OK, so it’s January 7 and you really need to give the liver a break from tipples of any kind for at least a few days. However, yesterday was a holiday, today it’s if it was one, and the weekend began a shot of anis and a rosco de vino ago.  So, one last licor [...]

Crema de orujo might not have the beautiful people-filled TV commercials, but it’s every bit as delicious as the latest fancy Baileys creation. Made from post-squashed-to-death grapes, orujo or aguardiente is the most shudderingly-blow-your-mouth-off spirit on the planet, with a 50 % alcohol content (that’s 100º proof!). Tamed with cream, coffee, cocoa and caramel, though, and [...]

Why should you swap steady old JB or Ballentines for a brand with such a smirk-inducing name? Well, it’s more economical for starters – about a third of the price in the supermarket, and possibly a Euro or two cheaper for a copa in a bar. And if you’re going to do like the Spanish in [...]

Also spelt with a t and an x, pacharán is a Designation of Origin product of the Autonomous Community of Navarra. To its detractors, the deep raspberry- coloured ‘syrup’ looks, smells and tastes like cough medicine, to its fans, it’s candy for grown-ups in a glass. The first thing that hits you is the aniseed, [...]

With Christmas on the horizon it’s time to break out of your conservative imbibery, to take a long hard look at all those jazzy bottles lined up on the barman’s shelves – and dare to drink something different. Watch out over the next couple of weeks for  regular doses of useless but possibly inspiring tipple-related [...]