Hickson House’s Founder explains Oyster Shell Gin
Last Thursday, Hickson House officially launched its Oyster Shell Gin at its distillery and cocktail bar in the Rocks, Sydney. Drinks Trade caught up with Mikey Enright, Hickson House’s Founder & Director, to hear his thoughts on the release.
“It was a no brainer to get Tim [Stones, Head Distiller] to start working on a recipe for the Oyster Shell Gin,” said Enright.
“We love Sydney Rock Oysters and we know that oysters are just that culinary thing that everybody seems to love, so it's almost like tapping into another market from that food link.”
Hickson House Oyster Shell Gin was made by infusing the distillery’s Classic Dry Gin with seaweed, tarragon, native finger lime, ruby grapefruit and crushed Sydney Rock Oyster shells. The use of oyster shells is said to impart a smoother, creamier mouthfeel.
“Basically, [we use] Sydney Rock Oyster, which was the top of the oyster after it got shuck. Then we wash it out and then we ground it down and then we added that into the mix,” explained Enright.
“[The goal] was to get a good balance of savoury-but-saline kind of minerality” and “to make it not too soft, but softish, in terms of the flavour.”
Hickson House Oyster Shell Gin is available now at an RRP of $88 and can be purchased direct from the distillery’s online store or via its national distributor Amber Beverages.
TWE partners with Reese Witherspoon for new wine brand
Treasury Wine Estates has announced a new premium wine brand in partnership with Candle Media’s Hello Sunshine, a multi-channel media company founded by American actress Reese Witherspoon. To begin with, Drop of Sunshine will feature two distinct portfolios, with the US market launch featuring a Brut Sparkling Rosé, Chardonnay, and Red Blend, while the following Australian market launch will feature a Prosecco, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio.
“We are honored to work alongside Hello Sunshine who elevates women’s voices and ensure our stories are heard,” said Sarah Bakx, President of the Bold Brands business unit of TWE’s Treasury Americas division.
Sarah Harden, CEO of both Hello Sunshine and Candle Studios, added: “We partnered with Treasury Wine Estates’ award-winning winemakers and global team to create a wine that brings women together so they can share their stories and create meaningful connections.”
TWE’s Drop of Sunshine is officially at Hello Sunshine’s second annual Shine Away event in Los Angeles this Saturday 5 October, with its Australian launch to take place before the end of the month.
Learn more in this Drinks Trade article.
Bruichladdich Distillery unveils 15th Octomore series
Bruichladdich Distillery has unveiled the details of its 15th annual Octomore series, a collection of three heavily peated single malt Scotch whiskies that seek to push the boundaries of the category.
This year’s Octomore series release marks a milestone moment in the brand’s history, with Octomore 15.3 featuring 307.2 phenol parts per million, making it the second most peated spirit in the world to date behind only Octomore 8.3, which feature 309 PPM.
Head Distiller Adam Hannett said, “the goal is never to intentionally create the most super-heavily peated single malt whisky in the world, but rather an extraordinary dram which demonstrates the perfect alchemy of peat, maturation, barley varietal and cask type. And that’s Octomore 15.3 for me.”
Distilled from variable harvests from the Octomore Farm less than two miles from the distillery, Octomore 15.3 was then matured for five years in a combination of first fill bourbon casks and first fill Oloroso hogsheads from Ferando de Castilla, a Spanish sherry producer. It was then bottled at 61.3%.
Octomore 15.1 - described as the backbone of the experiment - was aged in first-fill bourbon barrels and reused/re-charred ex-bourbon casks, malted to 108.2 PPM, and bottled at 59.1% abv. The final whisky in the new collection, Octomore 15.2 is designed to shine a light on the profound influence that cask type has on the final whisky and uses a specific combination of second fill wine and second fill bourbon casks, with the spirit finished in first fill Cognac casks.
To read more about the release and the brand, click here.
Hennessy teams up with LeBron James for limited-edition collection
The world’s leading cognac house Hennessy has partnered up with basketball legend LeBron James for the release of Hennessy Limited Editions by LeBron James, which includes a limited-edition bottling of Hennessy’s V.S and V.S.O.P cognacs. Following its global launch last Thursday, the new collection will be launching in Australia from 15 October.
“As an admirer of Hennessy and its iconic brand, I’ve always appreciated its commitment to basketball and how it celebrates the sport’s influence on and off the court,” said LeBron James.
“I was fortunate enough to visit the Maison in Cognac a while back, and seeing the care and craftsmanship that go into creating each bottle was pretty incredible. This collaboration represents a shared sense of dedication and discovery coming to life for everyone to enjoy.”
Hendrick’s Grand Cabaret Gin
William Grant & Son’s Hendrick’s has released its latest limited-release gin Grand Cabaret to the Australian market. Inspired by a stone fruit eau de vie popular in Paris in the early 1900s, Grand Cabaret has become the biggest release yet from Hendrick’s Cabinet of Curiosities and is available in over 50 global markets.
Master Distiller Lesley Gracie said, “I played around and found that when you put these different stone fruit flavours together, they give you a nice rich depth of flavour. I added sweet herbs to round the vibrant fruit out. It’s the first time I’ve experimented with stone fruits and I love how it adds a decadent depth of flavour, whilst maintaining a refreshing lightness.”
Read more about the new release here.
Westward Whiskey and Stomping Ground release final US/AUS boilermaker collab
Leading American whiskey producer Westward Whiskey has launched its latest limited-edition release in close collaboration with Australian brewery Stomping Ground and coffee roaster Proud Mary Coffee.
Additionally, Stomping Ground has launched its Into The ‘Wood 2024, a barrel aged strong ale infused with Proud Mary Coffee.
To commemorate the partnership, Australian distributor Iconic Beverages is offering a Boilermaker pairing bundle for what might be the last partnership between the producers: “This special Boilermaker bundle marks the culmination of a five-year journey,” wrote Iconic Beverages in a recent media release.
To learn more about the collaboration bundle, read this Drinks Trade article.
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