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Surprise at your Burns' Night Supper!
 January has been full of surprises. Some nice, such as waking up in the morning and finding a cold crisp day with blue skies and fresh powder snow, and others not so pleasant, hearing the weathermen reporting that the big freeze is to continue for another 3 weeks! Do not despair just yet however, as not only has Scotland's traditional Burns' Night Supper celebrations on the 25th January each year been carefully timed to lift spirits despite atrocious weather, but our very own British Liqueur Making Competiton could keep you warm and win you a fabulous £100 Demijohn Hamper! Click the link for details. To help you plan your Burns' Night Supper we have created a surprisingly good selection of cocktails and recipe ideas to celebrate with and we are offering a 15% discount on all refills made before the end of February 2010. Simply request your refill discount as offered in our Newsletter when you next visit us. For Burns we have a classic selection of single malts to choose from, such as our 60.3% cask strength 17 year old Clynelish Single Malt Whisky, or our 54.1% cask strength 14 year old Linkwood Single Malt Whisky. Or you may wish to try and make some of our cocktails, such  as Atholl Brose or a very simple variation of a Whisky Mac. But if you're looking for a serious drink to surprise your guests with this year, then why not try out our newly created Dark & Staurmy Cocktail? Conceived in Bermuda at Hogmanay, our new cocktail for 2010 looks set to brush off frozen Britain with its delicious mix of warming Glaswegian Spiced Rum and smooth Ginger Wine. Don't forget your 15% refill discount and let us know how your Supper surprises!
to order any of our products either visit our new Demijohn Online Shop or call us on +44 (0)141 3373600
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Demijohn News - January 2010
 Our News: After a whirlwind of a Christmas at Demijohn, it is certainly a very happy New Year for us indeed. I hope that yours has started equally well? We have much to thank you our loyal customers for, as without you our success would not have been possible. I always think that our January newletter should reflect on a little of what happened in our previous 12 months, especially if this is your first letter! 2009 was a very successful year for us, as it has seen us grow by 30%. We were busy, and by the end we almost ran out of stock. On top of our opening  of a third shop in York, England, we developed our mail order business considerably throughout the year and it was a good thing we did too as it grew by a staggering 80%. Putting ourselves on the National stage at last, while being a little daunting at first, brought us great interest from the International media. The World woke in September to find that a plucky little Scottish company had seemingly forgotten that we were in a recession and just kept on thriving! Here are just a few words written about us:
Six of the best: Corporate Gifts. Liquid deli, Demijohn has concotions such as Seville Orange Gin .... writes The Independent (10 Nov 2009)
The Daily Universal Register. Demijohn, England's first liquid deli, is a cross between an Italian enoteca and an olde-worlde apothecary .... writes Nick Wyke for The Times (6 Nov 2009)
Shop for Raspberry Vodka, made in East Lothian using Perthshire berries, from Demijohn .... writes Francesca Hoyles for The Telegraph (28 Oct 09)
 I would be a fool to suggest that we managed to get it all right, we did not. We did manage to deliver all orders for Christmas that were ordered by 18th December as promised, despite the weather disruption. However, our biggest success was possibly not in the orders that we got right, but in the way that we have learnt to deal with the very small numbers of orders that went wrong. One of the best barometers of our success can be measured in the feedback we received directly from you, these are just a few worthy of mention but you can view our whole list on the What people say about us page of our website:
I just wanted to thank you for the very efficient way in which you handled our order and how delighted we were with the products and have had excellent feed back from all of our clients. With many thanks, Henbury (11 Jan 2010)
What fantastic service! I placed my second (afterthoughts) Christmas Order on 22 December, expecting to be glad when it arrived in the New Year: it came this morning! Given your weather and the time of year, I think that's a remarkable performance. Now I just have to stop myself from opening the Seville Orange Gin before New Year's Eve .... Another happy UK mail order customer (26 Dec 2009)
Can I just say thanks for last nights tasting evening, it was awesome. No doubt about it that we'll all be back. Best of luck in your new venture in York. .... Another happy York customer (21 Sept 2009)
And we get a few funny ones too :o)
York! My home town. Do you know it is still officially legal to kill a Scotsman (with a bow and arrow) within the city walls? True fact..... Another happy (i think) York customer (2 Sept 2009)
 We have certainly learnt some important lessons, but can always learn more. So if you feel moved to put pen to paper or finger to keyboard and email then please do, I would really like to hear from you! With hair cut, shoes polished and after a little sleep we are now wide awake and twitching to get stuck into all the fun 2010 will bring. (Twitching by the way is very different to twittering. Twitching increases bodily warmth where as twittering reduces it!). Our year kicks off with a series of pre-planned tasting evenings and we are to run a record number at the start of this year. There are still some days spare, so please click to find out how to book your own tasting evening and start 2010 with a twitch not a twitter!
Product News
We have had our issues with supply after our near sell out at Christmas, but the good news is that 95% of our products are now back in stock including a  small supply of Sloe Gin if you are quick! If you are a foodie, then without a shadow of doubt the product to buy from us at the moment is our fresh Villa Montalbano Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This Scottish owned Tuscan estate's November harvest is now on tap in all our shops, so definitely worth considering if you are planning a visit for a refill. Its wonderfully concentrated taste and velvety smooth texture will excite even the strongest flavoured dishes from salads to meats. Don't forget, if you are planning on entering our liqueur making competition to win a £100 hamper, the deadline for entries in accordance with our Competition Rules is 1st February 2010, so get your entry in quick!
Coming soon: A new cask of Caol Ila and the results of our the liqueur making competition.
Staff News
 Our Staff worked incredibly hard for us over the last 12 months and last week they were finally rewarded. Our Demijohn Christmas night oot started with a civilised wine tasting in Victoria Street. It was hosted not by me, but by one of our very own team members, Fraser Wright, who is currently Chairman of Edinburgh University Wine Society. After 6 very enjoyable and different table wines, 19 of us from Edinburgh, Glasgow and York retired up stairs to sample the delights on offer from the Grainstore Restaurant, with whom we have had a tremendous relationship ever since opening in 2004. The excellent food and wine was a fitting and enjoyable end to our year, and good chance for many to meet for the first time. While sadly the Glasgow team had to return home on the last train, Edinburgh was of course painted red by the forgotten few. Luckily there are no pictures to record what exactly happened after Glasgow left!
Wishing you a very happy and successful 2010,
Angus Ferguson
Managing Director
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