Adnams announces two new serves
Suffolk-based brewery Adnams has released of two new products, Adnams Oyster Stout (4.3% ABV) and Adnams Wild Wave Blush Cider in keg format.
Made from East Anglian Pale Ale, Crystal and Chocolate malt alongside English Goldings hop, the new stout, available in cask format from 27 February at RRP £4.70 per pint, is a classic dry stout offering chocolatey, rich and nutty flavours with a roasted coffee finish balanced by a mild bitterness and hints of liquorice and light spice that pairs well with seafood.
As well as the new stout, Adnams Wild Wave Blush Cider (4% ABV), which pairs well with chicken or fish dishes and offers aromas of fresh cider apples with soft notes of rose petals, will be available in keg format from the beginning of April at RRP £4.80 per pint.
Both new products will be available for the trade to purchase from the brand's online shop, Rockpool.
Amazon launches its first wine collection
E-commerce giant Amazon has announced the launch of its own branded wine collection.
The collection consists of a variety of ten wines from across the world, including an Argentinian Malbec and Australian Chardonnay as well as a South African Sauvignon Blanc and a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon.
Available from Amazon UK, the serves, which have all been selected, tried and approved by masters of wine, come in 75cl, 3L or a 6-bottle options, ranging in price from £6 to £10 a bottle with prices for cases of 6 starting at £33.34.
MacNair announces new cask strength whisky
MacNair’s Boutique House of Spirits, owned by independent spirits firm GlenAllachie, has released the next iteration of its decade-old Blended Malt Scotch Whisky: Lum Reek 10-year-old Cask Strength Batch 2.
Curated by acclaimed blender Billy Walker and bottled at its natural cask strength of 55.8% ABV, this second instalment combines single malt whiskies from two Scottish regions, Speyside and Islay.
With peated and unpeated spirit contained in the blend, the flavour profile is said to entail “gentle smoke and sweet spice in perfect harmony”.
Once blended, the spirit was filled to a mix of Sherry, red wine and virgin oak casks for an additional aging period; picking up further character from the wood and allowing the whiskies time to marry.
Walker said: “There’s something wondrous about bottling a whisky at cask strength. Perhaps it’s that it provides an opportunity to taste it as if you were sampling straight from a cask in the warehouse; the experience is incredibly special.
“Lum Reek is a blend I hold close to my heart. It presents the chance to introduce Speyside and Islay single malts to our GlenAllachie spirit, balancing the honey-sweet house style of our whisky with Islay peat smoke and Speyside spiciness. The outcome is undoubtedly delicious.”
MacNair’s Lum Reek 10-year-old Cask Strength Batch 2 is available now from the Whisky Shop at RRP £63.
Small Beer Brewing Co releases new IPA
London-based brewery Small Beer has released its first new beer in two years, Hazy IPA (2.6% ABV).
The new serve is a refreshing, sessionable beer offering apricot and mango flavours alongside aromas of stone and tropical fruits with full-bodied British malts. Although still characterised as an IPA, the beer is less bitter than some of the more traditional IPAs as the hefty dry hopping gives it a juicier character.
Additionally, Small Beer's Hazy IPA contains just 96 calories per can with organic oats added to build protein and achieve the beer's natural haze.
Small Beer co-founder Felix James said: “We have so much confidence in the core Small Beer range that we rarely release new beers, but we were excited by the challenge to brew a New England-style in South Bermondsey that punches well above its weight.”
“We love brewing with British hops as they have so much to offer, but we knew we had to source something a little more exotic to achieve the juicy flavour and character of a Hazy IPA. We had a lot of fun experimenting in the brewery and chose three punchy US hop varieties: Citra, Mosaic and El Dorado.”
Small Beer Hazy IPA is available now direct from the brand's webshop at RRP for £14.25 for 6x330ml cans and in 30 litre kegs for the trade.
Silent Pool expands super-premium gin portfolio
Silent Pool has expanded its portfolio with the release of its latest super-premium gin expression, Black Juniper Gin (43% ABV).
Made from the rarest and purest black juniper berries sourced from Bhutan, the Surrey-based distillers new serve is created using a five-stage production process.
Production begins by smoking the Black Juniper with oud, followed by the distillation process which uses carefully selected botanicals including Coriander Seed, Angelica Root, Orris Root, Liquorice Root alongside Tasmanian Mountain Pepper spices.
Rare teas are then macerated and distilled separately before being added to optimise flavour complexity. Botanicals including bitter orange, manuka leaves and olive leaves then develop the blend further, before a final infusion of oud takes place to match the intensity of aromas with the depth of Black Juniper’s natural essential oils that flavour the gin.
Silent Pool marketing director Rhian Billington said: “Genuinely innovative projects are integral to us. Working closely with Michael Rutland, the UK’s first honorary consul in Bhutan, on this private commission of Black Juniper berries has allowed us to create a truly remarkable gin blend that exceeds the expectation of our discerning customers and fellow gin producers alike.
“It was also important to us that we could incorporate Bhutanese culture into each step of Black Juniper Gin’s production.
“We’re excited to see the reaction to this truly remarkable blend from Silent Pool, and where it may lead us to as an independent gin distillery.”
Silent Pool Black Juniper Gin will be available from 16 March in 700ml bottle format direct from brand at RRP £295.
If you have any new products being released to the on-trade, email the details with high resolution images before Thursday at midday for potential inclusion on Friday’s article to Rebecca.weller@wrbm.com.