My cousin advised me to visit this bar because, in her opinion, it was very ‘me’. Well, I can see why Finland’s first steampunk-themed bar would attract the likes of myself – slightly chaotic deco, bar shaped like a zeppelin, smoke, cocktails, Gin and even more Gin. From the outside, the venue looks dull and […]
To produce whisky you need three simple ingredients: water, yeast and barley (this can be mixed with rye or corn, I will talk about rye whisky soon) . The best type of barley is the one that produces the most sugar. There are five stages in the process: malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation. Malting During malting, the barley […]
Italian Grappa is taken like French Brandy or Spanish Sherry, but remains very much in their shadow as it is considered by many to be nothing more than branded moonshine. Italian restaurants all over the world serve this spirit made from leftovers, the vinaccia from wine production. This in itself doesn’t mean it has to be rubbish; […]
First of all, as my blog post stresses, there’s Grappa and there’s Grappa. Take the time to find the quality brands (such as Nonino, Bocchino, Berta or Bepi Tosolini) as they are well worth the effort and are a wonderful spirit. The difference is explained through the production methods which I’ve bashed out below. Grappa […]
I, like probably millions of others, am used to the dusty male image that comes to mind when talking about Whisky. I used to go to this old Finnish hotel from the 1930s as the bar was really fascinating, with all these elderly gentlemen drinking Whisky for their sorrows or telling stories about their lives […]
Whilst in Rome I read about a bar serving mainly Gin so obviously I had to go and find it. It was fairly easy to find by Piazza di Firenze, but, to my surprise, it was part of a fancy-looking hotel. Luckily I had dressed up as I would have felt completely underdressed wearing Converse […]