PRODUCTS
Mauritian Rum
Mauritius is one of a few countries that produce both industrial and agricultural rum. We import the rum from three different distilleries, two of which produces industrial rum and one agricultural rum. Industrial rum is obtained by distilling molasses, a by-product of the production of cane sugar whereas agricultural rum is obtained by fermenting and distilling pure sugarcane juice (the vesou).
Green Island Superior Light Rum
This rum has been around since 1960 and to this day remains in the same distinctive packaging. The rum is made from molasses and has gone through a 4 column still. Green Island Superior Light Rum is a blend of 3 and 5 year oak aged rums. During the ageing process the rum takes on a golden colour from the oak casks. The aged rum then undergoes a charcoal filtration where the golden colour is removed without affecting its taste profile. The rum is extremely smooth and has a lot of complexity on the nose and palate. Hints of grass, aniseed, herbs, coconut, chocolate, fennel and cane are just some of the aromatics coupled with a creaminess and subtlety that makes it unusual and yet a very impressive rum.
Green Island Spiced Gold
It’s hardly surprising that Mauritius, being on the original spice route, would not produce a spiced rum. The base for the Spiced Gold is Green Island Superior Light Rum with spices added. The recipe remains a secret but it’s possible to detect vanilla and cinnamon on the nose which follow through onto the palate, cloves and ginger then come into play too. This is well rounded with a good balance of spice, great in a spiced mojito.
Flamboyant Vieux Rum
This is a blend of oak aged rum of up to seven years old. The oak used to age the rum are used Bourbon casks. On the front of the bottle of Flamboyant is a picture of the tree ‘Flamboyant’ which flower is the national flower of Mauritius. Flamboyant comes into flower during the time of independence in March when the trees lining the sides of the roads in great avenues are ablaze with brilliant red colour. Golden in colour due to oak maturation, the rum has no artificially added colours. This is fantastic sipping rum with a big, smooth, well-rounded nose and palate.
Green Island Overproof Rum
For many years Green Island Superior Light Rum has been the iconic rum of the island and it is with this in mind that Green Island (UK) Ltd has produced a strictly limited 151 overproof edition. With only 2400 bottles being produced each bottle is individually numbered. The rum is made from molasses and is put through a four column still. The final product is a blend of up to 5 year old, oak aged rums which have undergone charcoal filtration to remove the straw colour gained from the ageing process. The character and complexity of the 151 is true to the Superior Light with notes of aniseed, mint, grass and vanilla just being a few of the many hints and flavours to be found in Green Island Rum.
Brazilian Cachaça
A Brazilian invention, discovered by chance between 1530 and 1550 during the production of sugar, the history of cachaça can be confused with the history of Brazil. Initially it could be found exclusively in the sugar mills but with the passage of time improvements in the production techniques were made and cachaça became appreciated by a growing number of the population and was included in palace banquets, having a great importance in the economy of colonial Brazil. The authorities were worried with the fall of sales of Portuguese wines and "bagaceira" in the Brazilian colony and alledging that cachaça was harmful to the production of gold mines, the Portuguese court passed laws that banned, unsuccessfully, the production and sale and even the consuption of cachaça, which was then considered one of the principal products in the Brazilian market. In 1822, cachaça was the chosen drink to toast the independence of Brazil and Emperor D. Pedro I and his court made it a point to toast with a glass of cachaça. In 1922, in the Week of Modern Art, cachaça became known as an official Brazilian symbol. In 2000, this was the drink chosen by then President Fernando Henrique Cardoso to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of Brazil.
Terra Dourada Cachaça
The name Terra Dourada means Golden Land in English and was chosen to reflect the sheer beauty of Brazil. All cachaça is made from fermented sugar cane juice, which is then distilled. This is an un-aged cachaça, which is perfect for making Caipirinhas. Clear and pure in appearance with soft, sugar cane aromas on the nose which then follow through to a smooth, light, fruity palate.
Terra Dourada Ouro Cachaça
This cachaça has been aged for 2 years in French and Scottish oak, hence the golden colour. It carries all the characteristics of the un-aged but with an even smoother, softer palate, it is complex and well rounded, suitable for sipping.
Terra Dourada Caipirinha
This is made using Terra Dourada Cachaça which has been blended with just the right amount of sugar and lime to make a perfect caipirinha.
Pingo de Ouro Cachaça
In 1956, Dom Alzemiro Agostinho Coelho, founded the company “Coelho & filhos Ltda”, as a family business with a passion to produce cachaça. In 1984, the company changed its name to “Industria de Bebidas Pingo de Ouro Ltda”, and today the company is run by his sons, Dom Gilson and Antonio Coelho keeping up the family tradition. Pingo de Ouro means drop of gold and pinga is a common nickname for cachaça which is derived from the drips of condensation that drop from the ceiling in the distilleries where cachaça is produced. Pingo de Ouro has big, fresh cane notes on the nose which then follow through onto the palate. The palate is soft and supple with good mouthfeel, the finish is smooth with touches of lingering sugar cane.
Terra Vermalha 100% Organic Cachaça
Terra Vermelha 100% Organic Cachaça is a handcrafted product produced by an environmentally friendly company in the South of Brazil. The distillery is certified organic by the IBD (Institutio Biodinamico), USDA and IFOAM. It has also recently received accreditation from the OFF (Organic Food Federation) in the UK. The organic sugar cane is hand harvested and the juice is organically fermented. This is then put through traditional copper pot stills. Only the ‘heart’ of the distillation is used in the production of Terra Vermelha. The cachaça is rested for between 6 and 12 months in purpose built barrels made of jequitiba rosa, a noble Brazilian hard wood which is considered to be neutral in flavour. Terra Vermelha has an incredibly fresh and fruity flavour profile. Clean, lively fruit and sugar cane dominate on the nose and then follow through onto the palate. The cachaça is very smooth and supple with a great freshness.
Mexican Tequila
The Tequila for Tequila XQ has been much more than a drink, it is a culture of the Mexican people and a lifestyle, and to manage to produce the tequila of the highest quality in the world; all the process comes from their own facilities. The process begun three generations ago, from the quality of the earth, the water, and after four years to take care of them to each plant of blue agave tequila weber, they are selected with extreme care by their sugar content, choosing the best ones that passé to the co-foundation in the furnaces of stone and brick. Later, we extract its aromatic juice to ferment them with a 100% natural process and then through a process of triple distillation. Finally, we obtain the tequila of the best quality in the world, by its purity and flavour of the 100% natural blue agave.
Tequila Climax
All Tequila is made in Mexico from one specific type of maguey (agave) plant called Weber blue agave, there are about 400 varieties in all. This tequila joven (young) is suitable for house pouring. The distinctive red and black packaging certainly stands out.The tequila is soft and smooth without massive, earthy agave flavours or aggressive alcohol, instead it offers smooth and soft agave notes with a good clean, almost sweet finish. A very good introduction to tequila for the un-initiated.
Tequila Exquisito Blanco
For about 2000 years indigenous populations of Mexico have been drinking the fermented juice of the agave plant, this is known as pulque. Represented on the front of the Exquisito is a picture of “Mayahuel” a goddess of the Aztecs who apparently had 400 breasts from which she fed 400 gods - pulque. For the Aztecs 400 was a number that simply meant innumerable. Exquisito Blanco offers a smooth agave nose with hints of vanilla, very soft and unctuous on the palate with an easy, well rounded finish.
Tequila Exquisito Joven
It was the Spanish Conquistadors who introduced distillation techniques to Mexico and they were the first to distil pulque when they had run out of their own alcoholic beverages. One area shined in terms of producing the best flavoured spirit, it was around the small town of Tequila. This was the birth of Tequila as we know it today. Exquisito Joven is golden in colour and offers full, ripe, baked agave notes on the nose. The palate is very smooth with slight pepper notes and full vanilla and caramel flavours. A lingering, smooth and silky finish.
Tequila XQ Blanco (100% Blue Agave)
Agave looks a bit like aloe vera and it can take up to 10 years to mature. When all the leaves have been removed the plant looks a bit like a pineapple and so are called piña’s. XQ Blanco is un-aged and made from 100% blue agave. The hand selected agave piña’s are slow baked in a traditional oven which softens them ready to be crushed and the juice extracted. This Tequila has delicate, citrusy agave notes on the nose. The palate is smooth and tinged with white pepper. The finish is long and supple.
Tequila XQ Reposado (100% Blue Agave)
Agave juice is fermented and we have an alcoholic wash known traditionally as pulque, which is then distilled. At XQ distillery they use traditional copper pot stills and put the spirit through three times, using only the ‘heart’ of the distillate. Reposado means rested and a reposado can be rested for up to one year. XQ Reposado, as the whole range, is incredibly smooth, largely due to the triple distillation technique used. Rich yet clean agave flavours with hints of vanilla.
Tequila XQ Extra Aged (100% Blue Agave)
The Anejo is aged for over 3 years and at XQ they use three different types of new, wooden casks to age their Tequila’s in: American white oak, French Limousin oak and Mexican Encino barrell. The nose is full and rich and sweet vanilla notes shine through. The palate is warm and soft with notes of aniseed and white pepper. This is a perfect sipping Tequila of great depth and weight which is also incredibly well balanced.
Amigo Loco Liquor
It’s party time, time to go loco with the amigos. It’s time to lighten up; time to sweeten up your life with a tangerine drink. Wherever you decide to celebrate, at the beach, on a mountain or at home, make sure to carry with you this excellent drink that will make you so popular that you won’t be able to stop dancing all night. After all, its clever combination of our best blue agave tequila with Russian vodka and Mexican organically grown exquisite tangerines is so charming and perfect that it will make you smile at life. If it’s time to play and run wild, it’s time for amigo loco.... the party bottle.
Polish Vodka
The origins of whether it was Poland or Russia who first developed vodka are hotly disputed, each country claiming to be the originator. One of the first written references appeared in a Polish document as early as 1405 but it’s very likely that vodka was already being produced and enjoyed in both countries. Poland and Russia do at least agree on the term Vodka which comes from the word voda meaning water and Vodka literally means little water, a safe option in times of unsafe drinking water. The tradition of Polish distillery can be dated back to 1762. With more than 2 centuries of constant ‘business as usual’ activity in spite of all the historical and social upheaval in Wroclaw they have stood firm to uphold the traditions of their master distillers “the best Polish vodka from the best Polish distilleries”. During its’ history Wroclaw has indeed seem some changes, not least its’ name, for it has also been known as Wratislavia and Breslau.
Krakus Vodka
Krakus is one of the oldest and most well known brands of vodka available in Poland and other parts of the world, now for the first time, it is also available in the UK. Krakus is made from mixed grain and highly filtered water to ensure no unwanted taste, smell or colour is imparted. Consequently, Krakus is very clean and smooth on both the nose and the palate. It offers a soft, creamy texture with good length, it is very well rounded in flavour and has no aggressive alcohol burn.
Wratislavia Vodka
Wratislavia comes in 50cl to maximise the unique packaging. The bottle is wrapped in a 15th century lithograph of a panoramic view of Wroclaw. The vodka is made from mixed grain and is incredibly smooth and supple with a clean, fresh nose. The palate is soft and easy with good creamy notes and a lingering finish.
Faust Vodka
Faust is made from 100% Polish rye. As with the other vodkas from this Polmos distillery the palate is very smooth without any harsh burn. The rye gives a slightly peppery, spicy note which adds complexity and structure. The overall impression is a clean, supple vodka with hints of spice on the palate and a long, smooth finish.
Faust Cranberry Vodka
Faust Cranberry is made using Faust 100% Rye vodka. It is very clean and smooth on the palate with notes of fresh cranberry. Slight spicy notes come through from the rye and the cranberry is luscious and not overbearing. Fruity but without an artificial sweetness often found in other flavoured vodkas. The finish is smooth and dry with good crunchy red fruit notes.
