Smirnoff is stirring up some holiday spirit with a collection of gifts to thrill the closet bartender on your gift list. Look inside a traditional Russian Matryoshka doll and usually what you’ll discover are five or more increasingly smaller wooden figurines. But take off the lid of Smirnoff’s Black Matryoshka, and your surprise is a bottle of premium vodka. The special holiday bottle container, a doll’s face painted in gold on a deep black exterior, also doubles as a cocktail shaker. Smirnoff’s Black Matryoshka is available at Selfridges and Waitrose in [Great Britain] for around £20.99.
LEON Ingredients and Recipes
This really is the funnest cookbook that has ever crossed my desk. Things suddenly pop out, charts and tables are stored in pockets, and a double page of a cupboard opens up to reveal the contents. It’s like those books we had as children, where every page was a revelation inside hard-backed covers that boasted a solidity that was reassuring and comforting.
No beating about the Bush
Irish whiskey, my favourite whiskey, and when it comes to a drop of the Irish, Bushmills have been practicing the art at Ireland’s oldest working distillery in Co Antrim, Northern Ireland for a very long time, 400 years in fact.
Look What We Found!
No it’s the not the cry that goes up when we search the Financial Director’s desk on a Friday afternoon, but the name of a range of ready to eat meals that show that fast food needn’t be either tasteless or unethical.
These are dishes that feature the finest ingredients from ‘best in show’ small producers with full traceability right back to the individual farmer. They’re made from 100% natural ingredients and are ready to eat in minutes, yet due to innovative packaging can be stored in the cupboard for months.
A glass of spice and all things nice
BROWN BROTHERS, the innovative Australian winery, has teamed up with the creative cooks at Geeta’s to bring together spicy food and wine combinations to celebrate National Curry Week.Brown Brothers is passionate about creating unique wines to be enjoyed with food, and many of its wines match perfectly with spicy dishes such as Geeta’s authentic Indian cuisine.
Roller coaster economy creating new lunch deals
To help diners deal with a roller coaster economy “Credit Crunch” lunches are popping up in fine restaurants all across London. The latest venue to offer customers a discount is the Embassy London in Mayfair. Diners will receive ten percent off the usual a la carté and group dining menus.The Embassy Credit Crunch Lunch menu will be prepared under the supervision of three times Michelin starred chef Garry Hollihead. You’ll still find yourself enjoying the same elegant meals the Embassy is known for, but your wallet won’t feel as light afterwards, and the discount will nearly pay for your tip.
Tickle tastebuds with Beaujolais
While most of us have a pretty good idea of what we’re going to cook for the Christmas meal, wine choices often get made during last-minute sweeps of supermarket aisles. To make choosing wine less stressful, bone up on the many varieties of Beaujolais that might be a perfect match for your holiday meal. The light, fruity red wines, best served slightly chilled, match menus all year round but really come into their own during the holiday season.
Vapiano: where pasta and massages greet weary shoppers
Is your credit-crunch neck ache interfering with your Christmas-shopping trip? Vapiano on Portland Street is fighting the economic slump by reviving worried, tired shoppers with free spa treatments along with fresh Italian meals. Statistics show that eighty percent of consumers are more likely to continue shopping after a rejuvenating break.
Brown Brothers’ favourites: Tarrango, Dry Muscat and Orange, all under £7
If you’re looking for a reasonably-priced wine to go with your Christmas turkey or gourmet goose, Brown Brothers, an Australian wine-maker, has three wines on their list of house label favourites that might be just what you are looking for.
Create your muesli and name it, too
Love muesli, but can’t find the perfect mix? Not anymore! Muddy Cook recently launched a website so Muesli-lovers can make their perfect mix from over one-hundred organic, preservative-free ingredients. Customers can even decide on the name of their mix and have it printed on the pack.”Muddy Cook came about because of my love of muesli and my dislike of raisins,” said owner Claire Lettice. Among the items visitors to her site can choose from are ‘superfoods’, such as quinoa, oats, walnuts, and almonds.