Sour cherry negroni, fuller fat old fashioned and Hepple gimlet? Yes please.
Like a beacon of good news in a currently chaotic world, the team at Hawksmoor have expanded their fantastic Hawksmoor at Home range with the release of Cocktails at Home.
Now you can slowly and pleasurably anaesthetise yourself with some carefully created top quality concoctions in the comfort of your own home. You don’t even have to dress up (unless you want to, of course.)
The pre-mixed cocktail selection will be available to order for nationwide deliveries from today (Wednesday, 4th November.)
Some drinks are new, and have been created especially, while others are much-loved classics because you’re going to miss them
“With uncanny timing, the new drinks launch at the exact time when we can no longer buy a drink from a restaurant, bar or pub - although we can of course fill our boots from supermarkets and off licenses,” say the folk at Hawksmoor, who have been as confused about the rules and Government U-turns as the rest of us.
“Although in recent weeks the UK has been divided over the relative importance of alcohol (England said it can only be drunk with a whole pizza, but not a slice of pizza; Scotland said it mustn’t be drunk in Glasgow or Edinburgh, but could in Aberdeen; and Wales has deemed it more essential than children’s clothing), all seem to agree that the Brits deserve a decent drink in the comfort of their own home."
We wholeheartedly agree (although please drink responsibly folks.)
Inspiration for the ever-thorough Hawksmoor drinks range apparently goes back to the godfather of modern bartending, Jerry Thomas, who in 1862 wrote that bottled cocktails are well suited to “fishing and other sporting parties, although some patients insist [on them] in the morning as a tonic”.
Hawksmoor decided to channel this noble lineage, bottling and canning a few cocktails of their own - some drinks are new, and have been created especially, while others are much-loved classics because you’re going to miss them while restaurants and bars have had to close.
Rest assured, all have been mixed with love and contain a secret ingredient: sprezzatura, an old Italian word that means ‘concealed artistry’. In short, deceptively seemingly simple drinks that belie the hours of painstaking research, trial-and-error and technique that has gone into them. All you need to do is refrigerate, pour over ice, garnish and enjoy.
Bottled Cocktails at Home range features four drinks, each serving two people (200ml) and priced between £12 and £14 and £48 for a set of all four.
Ultimate Dry Martini –
When the team were in New York trying (and, due to Covid, failing) to open a Hawksmoor an olive’s throw from the birthplace of the Martini, they delved deep into the drink’s history, taste-toured its evolution and tried dozens of variants before coming up with The Ultimate. Made with Hepple Gin, a top-secret blend of vermouths and a few drops of lemon oil made for Hawksmoor from amazing lemons grown on Filicudi, a tiny island off Sicily. At the perfect dilution, all it needs is an hour and a half in the freezer. No shaking, no stirring, the perfect Martini every time.
Sour Cherry Negroni –
That bitter-beautiful Italian aperitif with preserved English cherries adding a memory of late summer, a bygone era when people were still able to enjoy a drink together in the sunshine (remember that?)
Fuller-fat Old Fashioned -
A leisurely sipper that requires a painstaking process of infusing brown butter into bourbon. Sweetened with tonka bean and with a hint of chocolate and toasty oak from the barrel-aged Woodford Reserve.
Hepple Gimlet
The Gimlet started life as a rough and ready scurvy cure in the British navy. This slightly more refined version is flavoured with a cordial made with blackcurrant leaves foraged from the botanical heaven that surrounds the village of Hepple in Northumberland. Can be served ‘straight up’ from the freezer or topped with soda or Champagne.
A set of four canned Cocktails at Home are single serve and can only be purchased as a set for £28.
Ginza Highball -
Inspired by the old school cocktail bars of Tokyo’s Ginza district where white-jacketed bartenders have long mixed highballs with painstaking precision. A blend of Johnny Walker Black Label, distilled quince, apple and lemon verbena soda. Light, delicate and moreish.
Hawksmoor Calling –
A long, dry remix of an old favourite, the Hawksmoor Collins, that draws a little on a great millennial, Milk & Honey’s London Calling. Made with honey and chamomile-infused gin, lemon and a touch of dry sherry, topped up with soda.
Back Burner –
The fruit of many years’ work trying to create the perfect spicy margarita. A blend of Mezcal, Tequila and distilled pasilla chilli bring smoke, heat and punch, with added tang from homemade pineapple soda.
20/20 Cosmo -
A grown up take on the ‘80s classic that retains all the fun of the original but with the additional complexity of orange wine and a big hit of fizz.
Hand drawn illustrations on bottles and cans are courtesy of long-time Hawksmoor collaborators SAINT design. They are inspired by different eras of cocktails’ past, from a simple Arts and Crafts-style Martini cockerel to the fun and frivolous neon ‘80s parrots on the 20/20 Cosmo and Back Burner cans.
Cocktails at Home are a part of the growing Hawksmoor at Home range, available for nationwide deliveries initially for the next two weeks. Further delivery dates will be released every two weeks. Cut off for deliveries is midday 48 hours prior to desired date. To order, click here
