta! Well done Italy for inventing such a food. However, you do need to have the odd inspirational thought when creating a pasta dish to ensure you don't get stuck in a "Pasta Bake Rut" or PBR for short.

Messing about at the stove last week I came up with this delightful little dish using fresh British Asparagus which has just come into season (and thanks to the long Winter, I do mean just!).

My pici pasta with asparagus uses our 25 year old Balsamic Vinegar and is fabulously quick to make. It also serves two good eaters, is superbly easy to wash up and whoever you are making it for will think you are a legend in the kitchen. So how is it done?

Ingredients (for two)

• 12/14 fresh British Asparagus Spears
• 1 tbsp 25 year old Tagliavini Aceto Balsamico Extra Vecchio
• 2 tbsp Kabbadates Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 200g Pici Pasta (or Spaghetti)
• 80g Pancetta (or if you cannot get it Smoked Streaky Bacon)
• 1/2 Onion
• 2 cloves of Garlic
• A few sprigs of fresh Coriander
• Parmigiano Reggiano
• Salt & pepper

Preparation

Chop onion, garlic, pancetta, asparagus and coriander before you start. The asparagus spears should be chopped in thirds, the other elements in chunks. Soften the onion, garlic and pancetta in a heavy based frying pan with a tbsp full of Kabbadates Extra Virgin Olive Oil. At same time, in a separate pan, cook your pasta.

Once browned, remove the onion, garlic and pancetta from pan and place to one side keeping warm. Add asparagus to pan and fry hard until the spears are looking scorched in places. Add back in the onion, garlic and pancetta mix, chopped coriander and another tbsp of olive oil. Now check pasta is ready, it should be "al dente," firm but not hard, drain and add to frying pan. Season with salt and pepper and mix contents of frying pan well on a low heat.

To Serve

Serve on large warm plates and drizzle our 25 year old Tagliavini Aceto Balsamico Extra Vecchio sparingly over each dish, adding grated parmesan cheese as required. An accompanying salad of green leaves, dressed with our Kabbadates Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and a good rich red table wine to drink will make this dish fit for any dinner party. Forget the PBR issue, anyone hungry?

I absolutely love pasta! Well done Italy for inventing such a food. However, you do need to have the odd inspirational thought when creating a pasta dish to ensure you don't get stuck in a "Pasta Bake Rut" or PBR for short.

Messing about at the stove last week I came up with a delightful little dish using fresh British Asparagus which has just come into season (and thanks to the long Winter, I do mean just!).

My pici pasta with asparagus uses our irresistible 25 year old Balsamic Vinegar and our grassy Kabbadates Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It is fabulously quick to make, serves two good eaters and is superbly easy to wash up. Whoever you are making it for will think you are a legend in the kitchen. See how I made it?

Fairs and Events

Having just returned from our action packed adventures at the Dales Food Festival at the start of May, we return next week to Leyburn in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales to support another good cause the ABF The Soldiers' Charity. Their Spring Fair will be held in Tennants Auctioneers on Wed 22 May (5-9pm) and Thurs 23 May (10am to 4pm). It is a tremendous gathering of small, high quality, independent traders selling everything from china and rugs to chorizo and our Spiced Rum! So if you visited us in Leyburn at the food festival and need a quick refill of your Gooseberry Gin Liqueur bottle, for example, we would love to see you!

And finally.....

An apology. I am sorry for any frustrations you may have suffered with the April "Rhubarb" edition of The Demijohn News when trying to open the links within the email. We had a technical hiccup with our new e-newsletter format which is now happily resolved. Thankyou to all those who wrote in kindly to inform us of the problem.

We always like hearing from you, with any stories or recipe ideas that you have. So please keep the emails coming!

      yours,

            Angus

I had an experimental evening last night with duck breasts and a discovered remnant of Demijohn Sloe Gin 25%, a leftover from a very energetic massed sledging outing only a couple of months ago. The verdict: a success, improved with a splash of lemon vinegar.

Ingredients

• 2 shallots
• 2 duck breasts
• 60-100ml Demijohn Sloe Gin 25%
• 1 star anise (optional)
• a dash of Demijohn Lemon Vinegar

Preparation

Slice the shallots thinly and soften in a frying pan using the tiniest smidgen of olive oil. When softened set the shallots aside in a warmed dish and wipe the pan clean with kitchen roll then heat the pan to smoking hot. Having scored the skin of the duck breasts and seasoned with salt and pepper fry them in the pan for about 5 minutes until the skin is just starting to crisp. Drain the fat from the pan and turn the duck breasts over, cooking for a further 3-4 minutes until the meat is still just pink inside. Remove the duck breasts to the dish of shallots and lower the heat under the pan. Now slake the pan with the Sloe Gin, allowing enough to make a jus for each duck breast. Remember that the gin will reduce in quantity so don't be too sparing. Add the star anise and bubble the gin until it reduces by about a third and takes on a slightly syrupy consistency. Add a dash of lemon vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste then pour this jus over the duck breasts.

Served with creamy mashed potato and mountains of springy green vegetables this seems to be quite well received!

Spring has finally brought some sun and with it a fabulous crop of rhubarb in Inverness, where our delicious Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5% is made. It has also seen the launch of our new website, hooray! Our Rhubarb Vodka is never better than when made with fresh, new rhubarb stems at this time of year. So we urge you to give it a try, right now.

And if you're planning a party over the forthcoming May bank holiday weekend, then I can wholeheartedly recommend a few of our Rhubarb Vodka Cocktails and recipe ideas to impress your guests, see below for details. However, to celebrate the launch of our new website and to let you try out our most recent batch of Rhubarb Vodka we would like to offer you a 10% discount on your first order online. Simply sign up to our Newsletter from our website Homepage.

Our Spring Cocktail and Recipe Ideas

Our Rhubarb Bellini Cocktail is certainly a drink to get your guests into shape at the start of a party. Made with Prosseco, this will add more than a little fizz to the proceedings! If you like something with spice, then I can recommend our Carrie MaK Cocktail, which combines our Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur with our handmade Ginger Wine 14.5%. We are, of course, all hoping for a heat wave this weekend, so for those who need something a little more refreshing then our latest recipe, Seville Orange Marmalade Ice Cream, is just the ticket. Made with our fresh tasting Seville Orange Gin 26% and our favourite Seville Orange Marmalade, this is moreishly marmalady (if that is English!).

Earn yourself a £30 Gift Voucher

Have you got a good recipe or cocktail idea that uses one or more of our products? Then we would like to hear from you. We are currently offering a £30 Demijohn Gift Voucher as a reward for any recipes that are used. Interested? Then read more...

We have a new website!

It has taken nearly a year in development, with some pretty late nights endured not only by us but also our our faithful development team at INDEZ. The results, we hope you agree, are an impressive improvement. If you think all the effort has been worth it or if you have any suggestions for further improvements, from simple spelling mistakes to real humdingers, then we definitely would like to know. So please send us a quick email.

Time for a Food Festival

After such a long Winter we all need to get outside. This weekend marks the start of our event year with the wonderful, the marvellous, the epic Dales Festival of Food and Drink (Sat 4 to Mon 6 May 2013). We will have our new Gooseberry Gin Liqueur 17% on tap amongst other products, but we are only a small part of something much larger. Held in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales at Leyburn this really is a first class event run by some amazingly enthusiastic volunteers. From asparagus to mouth watering pork pies, real Wensleydale Cheeses....as you can see I find it hard to concentrate on our stand!

Whatever your plans for the weekend, I hope they are sun filled and fun.

       Yours,

             Angus

This deliciously grown-up ice-cream is wonderful served on top of freshly peeled orange segments.

Ingredients

• 300g Seville Orange Marmalade
• 300ml double cream
• 300ml natural yoghurt
• approximately 50ml Demijohn Seville Orange Gin 26%

Preparation

Mix together the ingredients adding the Gin sparingly. Check the taste and adjust the quantity of Seville Orange Gin accordingly. Chill the mixture for half an hour then churn in an ice cream maker. Freeze in an ice cream tub remembering to remove it from the freezer half an hour before serving to allow it to soften a little.

I have always loved brown bread ice-cream, I think it's an inspired recipe that sounds so worthy, yet tastes so delicious. And now I have found a way to make it a bit more decadent.

Ingredients

• 84g wholemeal bread
• 56g granulated sugar
• 3 tbsp water
• 1 pint double cream
• approximately 100ml Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%

Preparation

Whiz the bread to crumbs in a food processor then toast briefly in a dry frying pan turning them until they are golden brown. Melt the sugar in the water in a heavy pan, don't stir, just shake it occassionally until the sugar is evenly melted, then boil rapidly for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the breadcrumbs until the sugar syrup cools into crystals on the crumbs. Stir the Spiced Rum gently into the cream. Be prepared to taste until reaching the right flavour, not too much Spiced Rum, just enough to taste it in the cream. Now whip the cream mixture and once whipped gently fold in the crumb mixture. Freeze in an ice cream tub and remember to remove it from the freezer about half an hour before serving.

Demijohn has gone global with the launch of a £50,000 website to enable its customers to more easily source and buy its delicious artisan drinks, oils and vinegars and to broaden its appeal.

As the world’s first ever liquid deli, Demijohn has pioneered its unique selling technique where customers choose the size and shape of the bottle into which the contents of choice are poured. The new website gives online customers the same ease of use as visiting one of the shops and all that’s missing is being able to taste before buying.

Designed by Glasgow-based Indez, the website is a clear, minimalist shop where customers can see all the products by category and can then choose the size and shape of bottle and add a personalised message all in one single action. Having re-photographed many of the products and added in new gift sets this new Demijohn ‘shop’ is already proving sensational with online sales growing fast since it was launched.

With the ability to be translated into virtually any language, Demijohn can broaden its customer base to the whole world. Many of the Demijohn products are as good in cocktail and food recipes as they are on their own so a whole new Recipes page has been added. This will be continually updated to include the latest recipes that the Demijohn team create. In addition, a blog page has been introduced where all members of the Demijohn team will write seasonal and relevant blogs about the products, where they come from and how they can be used.

Demijohn MD Angus Ferguson said: “Our new website is our fourth shop launch and offers all our customers, far and wide, much easier access and information about the products. With a fresher, cleaner look it has broader appeal and ease of use than the previous site and better explains what we do and how we do it. Despite these challenging times we have seen a steady growth in sales of about 15% year on year. We hope with this website that this should increase to 20-25% growth, allowing us to widen our product range.

“We aim to deliver to the UK within 4-5 working days but with a small, dedicated staff we can often do this quicker. We are a family company where all our staff are knowledgeable and passionate about the products, their provenance and their uses (staff nights are riotous affairs as we always have to sample the latest products!) which we hope the new website conveys.

“With two mail order sites in Glasgow and York we will fulfil orders quickly and efficiently and get them delivered to you or your loved ones, complete with the free personalised message, as quickly as possible.”

Check it out for yourself – www.demijohn.co.uk! 

- Ends -

Note to Editors:

Demijohn sources unusual, delicious artisan liqueurs, spirits, oils and vinegars from around the UK and Europe and sells them in a wide range of re-useable glass bottles. Each bottle can have a free personalised message added.

Demijohn Shops:

• 382 Byres Road, Glasgow, G12 8AR Tel: 0141 337 3600 32
• Victoria Street, Edinburgh, EH1 2JW Tel: 0131 225 3265
• 11 Museum Street, York, YO1 7DT Tel: 01904 637 487

Normal Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 10-6pm, Sun – 11.30-5pm

www.demijohn.co.uk

For photography, further press information or press samples, please contact: Fenella Taylor at Fenella Taylor PR Tel: 01389 830390 Mobile: 07721 324696 Email: fenella@fenellataylorpr.co.uk

Don't follow the herd this year when choosing your Easter Eggs, but instead consider our more grown up liquid Easter Egg as a fun alternative!

Great for a party!

Our beautiful spherical 500ml Strauss bottle filled with our delicious Chocolate Orange Cream Liqueur 17% could make your Easter a great time for a party! Hand made with rich, dark chocolate, real Devonshire cream, zest of orange and an Apple Brandy base. This liqueur will be difficult to resist.

Not for Chocolate? Then get zesty...

If you are not a chocolate fan then simply go Orange! Our Seville Orange Gin 26% has a marmalady twang. Not only is it delicious with dark chocolate, it might give you the feeling that spring is in the air! So, whether your party is with family or friends this Easter, consider ordering your alternative Easter Egg from Demijohn to spice it up a bit. Eating in to save money has never been so much fun!

Related topics

• A Chocolate Orange with a Difference
• A Ball of Marmalady Gin

This recipe has been kindly sent to us by Angela Wilson in response to our call for recipes using our products. Angela has been rewarded with a £30 demijohn gift voucher as a thank you for this wonderful recipe.

Ingredients

• Ham joint of adequate size plus a bit extra
• Cherry coke
• Cloves
• 2 tbsps Cherry jam
• 2 tbsps Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur 17%
• 1 tsp Raspberry Vinegar
• 1 tsp smoked Paprika

Preparation

Put the ham into the tightest fitting pan you can find and cover with the cherry coke. Bring to the boil and simmer for approximately 2 and a half hours (for a ham for 4-6). Preheat the oven to 200C.

Remove the ham from the pan after simmering and place it on a roasting tray on top of some foil and cut off any extra fat layer on the top, leaving just a thin layer. Score diamonds into the fat and stick a clove into each diamond.

To a saucepan add the cherry jam, Demijohn Morello Cherry Brandy, the Demijohn Raspberry Vinegar and the smoked paprika. Stir over a high heat constantly until the glaze thickens. When ready, pour over the ham, and roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes. Let it rest before carving.

The author recommends that this goes particularly well with a glass of Morello Fizz. 

This is a play on the traditional Whisky Mac Cocktail with a naughty twist at the end! The ingredients produce a deliciously warming and gingery drink with an unexpected cidery note. If you are looking at finishing a dinner party with a buzz of admiration rather than a yawn of dissent, then there is nothing quite like this simple cocktail with which to impress your friends!

Ingredients

• 1 measure Demijohn's Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40%
• 1 measure Ginger Wine 13.5%
• 1/4 measure Apple Vinegar

Preparation

Shake and serve over plenty of ice in a tumbler (rocks) glass. Garnish with a slice of fresh apple on the rim.

Those boys in our York shop, with help from renowned Yorkshire Chef, Phil Leverington, have been up to their ingenious cocktail mixing tricks again to create this punchy little number, the Randy Rider Cocktail. With a fantastic balance of flavours of rich Spiced Rum Liqueur from Glasgow and smooth Apple Brandy from Somerset, this is a drink to sharpen the tongue after a long dinner! Just sit back and sip....

Ingredients

• 1 measure Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• 1 measure 10 Year Old Somerset Cider Brandy 42%

Preparation

Serve over ice in a rocks glass or tumbler.

Atholl Brose was traditionally drunk on Burns Night in Scotland and used to sort the men from the boys! This variation of the traditionally recipe retains the oatmeal to make a cranachan type pudding to be enjoyed by all.

Ingredients

• 3 fl oz Demijohn's Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40%
• 1/2 pint of double cream
• 2oz pinhead oatmeal, toasted
• 3 tbsp clear honey

Preparation

Whip the double cream until stiff, then gently stir in the toasted pinhead oatmeal and honey. Chill and just before serving, mix in the Demijohn’s Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40%.

Anything else I should know?

The name Atholl Brose is supposed to derive from the tale of the Duke of Atholl's capture of his enemy, the Earl of Ross, in 1475. The Duke was supposed to have filled a well, from which the Earl liked to drink, with this magical potion. Ross drank deeply and was captured.

Our handmade Damson Gin Liqueur is smooth and fruity when drunk straight. Sharpened up with a little lime turns this drink into a deliciously refreshing aperitif.

Ingredients

• Damson Gin Liqueur 22% 
• Fresh Lime
• Blueberries
• Crushed Ice

Preparation

Muddle a chopped fresh lime and some blueberries in a rocks glass. Add a large (50ml) shot of our Damson Gin, stir, and top up with crushed ice.

Anything else I should know?

This dring can also be made with great effect using our Traditional Sloe Gin.

If you like your drinks sharp and refreshing then this might be just your tipple!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 1 measure lemon juice
• 1 tsp sugar
• fill with club soda
• ice cubes

Preparation

Fill a collins glass 3/4 full with ice cubes. Add the Lime Vodka, lemon juice and sugar. Top with club soda.

Blow your friends away with this one!

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Demijohnnie Gin 50%
• 1 measure of Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20%
• 1 measure of fresh squeezed lemon juice

Preparation

Garnish with a slice of lemon, serve over ice.

Related topics

• Pink Gin

The Pink Gin was invented by the British Navy, and the inclusion of our blackcurrant vinegar: a favourite food of blackbirds, and a fruit reminiscent of summer puddings, seems to celebrate its very Britishness - hurrah!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Demijohnnie Gin 50%
• 1 measure Blackcurrant Vinegar or 1 measure Angostura Bitters

Preparation

Rinse a martini glass with Blackcurrant Vinegar or Angostura Bitters, then add a generous measure of Demijohnnie Gin 50%

Related topics

• Blackcurrant Bomb

A Demijohn Classic and a good one to get a party going!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Raspberry Vodka Liqueur 22%
• 1 measure Dry Vermouth

Preparation

Shake and serve over ice.

This is a very good cocktail for you to get your Burns Night Supper festivities off to a cracking start.

Ingredients

• One and a half measures of Demijohn's Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40% 
• Half a measure of Sweet Vermouth
• A Dash of Lemon Vinegar (or other citrus bitters)
• A Dash of Bramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23%

Preparation

Strain over ice into a chilled high ball cocktail glass and serve. While your guest are consuming your fine cocktail, take your chance to perform Burns' famous Tam O' Shanter poem for them and simply await their applause. Please note, it may take more than one cocktail!

All credit for this little genius of a drink goes to our erstwhile Edinburgh Shop Manager, Alastair Simpson. Always one to appreciate a good thing, Alastair seems to have found a way of spicing up Oz Clarke's favourite liqueur from Demijohn, our Bramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur, and making a good drink even better. The rich fruity taste of Brambles (or Blackberrys) in the liqueur make this drink seriously fruity with a bloody big punch of whisky!

Ingredients

• 1 measure Demijohn's Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40%
• 1 measure Bramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23%

Preparation

Shake and serve in Boston shot glasses.

Our Shop Manager in Glasgow, Carrie Hay, is credited with inventing this delicious little cocktail. It is simple to make and dangerously easy to consume! Another twist on the traditional Whisky Mac Cocktail, the combination of ingredients here produces a beautifully sweet, smooth and gingery drink. If you like rhubarb and ginger, you are going to love this!

Ingredients

• 1 measure Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%
• 1 measure Ginger Wine 13.5%

Preparation

Serve over plenty of ice in a tumbler (rocks) glass.

A twist on the traditional Whisky Mac Cocktail, this definitely has its roots in Glasgow. Glasgow's fame for its artists, such as Charles Rennie Mackintosh, heavy rain and eccentricity makes Rhubarb MaKintosh an appropriate choice of name for this inspiring cocktail! The combination of ingredients sharpens the rhubarb flavours and produces a dry drink with lemon overtones. Clever, with a few surprises up its sleeve...

Ingredients

• 2 measures Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%
• 1 measure Ginger Wine 13.5%
• 1/2 measure Lemon Vinegar

Preparation

Shake and serve over plenty of ice in a tumbler (rocks) glass. Add a thin slice of root ginger to the edge of the glass.

The name Scottish Rose does not refer to the colour of the drink itself but rather the colour of one's cheeks after drinking it! This cocktail recipe was created for the Demijohn 2008 Staff Christmas night out by Alastair Simpson at which a cocktail competition was held between our Edinburgh and Glasgow shops. The Glasgow cocktail is called a Strawberry Moscow Mule. Although a draw was declared on the night, your comments on the success of each recipe would be much appreciated and can be posted online if witty enough!

Ingredients

• 1/2 measure Caol Ila Single Islay Malt Whisky 46%
• 2 measures Demijohnnie Gin 50%
• 1 measure Apricot Brandy Liqueur 17%

Preparation

Take 2 classic Martini glasses, evenly split the 1/2 measure of Caol Ila between the 2 glasses. Tilt each glass and spin slowly to entirely coat the inside of the glass with a film of the whisky and discard the remainder. Then take a Cocktail Shaker, and fill with ice. Add 2 measures of Demijohnnie Gin 50% and a single measure of Apricot Brandy Liqueur 17%. Shake vigorously and then strain evenly into the 2 prepared glasses to remove the ice. To finish the cocktail, drop in a whole fresh bramble (blackberry) and then serve.

This cocktail recipe was created for the Demijohn 2008 Staff Christmas night out by Carrie Hay as our Glasgow team's entry to a cocktail competition between our Edinburgh and Glasgow shops. The Edinburgh cocktail is called Scottish Rose. Although a draw was declared on the night, your comments on the success of each recipe would be much appreciated and could be posted online if witty enough!

Ingredients

• 3 measures Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 6 Fresh Strawberries
• 3/4 measure Fresh Lime Juice
• A dash of Sugar Syrup
• 5 measures of Ginger Ale

Preparation

To start, blitz up 2/3 of your fresh strawberries. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour in the Lime Vodka, lime juice and a dash of sugar syrup and shake well. Take a Collins glass (or tall straight sided glass), add 2 or 3 blocks of ice and a couple of whole strawberries. Strain your mixed drink into the glass until half full, top up with Ginger Ale. Garnish with half a strawberry, add straws. Serves 2.

Anything else I should know?

To make this sharper and more limey, simply leave out the sugar syrup.

Edinburgh was voted in 2008 as the Mojito capital of Europe, impressed? It is only right therefore that we let you into the little secret of the Demijohn Dark Mojito that may have been encouraging this vibrant trend!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• 2 measures Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 1/2 measure Lemon Vinegar (or 1 dash of Angostura bitters)
• 2 measures Soda Water
• 3-4 sprigs of mint
• a quarter of fresh lime

Preparation

Gently crush mint in the bottom of the shaker glass, add quarter of fresh lime, fill up with crushed or broken ice. Shake together the Spiced Rum, Lime Vodka and Lemon Vinegar. Strain into a collins glass and add the soda. Top up with crushed ice if required and gently muddle ingredients together. Add straws and away you go!

Anything else I should know?

Some cocktail trivia to impress your friends: The original Mojito is a Cuban Mint Julep with lime and would be made with white rum, not our dark spiced rum as we are suggesting here. During US Prohibition the old recipe was revived with great success at the Bodeguita del Medio Bar in Cuba. Right, now stop studying and get into action....!

Related topics

• Father's Spiced Rum Ration
• Bloody Pirate Cocktail
• Grapefruit Vodka Mojito Cocktail
• Dark'n Staurmy Cocktail
• Our Father, who enjoy's a dram on Father's Day

This is an old favourite of mine for clearing the head on a Sunday morning pre-lunch! The first named Bloody Mary Cocktail was created by Fernand "Pete" Petiot of Harry's Bar in Paris. He is thought to have named the drink after Mary Pickford the famous actress. There is no doubt in my mind that the man deserves a medal as it is a fabulous combination of flavours. Many variations on a Bloody Mary have been thought up since, which makes this a fun drink to make time and again. See my little tips below for some ideas, but I suggest you start with our Wee Bloody Mary Doll to get you off to a good start!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 1 measure Cucumber Vodka 29.1%
• 5 measures Tomato Juice 4 drops of Tabasco
• 1 pinch of Celery Salt
• 1 small pinch of Black Pepper

Preparation

Shake and strain through a hawthorn strainer (or anything similar to hand!). Serve in a large goblet or tumbler glass with a short stem of celery and its leaves to add a bit of style.

Anything else I should know?

• If a measure of Tequila is added your Bloody Mary will become a Deadly Mary.
• If Tequila is used in the place of the vodka this will become a Bloody Maria.
• If our Demijohnnie Gin 50% is used instead of our Lime Vodka Liqueur 24% and a half a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice is added, your cocktail will become a Red Snapper.

It may look simple, but this drink has the ability to turn spring into Summer, even in Scotland. So, break out your BBQ and head for the garden as our Elderflower Cooler cocktail will start your party with refreshing style!

Ingredients

• 2 measures of Organic Elderflower Vodka 26%
• 1 measure of Lemon Vodka Liqueur 22.5%
• Top up with soda or sparkling mineral water

Preparation

Use an old fashioned tumbler or rocks glass. Pour Organic Elderflower Vodka and Lemon Vodka Liqueur measures over ice, top up with soda and garnish with a slice of lemon. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

This cocktail was inspired by our visit to Bermuda for Hogmanay 2010 where we took some of our Scottish weather with us and left Bermuda with unseasonal storms, a temperature of around 13 degrees Celcius and a power cut! The recipe is a play on the classic Dark 'n' Stormy cocktail which uses Bermudan Dark Rum and Ginger Beer. Get ready for a surprise as this Scottish Dark & Staurmy version makes a deliciously tempting drink with warming Glaswegian Spiced Rum and smooth Ginger Wine.

Ingredients

• 2 measures Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• 2 measures Ginger Wine 13.5%
• Soda Water

Preparation

Half fill a highball glass with ice and add Spiced Rum and Ginger Wine in equal measures. Top up with fresh soda and drink with storm screens closed and heating turned up! If drinking in hot weather, add a slice of lime to the mix.

Related topics

• Father's Spiced Rum Ration
• Bloody Pirate Cocktail
• Grapefruit Vodka Mojito Cocktail
• Demijohn Dark Mojito Cocktail
• Our Father, who enjoy's a dram on Father's Day

We wil be exhibiting at our first event of the year, the fantastic Leyburn Food & Drink Festival again between Sat 4th and Mon 6th May 2013. For those who have never witnessed this tremendous event I urge you to come.

Imagine this.... 

A large field, set amongst the rolling green hills of the beautiful North Yorkshire Dales. In that field are placed a few white tents, some merry go rounds for the children and a band stand. In those tents however are some of the finest food and drink exhibitors Britain has to offer. In the evening after a hard days sampling, chatting and selling, we retire to one of the many country pubs for a few ales and supper. Only in the Dales do locals talk about religion and politics on first meeting in the pub. They get away with it because they are "reet" friendly.

Just brilliant....

We wait all year for this event to happen, to see the thousands that come out of the hills for it, as it is so much fun. Who would have thought that it all started out of tragedy? The event was founded at the end of the last foot and mouth outbreak in an attempt to restart a flagging local economy, just brilliant. I hope we will see you there!

Make like an expert mixologist and create this concoction. It’s a bitter sweet drink that’ll warm you and your guests up in a flash. As recommended by Rebecca Twomey in Cosmopolitan Magazine in December 2009!

Ingredients

• 1 measure Demijohnnie Gin 40%
• 1 measure Sloe Gin 25%
• 1 measure Grapefruit Juice
• 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
• 1 ½ teaspoon sugar syrup
• 1 ½ teaspoon Bramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23%

Preparation

Add the gins, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, sugar syrup and whisky to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon.

Related topics

• Sloe Gin Rickey

In October 2009, just after we launched our new shop in York, we launched our Grapefruit Vodka Liqueur 20%. Made for originally for us by Ian and Rosemary Mills in Powys in Wales, this is a truely fabulous drink for all citrus vodka lovers. The cocktail possibilites for this drink are endless, but one cocktail creation stands out from the crowd as having been deliciously successful and was developed on the back of the popularity of our Demijohn Dark Mojito. In fact our Grapefruit Vodka Mojito is so drinkable that is now used on a regular basis to start our Demijohn Tasting Evenings. Not a bad way to start an evening I think you will agree!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• 2 measures Grapefruit Vodka Liqueur 20%
• 2 measures Soda Water
• 3-4 sprigs of mint
• Hearty squeeze of fresh lime

Preparation

Gently crush mint in the bottom of the shaker glass, add a hearty squeeze of fresh lime, fill up with crushed or broken ice. Shake Spiced Rum, Grapefruit Vodka. Stain into a colins glass and add the soda. Top up with crushed ice if required and gently muddle ingredients together. Add straws and away you go!

Anything else I should know?

A little Mojito cocktail trivia to impress your friends: The original Mojito is a Cuban Mint Julep with lime and would be made with white rum, not our dark spiced rum as we are suggesting here. During US Prohibition the old recipe was revived with great success at the Bodeguita del Medio Bar in Cuba. Right, now stop studying and get into action....!

Related topics

• Bloody Pirate Cocktail
• Demijohn Dark Mojito Cocktail
• Dark'n Staurmy Cocktail

This cocktail was created to mark Saint George's Day, normally on 23 April. It needed to be quintessentially English, seasonally fresh and with a bite like Saint George's slain dragon! The result is a sharp, fresh cocktail with a little history of its own. Our Somerset Applecart cocktail combines the brilliantly smooth apple taste of our Somerset 10 Year Old Cider Brandy 42% and the delicious marmalady twang of our Seville Orange Gin 26%.

Ingredients

• 1 measure Somerset 10 Year Old Cider Brandy 42%
• 1 1/2 measures Seville Orange Gin 26%
• 1 measure lemon juice

Preparation

Add ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake and strain cocktail glass. Garnish with slices of lemon and orange. Drink slowly to unleash the dragon!

Anything else I should know?

I always like a twist of cocktail trivia with each of our cocktails as there is generally an underlying reason for each creation. This one certainly appeals to my military roots as our Somerset Applecart is a derivation of the famous Sidecar cocktail created after the First world War at Harry's Bar in Paris. The story recounts that an Army Captain was in the habit of arriving in a chauffeur driven motorcycle sidecar at the Bar and that Harry created a cocktail for him. Using cognac, cointreau and lemon juice he created the drink known now as a Sidecar. Our cocktail uses this marvelous complement of tastes and the best of British handmade drinks to create a new English classic the Somerset Applecart!

The 2010 election fever certainly needed a little ice to cool it off. We created our Election Twist cocktail to be just the long drink needed to keep us up late and survive a long night of vote counting! Our Election Twist is a Demijohn variation of the seductively sweet classic Long Island Iced Tea cocktail and has been invented by one of our Glasgow team members, Carlos Wheeler. It was first drunk by a group of guests taking part in one of our organised tasting evenings in Glasgow. Their enthusiastic noises of approval have now written it into the official Demijohn Cocktail Book.

Ingredients

• 1 measure Seville Orange Gin 26%
• 1 measure Lime Vodka Liqueur 24% (or Grapefruit Vodka Liqueur)
• 1/2 measure Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• 1/2 measure lemon juice

Preparation

Describing the preparation of this drink reads like a manifesto. Making our Election Twist is an undemanding labour of love! Start with equal measures of our marmalady Seville Orange Gin 26% and our Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%. Add a conservative measure of Spiced Rum and a splash of fresh squeezed lemon to give a twist of independence and a subtly green feel. Shake and strain into an ice filled Colins (long) or Rocks (short) glass and top up with a liberal dose of full fat Coca Cola.

Anything else I should know?

If you are a monster raving looney and want to make it a classic Long Island Iced Tea, add a half measure of gold Tequila and teaspoon full of egg white. Election night will never be the same again!

For Sloe Gin Liqueur lovers this is a must to try. It will wake any party up with is freshness!

Ingredients

• 2 measures Sloe Gin 25% (or Sloe Sherry Liqueur 18% *see note below)
• 1/2 measure fresh squeezed lime juice
• 4 measures soda water

Preparation

Squeeze the lime juice directly into a highball glass half filled with ice, add spent shell and Sloe Gin. Mix with spoon and add soda.

Anything else I should know?

Our Sloe Gin 25% can be replaced by our Sloe Sherry Liqueur 18% to make a Sloe Sherry Rickey which is a slightly lighter drink!

Edinburgh Apple Royal was a cocktail created to celebrate The Royal Wedding between Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton which took place at Westminster Abbey on 29 April 2011. It is a deliciously spring fresh aperitif, with a distinctive taste of apples and a hint of citrus. This drink brings together the finest taste of British apples used in the production of our Somerset Pomona 20% and the Spring freshness of our marmalady Seville Orange Gin 26%.

Ingredients

• 2 measures Somerset Pomona 20%
• 2 measures Seville Orange Gin 26%
• 1 very British Apple
• Indian Tonic Water
• Plenty of ice

Preparation

Add ingredients to ice in an old fashioned whisky tumbler, top up with indian tonic water and garnish with a slice from a very British Apple such as Kingston Black, Harry Masters Jersey or Brown Snout!

Anything else I should know?

Like everything at Demijohn there is a good story behind the creation of this new cocktail drink. Our Royal Wedding Cocktail was to be both fitting, appropriate and drinkable in Royal circles. To encourage some ideas we held a friendly competition between our 3 shops, with the intention of the newly created drinks being judged at our annual Staff Christmas Party. In 2011 it was held in our Glasgow Shop in early February.

The theme for the party was A Twist on Burns and those in attendance not only performed acts of poetry and music, in keeping with the tradition of Burns, but they also wore an item of fake hair! The prize for the best cocktail was relief for the creators from the fake hair they were wearing for the remainder of the party. So, competition on the night as you can imagine was stiff, but Demijohn Edinburgh won with their fabulous creation Edinburgh Apple Royal, a fitting and appropriate drink for even the finest State ceremony and certainly a drink to mark the Royal Wedding!

What mother doesn’t love a little spoiling foodie treat on Mother’s Day? Demijohn has unveiled a beautiful new Goccia Carousel of three oils and fruit vinegars which makes the perfect gift. New to this trio is Gooseberry Vinegar which has just been launched by liquid deli Demijohn.

The presentation rack of 3 stunning Goccia 100ml bottles, brought together in a red cherry frame with a clever collar that locks them in place, makes a great addition to the table. As spring approaches and our palates yearn for fresh salads again this ‘dressing kit’ not only looks good but tastes delicious when poured over fresh salad leaves, vegetables or even used for dipping bread in.

Demijohn’s new Gooseberry Vinegar combines the sweetness of British gooseberries with sharper vinegar to create an unusual fruit vinegar that can be used on its own or combined with Demijohn’s fresh Tuscan Villa Montalbano Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It can even be used as a tasty, fresh soft drink when mixed with two parts sparkling water to one part Gooseberry Vinegar.

The other elements of the Mother’s Day Goccia trio are Scottish Raspberry Vinegar with its bright colour and summery taste and Villa Montalbano Extra Virgin Olive Oil - a wonderfully fresh, green virgin olive oil from Tuscany. As an added bonus a special handwritten message can be written on the bottles to remind your mum just how much you care.

If you’re mother prefers something stronger Demijohn suggests Morello Cherries infused in Apple Eau de Vie. Beautifully packaged in a reusable Kilner style jar, these are as delicious on their own as with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. With a strong taste of old English cider apples and fresh cherries this is the perfect Mother’s Day dessert.

Angus Ferguson, founder of Demijohn said: “Our new Goccia table rack that we have just introduced for Mother’s Day is a great gift that is a little different from most dressing racks. It can go into instant use and will last the summer through – if not devoured before summer arrives!”

The Oil and Vinegar Carousel is priced at £35.35 and the Morello Cherries are priced at £19.75.

All are available from www.demijohn.co.uk or their shops in Edinburgh, York and Glasgow.

- Ends -

Note to Editors:

Demijohn sources unusual, delicious artisan liqueurs, spirits, oils and vinegars from around the UK and Europe and sells them in a wide range of re-useable glass bottles. Each bottle can have a free personalised message added.

Demijohn Shops:

• 382 Byres Road, Glasgow, G12 8AR Tel: 0141 337 3600 32
• Victoria Street, Edinburgh, EH1 2JW Tel: 0131 225 3265
• 11 Museum Street, York, YO1 7DT Tel: 01904 637 487

Normal Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 10-6pm, Sun – 11.30-5pm

www.demijohn.co.uk

For photography, further press information or press samples, please contact: Fenella Taylor at Fenella Taylor PR Tel: 01389 830390 Mobile: 07721 324696 Email: fenella@fenellataylorpr.co.uk

This cocktail is dedicated to our Demijohn boys in York, Mark Perkins and Tim Fox. They have created a great cocktail drink using our hugely popular Raspberry Vodka and Spiced Rum liqueurs to create a big, strong tasting drink for men. If you like Vodka and Rum then this is your cocktail.

Ingredients

• 2 measures of Raspberry Vodka Liqueur 22%
• 2 measures of Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• Ice

Preparation

Very simple. Pour equal measures of Raspberry Vodka Liqueur and Spiced Rum Liqueur over lots of ice in a rocks glass.

Anything else I should know?

The Raspberry Vodka, or Bloody part of this drink, conveys a fruity taste while our Spiced Rum, aka drink of Pirates, adds a rich caramel treat. The result is cracking cup to start any Summer party! The Bloody Pirate is a ready made gift set, a great present idea for men!

Related topics

• Bloody Pirate Gift Set (as pictured)
• Father's Spiced Rum Ration
• Demijohn Dark Mojito Cocktail
• Dark'n Staurmy Cocktail

I first discovered this drink in Hong Kong when I was involved with its handover to the Chinese in 1997. It was hot, hot, hot and we had many reasons to party. Records do not recount how many of these delightful Seabreeze cocktails were consumed, but their refreshing memory lingers on to this day! If you are having a Summer BBQ and it is a hot day, then I certainly can recommend one of these to wake everyone up and really get things going.

Ingredients

• 2 measures of Grapefruit Vodka Liqueur 22%
• 2 measures of fresh cranberry juice
• Ice

Preparation

Pour Grapefruit Vodka and cranberry juice over lots of ice in cocktail glass. Garnish with a slice of lemon or lime. Sip slowly and enjoy the freshness.

Sometimes simple flavours pair together in the most magical way, and such is the case in our deliciously fresh tasting Raspberry Fresh Cocktail. Combining our seriously fruity Raspberry Vodka, zesty Lime Vodka Liqueur and fresh apple juice, this drink can make a long and refreshing way to start a warm summer's afternoon or a night on the tiles.

Ingredients

• 2 measures Raspberry Vodka Liqueur 22%
• 1 measure Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 4 measures fresh Apple Juice
• Tbl Spoon of Raspberry Puree (optional)

Preparation

Add Raspberry Vodka, Lime Vodka, Raspberry Puree (optional) and plenty of ice to a High Ball or Collins glass and top up with fresh Apple Juice. Top Tip: To make a Raspberry Puree simply wash a good handful of fresh raspberries, place in a suitable bowl and mash, whizz or pummle them into a paste. A fork would do this as well as a very expensive liquidizer! Easy peasy lemon squeezy :)

Anything else I should know?

Mark and Tim in our York shop have had some great ideas for mixing our unique selection of handmade British drinks, but this is one of their best so far. Be warned however, our Raspberry Fresh Cocktail is so easy to drink it might make you rather fresh too!

Related Topics

• Raspberry and Lime Vodka Ball (product shown in the picture)
• Raspberry Vodka Martini
• Lime Vodka Collins
• Strawberry Moscow Mule

If you are a gin and tonic drinker who simply enjoys a delicious tasting gentle drink at the end of a hard day, then our Evoque Cocktail is your drink. At its core is our Gooseberry Gin Liqueur which is a legendary drink in its own right. Full of flavour with an exciting bitterness, its sophistication has even impressed some of the UKs leading wine critics such as Oz Clark.

Ingredients

• 2 measures of Gooseberry Gin Liqueur 17%
• Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• Tonic
• Ice

Preparation

Briefly shake Gooseberry Gin Liqueur 17% and lemon juice with ice, strain into a champagne flute or cocktail glass and top up with chilled tonic. Garnish with a slice of lemon or a few red gooseberries for serious style.

Anything else I should know?

Our Gooseberry Gin is simply delightful over ice, but when drunk long with tonic, it will certainly evoque the mood, but not destroy the intention! You might say our Evoque Cocktail is fun, safe and more rewarding than anything else in its class.... a bit like the car that inspired it.

Related topics

A Ball of Gooseberry Gin

You may not be able to dance like a Cossack, but there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to drink like one! Invented by our York Shop Team in early 2012, this is a fun cocktail combining our handmade Butterscotch Cream Liqueur with real Devonshire cream and our velvety smooth Spiced Rum Liqueur.

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Butterscotch Cream Liqueur 17%
• 1 measure of Spiced Rum Liqueur 20%
• Ice

Preparation

Using a shot glass or small tumbler, if you are to include ice, pour in the Butterscotch Cream Liqueur first. Then pour the Spiced Rum Liqueur very slowly over the back of a tea spoon that hovers just above the Butterscotch Cream Liqueur. The result should be that the rum successfully floats on top of the cream. If you don't get it right on your first go, then unfortunately you will just have to try it again. Practice, of course, makes perfect and in this case a very jolly night!

Anything else I should know?

The Cossack Kiss Cocktail can be drunk at the start of an evening with friends as a sharpener or after dinner when the liqueurs come round. The combination of Cider Brandy in our Butterscotch Cream Liqueur and dark Demerara Rum in our Spiced Rum Liqueur make this drink an irresistible sip with a little kick in the pants! If you are looking for looking for present inspiration for a rum cocktail drinker then consider our Cocktail Kiss Cocktail Set.

Related topics

• Cossack Kiss Cocktail Set
• Father's Spiced Rum Ration

Our Morello Fizz Cocktail is designed an an easy, fun cocktail to get your party started! It combines our uniquely delicious Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur simply with fizz.

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur 17%
• 4 measures of Champagne
• 1 Morello Cherry in Apple Eau de Vie

Preparation

Add the measure of Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur to a Champagne flute glass and top up with Champagne or sparkling wine. Add a single Morello Cherry from our Morello Cherries in Apple Eau de Vie for great visual effect and watch your party lift off as your guests eventually eat the Morello Cherry in their glass!

Anything else I should know?

If you are looking for present inspiration then consider our Damson and Morello gift set, perfect for those who like their Champagne cocktails as both our Damson Gin Liqueur and Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur can be used to make delicious Kirs.

Related topics

• Apple Eau de Vie
• Somerset Pomona
• Somerset 10 year old Cider Brandy

Our Citrus Sundowner Cocktail is a drink designed to make you feel alive and kicking. Best drunk on a warm evening with friends as the sun goes down, it will revitalise the parts that other cocktails fail to reach.

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Lime Vodka Liqueur 24%
• 1 measure of Seville Orange Gin26%
• 1 measure of Ginger Wine 14.5%
•  Indian Tonic Water
• 1 fresh Lemon
• 1 fresh Lime
• 1 fresh Orange

Preparation

This is a long drink refreshing drink, so choose a high ball glass or increase the quantities and add to a pitcher for larger parties. Add the measures of Lime Vodka, Seville Orange Gin, Ginger Wine with plenty of ice to a glass. Then add the juice of a quarter of fresh lime and a quarter of fresh lemon. Top up with tonic water, stirring gently. Garnish with small segments of lime, lemon and orange. Drink slowly facing into the setting sun, and feel happy!

Anything else I should know?

Like all good things in life this cocktail was created by chance and circumstance at a 50th birthday party with friends in Perthshire, Scotland at the end of May. One balmy warm Spring evening, we needed a celebratory drink for the birthday girl, Catriona. With the basic ingredients of Lime Vodka Liqueur, Seville Orange Gin and Ginger Wine to hand, the Citrus Sundowner Cocktail was born, AKA Catriona's Citrus Sundowner. This is a delightful drink that is so fresh it will make you feel young again...well almost!

Related topics

A Ball of Marmalady Gin

Our Wild Plum Bellini Cocktail is a fun play on a classic Bellini Cocktail and was designed specially for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Celebrations in June 2012.

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Wild Bullace Liqueur 22%
• 3 measures of Prosecco (or Champagne or other sparkling wine)
• Fresh Plums (preferably Damsons) Fresh Mint

Preparation

This is a long drink that should be ideally served in Champagne Flutes or another similar tall glass. Take a good handful of fresh ripe plums (preferably damsons), wash and then liquidize with a blender into a smooth paste. Chill for an hour prior to adding a teaspoon full of the fruit purée to the glass. Add the measure of Wild Bullace Liqueur and top up with chilled Prosecco. Garnish with a sprig of mint and serve immediately. Seasonally, and for added effect this cocktail can be made with our Sloe Gin Liqueur or Damson Gin Liqueur and include puréed fruit from Sloe, Bullace, Damson and other plum family fruit trees.

Anything else I should know?

The original Bellini is a long cocktail drink that originated in Venice in the 1930's. It is a mixture of sparkling wine (traditionally Prosecco) and peach purée often served at celebrations. It is one of Italy's most popular cocktails. We are sure that our new style Wild Plum Bellini will not only bring on the Summer sun, but hopefully keep it shining throughout the whole of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee year!

Related topics

• Rhubarb Bellini Cocktail
• Sloe Gin Ricky Cocktail

If you are a rhubarb fan then our Rhubarb Bellini Cocktail will be your drink. Its creation, using our very popular Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%, marked the launch of our new Demijohn Cocktail Bar in a muddy field at Scone Palace in Pertshire, Scotland in early July 2012, (well we needed something to raise morale in the rain!).

Ingredients

• 1 measure of Organic Rhubarb Vodka Liqueur 20.5%
• 3 measures of Prosecco (or Champagne or other Sparkling White Wine)
• Rhubarb Purée

Preparation

This is a long drink that should be ideally served in Champagne Flutes or another similar tall glass. Stew fresh rhubarb stems for about 5 minutes and sweeten generously with sugar. Liquidize the stewed rhubarb with a blender into a smooth paste. Chill for an hour prior to adding 2 teaspoons full of the fruit purée to the glass. Add a measure of Organic Rhubarb Liqueur 20.5% and top up with chilled Prosecco or Sparkling White Wine.

Anything else I should know?

The original Bellini is a long cocktail drink that originated in Venice in the 1930's. It is a mixture of sparkling wine (traditionally Prosecco) and peach purée often served at celebrations. It is one of Italy's most popular cocktails. Our Rhubarb Bellini's proved to be so popular our customers soon forgot the rain and the mud at Scone Palace and really got in the swing of things!

Related topics

Wild Plum Bellini Cocktail

This is quick, simple to make and stylish

Ingredients

• Double measure of our Demijohnnie Gin 50%
• Dash of Elderflower Cordial
• Couple of fresh mint leaves

Preparation

Combine our Demijohnnie Gin 50% and Elderflower Cordial in a tumbler with plenty of ice. Muddle with fresh mint. Hey presto! Warning, this is not for the faint hearted!

If you like cheese and need something for your nibbles at a drinks party, then this might be the perfect soloution.

Ingredients

• 1 whole (any size) Camembert Cheese
• 1/2 msr Somerset 10 year old Cider Brandy 42%
• Home made or good quality salted potato crisps

Preparation

Puncture the cheese several times with a knife. Dribble the Cider Brandy over the cheese allowing it to soak into the puncture holes. Place the cheese in a preheated oven (to 180C) and allow to bake for 15 to 20 minutes until runny. Eat immediately - dunk crisps and repeat!

Why not try our Cheeseboard Drinks Selection, a special gift for cheese lovers

John Quigley’s Hot smoked salmon, ruby grapefruit, shaved fennel, pistachio and watercress salad with minty crème fraiche and Bramble Vinegar dressing.

Ingredients

• 1 Ruby grapefruit segmented
• 1 small fennel bulb very finely sliced
• A handful of watercress or rocket
• 300g hot smoked salmon flaked into bite size pieces
• A small handful chopped pistacchios
• 6 tbsp crème fraiche
• 4 tsp Bramble Vinegar
• 1 tbsp mint sauce

Preparation

Combine the crème fraiche, bramble vinegar and mint sauce in bowl and mix together, ideally to the consistency of single cream, if not add a little water. Divide and arrange the grapefruit, fennel, watercress and salmon between 4 plates, drizzle over the dressing and sprinkle on pistachios.

John Quigley is Chef and patron of the well respected Red Onion Restaurant in Glasgow and is always welcome at Demijohn!

This is a simple to make vinaigrette which was first invented by Mrs Wilson of Biggar, one of many enthusiastic Demijohn customers.

Ingredients

• 100ml Elderflower Vinegar
• 100ml Yorkshire Lemon Rapeseed Oil
• 1 x fresh lemon
• Salt & Pepper

Preparation

Add the Elderflower Vinegar and Yorkshire Lemon Rapeseed Oil to a jug with a wide neck. Grate a small amount of lemon jest to the mixture. Adjust for salt and pepper. Pour complete mixture into an old Demijohn bottle of at least 300ml capacity and shake vigourously. Use to dress green leaf salads.

Delicously delightful, thankyou Mrs Wilson!

Related topics

• Elderflower Vinegar and Lemon Oil Ball
• Yorkshire Foodie Selection

If you have ever thought that chicken needs a little help to become interesting, we this recipe might be just the ticket!

Ingredients

• 25g sliced shallots
• 2 peeled cloves of garlic
• 20g of unsalted butter
• 5 sprigs of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 50ml Somerset 10 year old Cider Brandy 42%
• 500ml chicken stock
• 50ml double cream
• 180g unsalted butter

Preparation

Soften 25g sliced shallots and 2 peeled cloves of garlic in 20g of unsalted butter. Add 5 sprigs of thyme and 1 bay leaf and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add 50ml Somerset 10 year old Cider Brandy and reduce down to almost nothing. Add 500ml chicken stock and reduce by half, then add 50ml double cream. Whisk in 180g unsalted butter in small pieces and season with salt and pepper.

Delicious served with chicken, but is also great with pork.

A generous glass or two of our Bramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23% stirred into the juices of a roast duck or venison joint will make a gravy that will add enormous joie de vivre to your dish.

So simple anyone can do it!

If you like to taste your food, then this pork dish using our handmade Ginger Wine 14.5% will impress.

Ingredients

• 3 Pork fillets
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 140ml Ginger Wine 14.5%
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 140ml sour cream
• Preserved stem ginger

Preparation

Slice the pork fillets in half lengthwise without cutting right through. Flatten them out and beat them, then cut across the centre to make 6 escalopes. Coat them in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a pan and sauté the escalopes for about 4 minutes each side until cooked through. Remove them and keep warm. Add the Ginger Wine, lemon juice, and 56ml water to the pan, stir well and reduce to half. Stir in the sour cream and 3 pieces of ginger preserved in syrup, drained and chopped. Bring it to the boil again until the sauce thickens and then serve poured over the escalopes.

Serve with mashed potato and mountains of gently steamed leaf spinach. Delicious!

This delicious recipe will happily serve 4 hungry people.

Ingredients

• 1lb rhubarb (trimmed weight) cut into 1" lengths
• 2dsp vanilla sugar (or regular caster sugar)
• 1/2 layer of sponge cake
• 8 tbsp Ginger Wine 14.5%
• 1/2pt thick custard
• 4tsp Greek yoghurt

Preparation

Pre-heat the oven to high (200C). Put the rhubarb into a roasting tin and sprinkle with the sugar. Roast for 20 minutes, turning over half way through. Allow to cool. Cut the cake into 1cm cubes and place in 4 large wine glasses. Sprinkle evenly with half the Ginger Wine. Top with the cooled rhubarb. Sprinkle with the remaining wine. Top with the custard and refigerate. Plop the yoghurt on top before serving. Enjoy!

Our Festival Blackcurrant Ice-Cream is made with our deliciously rich Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20% which has been popular with our customers since we opened up shop in Edinburgh in 2004. No wonder then that it makes a very delicious ice-cream!

Ingredients

• 500g washed blackcurrants
• 150g sugar 600ml double cream
• 60ml Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20%

Preparation

Stew the blackcurrants with the sugar and 3 or 4 tbsps water until the fruit is soft. Puree them, then sieve out the seeds and allow to cool. Stir in the double cream and Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur. Chill the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes then churn in an ice-cream maker for 20 to 30 minutes.

Gooseberries are such a wonderful British fruit and this recipe is one of our nations favourites!

Ingredients

• 450g Gooseberries (trimmed)
• Caster Sugar
• Gooseberry Gin Liqueur 17%
• Whipping Cream
• Natural Greek Yoghurt

Preparation

Simmer the gooseberries with 2 dessert spoons of caster sugar until they are soft. Drain the juice off into a bowl and blend the gooseberries with 1 glass of Gooseberry Gin Liqueur. Add gooseberry gin, sugar and reserved cooking juice to taste until a soft pulp is achieved. Sieve the blended pulp to remove the seeds and fold into an equal quantity of ½ whipped cream and ½ greek yoghurt. Serve with very thin shortbread.

This is fantastically simple, yet delicious recipe for a lunch or dinner party dessert.

Ingredients

• 4 hard pears
• 350ml Elderberry and Port Liqueur 17%

Preparation

Peel the pears and add to a pan with the Elderberry and Port Liqueur. Simmer together for about 1 hour turning the pears occasionally, until the pears are soft. Remove the pears and reduce the liquid until it is syrupy. Pour it over the pears and serve with the good vanilla dairy ice-cream.

Related Topics

The Cheeseboard Drinks Selection

This is a Zabaglione recipe of the most untraditional nature and is perfect for whizzing up for unexpected guests.

Ingredients

• Good Vanilla Dairy Ice-cream
• Somerset Pomona 20% (to taste)

Preparation

Using a hand whisk beat the ice-cream and Somerset Pomona 20% together until the mixture is cold and fluffy but not frozen. Serve immediately in champagne saucers.

Anything else I should know?

This recipe can be used with just about all our hand made liqueurs. Have fun experimenting!

This simple recipe is a great way of not only feeding a family but impressing a room full of dinner party guests.

Ingredients:

• Sliced White Bread
• Summer fruits
• Caster Sugar
• Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20%

Preparation:

Line a flexible pudding bowl with one layer of bread slices. Simmer together any summer fruit, including raspberries, strawberries, redcurrants, brambles, a small number of blackcurrants, with sugar to taste. Once gently softened allow it to cool then sieve off some of the juice and replace it with Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20% (reserve the juice in case it is needed later). Pour the Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur laced fruit into the pudding bowl. Ensure that the juice soaks into the bread, colouring it all. Add the reserved juice and any additional Blackcurrant Gin as required. Top the pudding bowl with more bread slices, cover, and weight gently. This can be frozen until needed then turned out onto a serving dish, thawed and served with pouring cream.

Anything else I should know?

The Blackcurrant Gin Liqueur 20% used can be replaced with Raspberry Vodka Liqueur 22% or Morello Cherry Brandy Liqueur 17% as preferred.

This delicious Highland Bread and Butter Pudding Recipe serves 3 with a good appetite!

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsps of Clynelish Single Malt Whisky 56.2%
• 6 Slices white bread
• 4 Eggs
• 25g Caster Sugar
• 600ml Milk
• Brown Sugar
• Sultanas
• Unsalted Butter

Preparation:

Butter the 6 slices of white bread, remove crusts and cut into quarters. Layer the bread in an shallow ovenproof dish sprinkling sultanas between the layers. Pour over 4 tbsps of Clynelish Single Malt Whisky 56.2%. Heat 600ml milk but do not boil and mix together with 4 beaten eggs and 25g caster sugar. Gently pour this over the bread and butter layers and leave to stand for a few minutes. Sprinkle over a little brown sugar and bake at about 180 degrees for 35 minutes until the top is golden brown.

This delicious recipe, using our much loved Raspberry Vodka 22%, serves 8 to 10 people and can be enjoyed by the whole family either at Christmas or another such large family gathering. The inspiration behind it comes from one of our most enthusiastic customers, Jackie Hancock. So thankyou Jackie for sharing your family secret with us all!

Ingredients

• 600ml Water
• 400g Caster Sugar
• 50g Lemongrass (3-4 sticks, cut in half lengthways or crushed)
• 300g fresh Raspberries 
• 16 Trifle Sponges 
• 4-5 tablespoons Raspberry Vodka Liqueur 22%
• 600ml Single Cream 
• 8 Egg Yolks 
• 500g Double Cream

Equipment

Either one large glass bowl or two smaller bowls depending on your party.

Preparation

1. Make a syrup with the water and 325g of the caster sugar by bringing them to the boil in a saucepan and boiling for 5 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, add the sliced lengthwise or crushed lemongrass and let it infuse for about half an hour.

2. Strain the syrup into a measuring jug, keeping the saucepan with the strained Lemongrass to one side. Take out about 150-200ml of the syrup and put it into a pan with the raspberries. Bring it to a rolling boil and let it thicken slightly, mashing the fruit to make a jam-like consistency. Let it cool a little and then dunk the trifle sponges in the raspberry mixture and arrange them in the bottom of your bowl. Add our Raspberry Vodka 22% and about 100ml of the lemongrass syrup depending on how much your sponges absorb, and reserve the rest.

3. Meanwhile, to make the custard, heat the single cream in the syrup pan with the Lemongrass until it is nearly BUT NOT boiling, take it off the heat and let it infuse for about 15 minutes. Whisk the yolks and the rest of the sugar together and pour the cream (without the Lemongrass) into the same bowl. Then whisk again and put the custard back on the heat in the cleaned-out pan. Stir or whisk until the custard thickens (MUST NOT BOIL) and then pour it over the trifle sponges. Let it cool.

4. Whip the double cream until thick but not stiff, and cover the custard layer. Use about 250ml of the remaining sugar syrup to make a caramel by heating it in a saucepan until it turns a golden-brown. Drizzle the caramelised sugar syrup over the layer of cream to decorate at the last minute, as it can sink into the cream if left.

Anything else I should know?

The caramel topping is optional, you can decorate the top with anything you like (get the children involved here!).
 - Apply to face quickly before anyone else realises how delicious it tastes!

Deciding on a suitable present for your Mother on Mothering Sunday on 10th March is never going to be easy. Choosing something unique will be sure to surprise and hopefully delight. Your answer may lie with our beautiful new Oil & Vinegar Carousel. Choose this if your Mother is likely to enjoy a bowl of fresh green salad leaves simply dressed with our delicious Villa Montalbano Extra Virgin Olive Oil and either our handmade Scottish Raspberry or our fabulous new Gooseberry fruit vinegars. What is good for the digestion is surely positive food for the soul as we patiently await the arrival of Spring! However, if your Mother would be more likely to enjoy something a little stronger, then consider our Morello Fizz Cocktail using a jar of our Morello Cherries in Apple Eau de Vie 20%.

Whatever you decide, forget her day at your peril and good luck making your choice! If you are quick, we are still offering a 10% discount on any Demijohn bottle refills until the end of February 2013 (i.e Thursday this week!). Simply request your refill discount from a member of Staff in store. If you haven't got a bottle to refill or are too far away don't panic! We are currently offering free delivery for orders of £40 or more to all UK Mainland addresses, so place your order online now. Terms may apply.

Also in this letter:

• The Demijohn News: Tasting Evenings Galore! .... read below
• How creative are you?: We still need your recipe ideas.... read below
• Stay in Touch and Win a Prize!: Simply Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter to hear the details first

Demijohn News - February 2013

Our News: Development of our new website continues at full speed and thankfully is nearing its completion. Those who have kindly signed up to help us test it will be getting the call up shortly, so stand by your beds! However, we have also been busy with running many tasting events, both within our shops and without. For groups of friends and work colleagues, for corporate entertainment and just good fun. At the start of the Month at one such evening I had the fortune to talk to about 40 of the knowledgeable members of the Institute for Wine and Spirits in Scotland (IWSS) about our products. Held in a private room at the Royal Scots Club and starting with a few warm up cocktails and delicious breads from Bakery Andante in Morningside in Edinburgh to taste our oils and vinegars, the evening was tremendous fun and in danger of never ending. This is always a good sign! If you are interested in organising your own event and would like more information about what we can offer for groups of two or more persons, then please look at our Tasting Events web page initially and then contact us to discuss a booking.

How creative are you? We still need your recipes! A big thankyou to those who have already sent in their recipes for consideration so far, we will be coming back to you with our verdicts shortly. However, we are still looking for more of your creative talents to assist us in developing new food & drink recipes ideas for our products. We are offering a £30 gift voucher as a reward for sharing your recipes that use Demijohn products with us. Simply email the recipe to me and if we decide to publish it we will reward you with a £30 gift voucher to spend with us in any way you choose. You will be credited with the recipe, if you wish, and may even become famous.... well it's possible! So come on, let's get those creative genes brewing and stewing and send us your recipe ideas when they do!

Next Month in The Demijohn News.... Our new website goes live ..... Please don't forget Mother's Day or to claim your 10% discount on your Demijohn bottle refills, all you need to do is ask when you return!

 Yours,

     Angus

Angus Ferguson

Managing Director

We are fortunate in Scotland to have a very good excuse for a party in January and blow away the blues of a harsh winter, to celebrate the birth of Scottish poet Robert Burns, born on 25 January 1796.

If you are to host or attend a Burns Night Supper our latest collection of Single Malt Whisky, unique Demijohn Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40% and Brammle Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23% will be all you need for your dinner table.

For the centre of your table, we would suggest either our Single Malt Whisky Selection or our Highland and Island Malt Stack. We also have a couple of cocktail recipes which might help make your evening a memorable one.

Try our Tam O Shanter cocktail, which uses both our Demijohn Finest Blended Scotch Whisky 40% andBramble Scotch Whisky Liqueur 23% to provide a very drinkable fruity whisky punch. 

For a more traditional dessert cocktail, try our twist on the classic Atholl Brose cocktail. Whatever you decide to do, good luck in planning your evening and may "Freedom an' whisky gang thegither!

Save 10% on Bottle refills

To make matters more pleasant still, we are offering a 10% discount on any Demijohn bottle refills until the end of February 2013.

Simply request your refill discount from a member of Staff in store. If you haven't got a bottle to refill or are too far away don't panic!

We are currently offering free delivery for orders of £40 or more to all UK Mainland addresses, so place your order online now. Terms may apply. 

Demijohn News -  January 2013

I hope you have also had a good start to the new year? Thankyou for all your support and custom during 2012, it led to another successful year at Demijohn and we are enormously grateful to you for it.

Our success is both down to the valiant efforts of our Staff on a daily basis and often your patience while we try to deliver what we have promised. Despite some of the highest volumes of online trade we have ever seen, where we processed up to 120 orders per day, we once again succeeded in ensuring that all pre-Christmas orders were delivered on time. 2013 however, is set to be an even busier and more exciting year than 2012 as we look forward to the launch of our new website next month.

In order to make sure it works correctly we will need some willing volunteers to help test it prior to going live. We have a few names already in the bag but do need more.

So if you would like to be one of the first to try and place some test orders with our new website, please send a quick email to me at info@demijohn.co.uk and we will add you to the growing list.

Depending on your contributions you may be rewarded!

How creative are you?

A big thankyou to those who have already sent in their recipes for consideration, we will be coming back to you with our verdicts shortly.

However, we are still looking for more of your creative talents to assist us in developing new food & drink recipes ideas for our products.

We are offering a £30 gift voucher as a reward for sharing your recipes that use Demijohn products with us. Simplyemail the recipe to me and if we decide to publish it we will reward you with a £30 gift voucher to spend with us in any way you choose.

You will be credited with the recipe, if you wish, and may even become famous.... well it's possible! So come on, let's get those creative genes brewing and stewing and send us your recipe ideas when they do!

Next Month...Romance is in the air ...

Please don't forget to claim your 10% discount on your Demijohn bottle refills, all you need to do is ask when you return! Best wishes for the year ahead,

Angus Ferguson

Managing Director