Browsing Yearly Archives for 2018

Every year, there are a few drinks that bartenders and writers fall in love with. Folks like me run around telling everyone how great they are and sometimes, unfortunately, people listen – we’re still apologising…

Vermouth. The blog that literally tens of you have been waiting for. As we learned last time, vermouth is a type of aromatised wine – which, to be honest, doesn’t sound very sexy. In fact,…

With The Cognac Show rapidly approaching, we’re digging further into the world of Cognac. While there are hundreds of producers in the region – we have more than 80 in our A-Z of Cognac –…

Gin has an illustrious history in the UK and is enjoying a well-earned resurgence. And now, The Whisky Exchange is proud to announce its first-ever gin bottling – Park Royal Gin – made in the…

With The Cognac Show just around the corner, we’ve been investigating France’s most famous spirit. But what is Cognac, where is it made and how do they make it? The region Cognac is the name…

As usual, March sees the announcement of the first big whisky awards of the year – The World Whiskies Awards. If you just want to see who won, skip to the bottom of this post…

Our latest Whisky Story comes from Dan, who recounts a tragic tale of an icy lake and a bottle of Glenlivet. Please keep sending us your own Whisky Stories – we’ll be publishing more of…

St Patrick’s Day is on Saturday. While it’s generally seen as an excuse to go out for some drinks, for me it’s also the ideal time to try and sneak some Irish whiskey into your…

It was my birthday last week. In celebration of the beginning of my fifth decade, I gathered a team of crack whisky drinkers to make a pilgrimage to one of Scotland’s most surprisingly remote towns:…

There are a lot of different types of whisky show. From our own London show, with its gigantic dram list that requires planning in advance to get the most out of, to smaller shows like…

Irish whiskey is booming. For a long time it has been seen as Scotch whisky’s less-popular sibling, but the past few years have seen it explode in popularity. The biggest driver is Jameson, a blended…

‘We were saved by rock and roll‘ When it comes to statements you weren’t expecting to hear, that must be up there with them. Stood in the large entrance hall of an Irish castle with…

Ever sat in front of a Martini and wondered what, exactly, is vermouth? (aside from something that shouldn’t get anywhere near your Martini, obviously). Ask, and someone will probably tell you that it’s an aromatised…

Absinthe is a drink surrounded by stories and misconceptions. From tales of murderous rampages under its influences to decades of being banned across Europe, its reputation is fearsome and almost entirely undeserved. It’s time to…

Last month, I wrote a blog post about my most memorable whisky story – my first trip to Islay. It prompted several of you to share your own whisky stories, and here’s our favourite. Thank…

It’s the middle of February and our first big event of 2018 approaches – my favourite weekend of the year: The Whisky Show Old & Rare. On 24 and 25 February, we’ll be moving north…

In the cocktail world, it’s white rum that gets all the love: lightly flavoured and with no colour to muddy the other ingredients, it’s an ideal pick (most of the time). However, if you want…