And I could bore you with the ins and outs, but it's all pretty dull, so I'll spare you... essentially I'm back and ready to get stuck back into Feast and Glory.
So, let me tell you about an event I went to recently. Organised by Craig Macdonald, Brand Ambassador for Langtons No 1 Gin, this lovely, informal event consisted of meeting up with a couple of other bloggers and some people from the local bar industry for a few (too many) gin and tonics.
Craig was keen to let the gin do most of the talking and we started off by trying it neat. He'd also laid out all the individual botanicals used in Langtons, so we were able to have a smell and taste of each one to see if we could then find the flavour in the gin itself.
We then moved onto gin and tonics (and a rather special chamomile cocktail*) whilst Craig talked us through the gin's history and the reasons why he thinks it's so special.
And, essentially, it mostly comes down to the water used. Sourced from an aquifer that sits under the mountain of Skiddaw, Keswick and Derwent Water, the water is up to a million years old and has been filtered through black slate that is 450 million years old.
All sounds pretty amazing, yes? Well, added to this magical water is a blend of eleven botanicals including ancient Lake District Oak Bark (which smells absolutely divine by the way). And, well, the end result is a smooth, yet flavoursome gin that is perfectly enjoyable on its own with a little ice, with a little tonic or in a cocktail.
Langtons No 1 Gin retails for around £30 which might seem a little pricey to some, but I think it's actually quite good value given the quality of the ingredients and the smoothness of the end product... I'll be buying some as soon as I've finished the last stuff I bought.
* made with 40ml Langtons, 20ml Homemade Camomile tea syrup, 15ml Fresh lemon juice, 2 drops orange bitters, egg white and topped with soda.
