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MEMBER’S AREA

ASTERLEY BROS COCKTAIL CLUB

Firstly, thank you so much for being a part of the Club! Each month we post exclusive content and discount codes in the Member’s Area, so please ensure you check back each time you receive the monthly box.

We wanted to create a unique Cocktail Club, different from the standard offerings out there, and so we decided to take a new approach:

• We release a new cocktail every month. It must be seasonally focussed and delicious

• We only use premium spirits in our cocktails, no cheap products to bulk up margins

• We want to champion and showcase Independent British brands in our drinks and will be highlighting products we truly believe in each month

Joe Schofield, our Creative Director, will be designing the cocktail recipes each month and Joe has won many awards over his career working in bars. Having worked at The Savoy in London, and The Tippling Club in Singapore, in July 2018, Joe was awarded one of the most prestigious honours an individual can receive in the industry; 'International Bartender of The Year' in the Tales of The Cocktail Spirited Awards. This was shortly followed by the equally as prestigious title, 'Bartender’s Bartender' at The World’s 50 Best Bars 2018. He is the first person in history to have won both awards. He is also an author, having written the definitive classic cocktail recipe book, ‘Fine & Classic Cocktails’, available on Amazon.

Naturally all these cocktails will contain our Asterley Bros products, so each drink will veer towards being either an Aperitivo (Pre-dinner / Primer) or a Digestivo (After-dinner / Finisher) drink.

Each month we release a unique cocktail with an intensely seasonal focus, to be part of our Spring, Summer, Autumn & Winter collections. We want to take you on a journey through the world of seasons, flavours, spirits and serves that we love, and we want to share them with you all!

Next up…

winter COLLECTION: EPISODE 2

valentino

Next up in the Winter collection is our tribute to February, the Valentino.

This incredible cocktail is an aperitivo, a twist on a classic Negroni, and is often made with gin, Campari and vermouth. We wanted to introduce the rich, buttery quality of a great Blanco Tequila, pair that with some cardamom to boost those aromatics, and then spice things up with a cacao and chilli finish using bitters. Served ice cold and straight up, it needs no garnish and is the perfect aperitivo to warm you up on these chilly February evenings!

RECIPE

If you wanted to recreate this month’s recipe at later date, simply follow the steps below…

• 55ml VIVIR Blanco Tequila

• 25ml Asterley Bros ESTATE Sweet Vermouth

• 20ml Campari

• 25ml Filtered Water

• 10ml Creme de Cacao

• 2 dashes Cocoa Bitters

• 1 dash Cardamom Bitters

• 1 dash Ghost Chilli Bitters

Combine all the ingredients above and pour into a plastic pouch. Place in the freezer 1 hour before required

Absolutely delicious!

LIVE TASTING

We were joined by the one of the founders of VIVIR Tequila, Paul Hayes, for a live tasting on Instagram. You can see it here!

Cheers,

Rob, Jim & Joe.

SO WHAT IS A VALENTINO?

A variation on the Negroni theme, and named after Rudolph Valentino, the original recipe is said to be:

• 60ml Gin

• 15ml Campari

• 30ml Sweet Vermouth

From the classic Negroni recipe, the Valentino increases the amount of gin, and decreases the amount of Campari, to create a more spirit forward and drier cocktail, served straight up. Many recipes utilise vodka as the base spirit but we love the extra caramel and butter notes that a good tequila brings to the drink, so opted for a little twist on the original, and spiced it in line with the season!

OUR INDEPENDENT BRAND PARTNERS

WINTER COLLECTION, EPISODE 2: VIVIR TEQUILA

Each month we aim to showcase one of the independent brands that we love and have used to create the cocktail of the month.

This month its the the turn of VIVIR Tequila, a new range of tequilas founded by 2 two British agave lovers.

vivir

VIVIR Tequila was born from the love of the Agave based spirit that two good friends (Paul and Nav) shared. A number of years ago they started to question why it was so difficult to find quality 100% Agave Tequila in the UK without going to a specialist bar or retailer.

Paul had already been working with Agave for over 16 years and knew the industry well. In 2016 they finally made the decision to change perceptions of Tequila in the UK and create their own line of premium 100% Agave Tequilas. It took them 3 years to develop as they wanted to get it right and in 2019 they finally introduced VIVIR Tequila to the UK.

the process

Their 100% Agave Tequila is produced from the finest Weber Blue Agave grown for 9 years in their own fields in the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico. They use Hornos (clay ovens) to cook the Agave & natural volcanic spring water from a well at the distillery. The end result is a natural, fresh & flavour filled spirit that stays true to its Agave routes.

VIVIR BLANCO

A very easy drinking premium Tequila that is great for sipping, having in a cocktail or with your favourite mixer.

TASTING NOTES

NOSE  

Clean and fresh with caramelised agave sweetness and a touch of biscuit. Lots of bright, green notes and something reminiscent of fresh sea air.

PALATE

On the initial palate, very light salted caramel comes through, followed by a gentle pepper and lovely bright vegetal notes. Green capsicum pepper, salted edamame skin, jalapeño peppers, cucumber, wasabi and padrón peppers bit amongst the roasted agave. These develop into coffee before coming back to a sweetness that is this time more vegetal. A truly rounded journey with a lingering nature. The qualities of the sweet Weber blue agave are ever-present and the smoothness of the Blanco is very impressive.

perfect serve

BLANCO & SPICE

50ml VIVIR Blanco Tequila

100ml Longtail Island Spice

Build over ice and garnish with a wedge of lime

IT’S…*FAINT DRUMROLL*………MYSTERY AMARO TIME!

We at Asterley Bros absolutely love the mysterious world of Amaro. It’s a subject very close to our hearts and we have been making both Italian and English Amari* now for the next part of a decade. So we thought we would take the time to introduce some of our favourites to our Club Members!

BACKGROUND

Amaro is the Italian word for ‘bitter’ and Amaro is a hugely popular category of Italian Digestivo liqueurs, usually consumed after a meal to aid digestion. Bittersweet, with a heady mix of herbaceous, medicinal, bitter, aromatic & floral notes, Amari (the plural for Amaro) are very much an expression of terroir. The botanicals and flavours found in Amari are hyper-reflective of the regions in which they are made, using locally grown fruits, herbs and botanicals to create complex and layered bitter liqueurs. Campari, Aperol, Cynar and Fernet Branca are all examples of types of Amaro. *Amari is the plural of the singular Amaro…

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Our Mystery Amaro this month is:

ciociaro - 30% ABV

THE HISTORY:

Named after an area & local dialect in the Valle Del Sacco region of Lazio where it’s produced, this Amaro was created by Vincenzo Paolucci in 1873 and has been made by his family ever since. Made by infusing a complex variety of aromatic herbs in hydrated alcohol, it has an intense brown hue and a with medicinal herbs on the nose, accompanied by a hint of balsam. With a gentian base, this dark-hued amaro bursts with floral notes and baking spices alongside hints of cola and lemon.

TO SERVE:

Very simply: pour 25ml over a couple of cubes of ice, swirl around the glass a couple of times, and sip slowly.

TASTING NOTES:

Initially bitter, as expected, with an earthy and oily character. Mixed herbs - jasmine and lavender, and woody spice roll in and are joined by more spicy notes on a background of dried orange peel, rhubarb and citrus zest.

Rich and oily mouthfeel, with an initial bittersweet hit of burnt sugar and orange peel. Liquorice and sharp green herbal bitterness appear but are swamped by thick and sugary sweetness and zingy orange oil, falling back to reveal gentle spice and bitter root notes.

We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

MEMBERS ONLY - DISCOUNT CODES

As a member of the Asterley Bros Cocktail Club you also get 15% discount from any online purchase in our store - Use Code ABCC15 at checkout

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