This Wednesday we’ll be running our first tasting tour with Firecrown whisky tastings.

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Teaming up with our friends at Reyka tonight to launch a special menu that will run for the next month or so working on the tricky theme of tiki &… vodka.

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Under the deluge of news you may have missed that this is National Negroni Week.

Count Camilo’s beefed up Americano concoction (add the gin) has become so popular we-in-hospitality now roll out the bunting each year to celebrate it’s subtle, bitter charms. Regular readers of this parish will know we’re no champions of Campari so, our twist has often involved looking back at original recipes to find producers currently doing it closest to the old formulas. But now, in this week of all weeks, comes the un-holy twist. Sub-off on the gin, enter genever.

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All around the country, pagan-identifying types are tuning bare-breasted towards their nearest haul of ancient stones. The ground around Stone Henge will creak under the weight of flashers and dogging enthusiasts expunging ritual joy at the altar of the saggy boob and wonky dong. The Waitrose at Fleet Service station - positioned perniciously before turning into the tailbacks of the A303 - will see a year’s worth of trade between here and Glastonbury and back again. Pull up the effigies! Burn Farage! Burn BoJO! Just don’t forget the mini Molten Mowbray pork pies.

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There’s a lot going on this weekend: late-enders on Friday, Saturday & Sunday, DJs, dancers, delectable drinks (as ever), Yard Sale pizza, warm sounds +⁺₊ Barry is back!

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If you’re in the vicinity this evening we have a special in-session on the turntables.

Sweet, sour, booze.

This little triptych of ingredients form the basis for a wealth of cocktails and mixed drinks that have been adored, pored over and modified since such a time that these recipes were recorded. We know the ones: sidecar, daiquiri, margarita; and we know the genres: swizzles, fixes, rickeys. All have been ripped in two and rebuilt with cut bases of spirits, flavoured syrups, botanical enhancements, fire and smoke, alchemy and voodoo. One thing that remains largely untouched however, is one of those three key elements: the sour. Lemon and lime (occasionally grapefruit) sit unchallenged at the heart of all.

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Tonight sees us team up with Pensador mezcal and LemLem kitchen for a special night of strong drinks, esoteric music and Eritrean-Mexican street-food!

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Out with the old and in with the new. The Spring equinox always feels somewhat cleansing; just as winter’s drawn on that little bit too long and the festive season is a vanquishing speck on an expandingly-bleak horizon. Suddenly, day matches night and the weight lifts a touch. It’s only going one way from here.

From maligned and near-extinct, rye whiskey has undergone a serious renaissance over the past decade. A lot of that is down to one man’s passion: the late, great Dave Pickerell. Dave passed away at the end of last year but his imprint on whiskey is huge. Master distiller at Maker’s Mark up to 2008, Dave went on to start up WhistlePig Rye in Vermont and breathe new life into a sleeping American classic. Here, in our first Grain Focus interview; Alex spoke with Daniel Khan - the senior steward of the brand - to debunk a few myths, chat American history and knit through the fabric of the Whistle Pig story.

Our most popular serve this winter has been our dessert cocktail offering, synonymous with the alias of its’ creator. You’ll all know Anna as Anna but, by day, she sun-lights (sic?) as recording artist and producer Chloé Martini. Anna’s favourite drink was a Last Word, her favourite spirit Green Chartreuse. She’s worked here on her own version using pine and plum for this menu; more of a pallete-cleansing ‘Stinger-esque’ night-cap than an out-and-out sweet finisher. It was reasoned, as well, that this seasons’ CBD offering would be with this serve, just the tonic before cosying up in bed for a night of lucid dreams. It’s the first drink she’s made for us and certainly won’t be the last! Suffice to say her favourite drink now is a Chloé Martini.

This is actually a thing…

3 years old!

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Tonight sees the opening of our latest exhibit by Canadian photographer Jordan McGregor, curated by our own Desirée Balma.

Been a long time coming…

Is it too early to mention the ‘V’ word?

*Not an essay on the genesis of the current constitutional crisis.

By the time this reaches you it may, nay probably will, already be too late.

NYE ⤳ we’re having a houseparty for friends and family. ‘Tis the season: strong drinks, warm sounds, on until the last one stops dancing. No reservations, booking fees or bulls**t and all been strung together on a bit of a whim and a wave of goodwill.

And so the story goes…