Back for the fifth year, London Cocktail Week – the biggest drinks festival in the UK – is just around the corner. From Monday 6 to Sunday 12 October 2014 get ready to shake, sip and party your way to a celebration of our capital’s unrivalled cocktail culture.

Best of British Beer has created an advent calendar with a difference for this Christmas – instead of chocolates behind the doors, there are bottles of beer.

Nick is bowled over by the glamour of Berners Tavern. And the cakes are great too

Nick Harman jets into Jerez to taste a lot of sherry and to put aside some prejudices

It’s now rolling into the UK, Reblochon has descended from the French Alps but don’t just save it for the cheeseboard

We all need meals in minutes, don’t we?  It’s nice to think we can stand at the stove, wine in hand, idly stirring a homemade sauce but it only really happens on cookery TV shows where the host has little else to do all day.

Move over Greg Wallace, take a hike Simon Cowell. Nick Harman tries his hand at delivering judgement on hopeful cooking wannabes.

Let There Be Beer, the campaign to get the Nation to fall back in love with beer, has created the ultimate guide to organic brews. So whether you’re into your fruit beers, honey ales or lagers there is an organic tipple to tickle your taste buds.

Lunch used to be for wimps, now it’s all too often sad sandwich or nothing at all. Nik Speller has his delivered to his desk courtesy of Deliveroo.

There’s still time to get out the BBQ. In fact the weatherperson is suggesting we’re in for a spell of fine weather for a while. But of course you can’t usually trust the forecasts so keep the kitchen on standby