Fashions come and fashions go, but the desire to wet our whistles with a well-crafted drink always remains. From crafted concoctions with a twist, to the return of the classic cocktail, to a raft of refreshing and interesting alcohol-free options, quench your thirst with these fine brews to sip or
Strange brews
Crafted for flavour, but born of a spirit of interest and invention, these classic and contemporary drinks each come with a twist. Strange Nature Gin ($85) eschews traditional gin-making practices by using grapes to create the base spirit — in this case, New Zealand-grown sauvignon blanc grapes, then infusing this with the only botanical that a true gin requires: juniper.
From Kumeu River’s award-winning cellars comes a new summer wine, the 2021 Pinot Gris ($27.50), fermented from the wild yeasts that occupy the air around its west Auckland winery. For summer celebrations, try the light and versatile Splash! organic pet nat ($42) — the lower ABV (10 per cent) makes it perfect for brunch, while the gorgeous label means it’ll fit right in on Christmas or New Year’s Eve.
And for the health of your gut — because we’re nothing less than holistic about our liquor cabinets — go low-sugar and probiotic with Good Sh*t’s new Tropical release, $15 per 4-pack), which goes big on mango and passionfruit and 1bn probiotics in every can, or add a little kick with Quite Good’s gin and vodka-enhanced organic kombucha ($30 per 10-pack).
Classic mixes
If you’ve perched at a bar anytime this year, you’ll know that the classics are back in a big way, with just about every establishment offering a gimlet (gin + simple syrup + lime), a Bennett (just add bitters to your gimlet), or a Gibson (essentially a gin martini served with a cocktail onion).
In its simplest form, a cocktail has three basic building blocks, with some variations: liquor + sugar + bitters, so follow the formula to stir it up at home this season. Try your hand at an old-fashioned (whisky, sugar syrup and bitters, with a twist of orange), a sazerac (rye whisky, sugar syrup, Peychaud’s bitters, and absinthe if you’re well supplied) or a gin sour (gin, lemon, sugar syrup, egg white and bitters).
Any of these can be made entirely from locally produced liquors and garnishes (see below for details), or if you’re feeling fancy, make your own dehydrated citrus slices with those leftover mandarins in your vege box.
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- Heat your oven to 70C.
- Finely slice any citrus fruit — you want them to be 2-3mm, so using a mandolin is ideal.
- Lay your citrus discs on a baking tray and place in the oven.
- Bake for approximately 2-3 hours, turning at least once, but more frequently to prevent curling.
- Keep in a sealed container, or fill glass jars and tick off all your Christmas gifting at once.
Local spirit
Get into the spirit of things this Christmas by stocking the liquor cabinet with the new wave of New Zealand-made alcohol. For your Manhattan, take 60ml of Scapegrace’s Chorus II single malt whisky ($130), 30ml of Rubis red vermouth ($55), and three dashes of Elemental grapefruit and hops bitters ($25), stir with ice, before straining into a glass and garnishing with a slice of F N Lemons’ dehydrated New Zealand-grown orange ($10.50). Or make a simple gin and tonic with 60ml of Lighthouse’s new Mt Difficulty pinot noir barrel-aged gin ($90) topped with an East Imperial tonic ($6 for 450ml).
Short on time? Take a shortcut with Hasting Distillers’ barrel-aged negroni ($95) — aging negroni (here, it is rested in French oak, but overseas distillers have experimented with terracotta, leather, coconut shells and vessels lined with beeswax) brings texture (more viscosity), flavour (less sweetness, more earth and smoke), bringing a whole new complexity to the most elegant of pre-dinner drops.
You tart
Bittersweet is back — from the pre-dinner aperitif (at home, try vermouth or Lillet over ice) to the lower-sugar summer RTDs, and the yuzu-in-everything in between. This summer, purse your lips and prepare for a rush of saliva as you sip on these tart little numbers.
Try: Pals vodka, red peach and yuzu ($30 for 10). Scapegrace gin and soda with yuzu ($30 for 10). Scapegrace Uncommon vodka with yuzu ($70). East Imperial’s new yuzu tonic ($6 for 450ml). Arepa’s sparkling blackcurrant brain drink ($7 for 300ml). Duncan’s strawberry and banana daiquiri sorbet sour ($40 for 4). Uncommon’s Leonard bubbly Marlborough sauvignon blanc white wine ($30 for 4).
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Lighten up
Are we.... growing up a bit? These days we don’t need alcohol to party — every bar and host worth their salt (hold the tequila) stocks a veritable feast of alcohol-free drops. For a relaxing evening without the hangover, try a few quiet bowls of kava ($55) with some friends and tunes.
Or, if salt is required, The Lucky Taco x Curious AF’s grapefruit margarita release ($45 for 12) remembers that one of the pleasures of having a drink is the ritual, so each pack comes with Lucky Taco smoked chilli lime salt — squeeze a wedge of lime around the rim, dip in chilli salt, and pour over a large ice cube. Salud. Also try: Lindauer Free Brut, $18; Bach All Day IPA, $20 for 6; Ghia aperitif $90.
