posted by Hilary on Mar 31
Right a little rant coming on here!!
How the hell can pubs have the nerve to charge such different prices for their drinks these days it’s a joke. Why is it that they seem to have the free will to charge whatever the hell they like. I had of glass of wine on Friday night; despite the fact that you can get the whole bottle at the offie for 6 squid, in two different pubs there were 1.50 differences in the price. What Joke!!
Oh yeah there was a happy hour on some dodgy cocktails which probably had no alcohol in them but hello happy hour only seems be at about some ridiculous hour like 3pm in the afternoon.
Come off it what with the economic crisis at the moment, not all of us can go out every week but when you do you now need a small mortgage.
For god sake you can’t move on the high street for buy one get none free offers or 50% off promotion sod that what about the pubs doing to help us out too.
Look I am not saying that drinks should be as cheap as the Supermarkets and I am not promoting binge drinking on cheap booze, but come off it how the hell can some pubs justify the prices they are charging! Give us a break. I know little local pubs are forced to up their prices due to the breweries and keeping themselves in business, it’s a furious circle, but how the hell can the major chains seem to charge whet ever the hell they want!
What do you think?
posted by Hilary on Mar 27
A case of wine was awaiting for me on the doorstep the other day when I arrived home, 15 wonderful bottles of Spanish Wine. I bought these from one of the multiple online wine merchants and if you’re savvy purchaser there are a number of bargains to be had. This particular case consisted of 15 bottles of Spanish wine ranging from reserve Rioja to Temporillo, some of which were gold award winners. As well as the
15 bottles of wine I also received one of those Corkscrews that clamps onto the bottle and removes the cork in one easy action. And how much did I pay for this you may ask £56 plus p&p.
Ill try and keep you up to date on how the wines taste, so shop around if you enjoy wine it is often worth looking online for these wine merchants, supermarkets etc that often have some great introductory offers, usually without any commitment.
posted by Hilary on Mar 26
Cheeky Cheeky
Well its cheeky Thursday so what better way than to have little look at Cheeky Vimto
It is so easy:-
• 275ml blue WKD
• 50ml port
Did you know time:-
As you can see there is no actually Vimto present in the drink but got its name as when you mixed, it tastes just like it, hence Cheeky Vimto (naughty Vimto)
It is thought that the Cheeky bit comes from “going for a cheeky half”.
It is often said the drink was invented by Kris Aidan Jones in the mid. Cheeky Vimto’s were made famous by lovely lass Charlotte Church, but really came to fashionable too when Dublin resident and socialite Samuel Dupernex started drinking them.
Original Vimto is made up of the juice of grapes, raspberries and blackcurrants (in a 3% concentration), flavoured with herbs and spices.
Vimto was born 1908 Manchester, (Yippee). It was originally had the name Vim Tonic as it was registered as a health tonic or medicine. It which was shortened to Vimto in 1912 and in 1913 classed as a cordial.
posted by Arty on Mar 25
There has been a lot or press recently about the price of alcohol, units, underage drinking, binge drinking… the list goes on.
So what can be done to tackle this problem and why is the UK so different to the rest of Europe ? One suggestion that seems to be popular at the moment is to have a minimum price per unit of alcohol. The idea being that the stronger the alcohol the more you pay, targeting the cheaper and stronger drinks such as alco-pops and the paint stripper cider that is available at most corner shops, the drink of choice for those wishing to get drunk quickly. So would this work, who knows ? Certainly something needs to be done to make alcohol harder to obtain by the groups of underage drinkers on a weekend who’s sole purpose is to get drunk ! Making the alcohol more expensive, stiffer penalties for those that sell or buy them the alcohol, better education etc in the hope of preventing problems in later life and the social norm to get hammered every weekend !
So what do you think ? any suggestions ?
posted by Hilary on Mar 25
Look I must start by saying that i am NO cocktail mover and shaker with regards to creating new delicious new drinks. Don’t get me wrong I am some what of an expert on tasting them…. but inventing new little numbers? not quite sure about that!
Any how, how hard can it be? I am not saying there isn’t an art form and a skill to it, but I there is something about following your nose knowing what you little. My hubby throws the right ingredients together when cooking, as he understands individaul tastes and spices and therefore understands what will completement each other ….. it’s all about have the confidence to give it a go and having fun.
I had a little go last night…
What you need .. this is very basic.. well it is my first one yes i know there is probably a name for this aleardy but give me a chance to catch on!
Berry Blush
- Handful Raspberries
- Handful Blackberries
- Orange juices tumbler glass
- 2 shots of Gin - any kind
- Crushed Ice cubs
Crush raspberries and blackberries together, leaving a couple for garnish
Add crushed fruit into a shaker with ice
Pour in Gin and orange.
Shake, strain and Pour into glass
Put remanining fruit on a cocktail stick and add to glass to look pretty.
posted by Hilary on Mar 24
I dont know about you but my other half always gets the munchies when he has had a few beers, as I guess most people do, hence the need for bar snacks.
So what goes well with beer ? here are a few suggestions which you may like to try, some of which you may have heard, some you may have not!
Wassabi Peas - Peas (yes peas) dried and coated in wassabi powder and then sealed in a can, these can usually be found in your local chinese deli shop or online. This may sound horrible but trust me, they are spicy and go excellent with the odd tipple, an excellent alternative to peanuts.
Beef jerky - A trusted old favourite of air dried beef available online and now in most supermarkets. jerky comes in numerous flavours from plain to chilli.
Bill-tong - This is the South African varient of jerky and again comes in numerous flavours, again available on line.
Pork Scratchings - Traditional bar snack, the only snack that comes with hair !!
And of course the Kebab !
posted by Hilary on Mar 23
Oh my god this is gorgeous and such the It drink to be sipped. Believe it or not you can only get in two places in Manchester serve Bluu and Living room. Sod that why not try and make it at home its soo tasty and sooo flash plus easy
Its only 6 years old and given birth by James “jimbo” Mulroney for Living Ventures (Living Room). It is one of their best selling drink getting through 110 bottles of Gran Marnier a week for this drink alone!!!
- 4 fresh strawberries, hulled
- 5 fresh basil leaves
- 1 ounce pravda vodka
- 1 ounce Chambord raspberry liquor
- 1 ounce Grand Marnier
- 3 ounces cranberry juice
1) Muddle strawberries and basil in shaker base.
2) Add other ingredients and shake with ice.
3) Use a fine strainer into a martini glass.
4) Garnish:. dust with black pepper and floating basil leaf.
posted by Hilary on Mar 21
Well here i am very busy writing about cocktails with my nieces April and Georgia. And you never guess what drinks they picked… they’re very pink and very alcoholic!!!! I didn’t play any part honest
This is a very special cocktail only for very special people. My niece is shouting out lovely cocktails for me to write about and guess what they have to be pink!!! So what do we need????? Believe me i have checked this recipe a lot of time and there really is all this alcohol!!
April’s Strawberry Wine Cup
- 1lb of big fat English Strawberries
- 2oz of Sugar
- .. wait for it… HALF A PINT OF BRANDY!!!!!!
- 1 bottle of dry white wine
- 1 bottle of rose wine
- splash of lemonade.. well come on we can’t drown the wine can we
Oh i have just checked the recipe again and this is for 20 people .. mmmm we’ll see !!! Chop up 12oz of strawberries put at the bottom of a bowl with sugar and brandy Leave for one hour Add the the rest and serve as chilled as possible decorate with teh remaining strawberries
Well what a surprise Georgia picked out teenage fruit punches but was very quick to tell me that you can add cidar to make it alcoholic!!
Georgia’s Rasberry Ginger Punch for 18 people (or 10 teenagers)
- 1 and half pound of raspberries
- 2 table spoons of sugar
- 2 pints of ginger beer
- 2 pints of soda water.. or cidar
- mint
- ice cubes
Crush most of fruit with sugar Pour on the ginger beer put in bowl before serving add soda or cider few whole raspberries and mint. Then dish out and slurrprprprrprprprp
posted by Hilary on Mar 19
Mother days on Sunday and I bet you’re stuck for some ideas
Well here you go tell you Mum to put her feet up and make her a few lovely concoctions of cocktails. For extra brownie points name the drink after her!!!
Tea Tini - Lovely Martine
• 1 3/4 oz vodka
• 1 oz sweet iced tea
• 1/4 oz fresh lemon juice
• Lemon wedge for garnish
Preparation:
1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes.
2. Shake well.
3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass rimmed with sugar.
4. Garnish with the lemon wedge.
Forget the flower you can put them in the glass - add a splash if flavoring such small amount of berry, lavender, rosemary
Or what not a nice gentle refined cocktail call
White Lady
• 1 1/2 oz gin
• 3/4 oz Cointreau
• 3/4 oz lemon juice
Preparation:
1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes.
2. Shake well.
3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass
posted by Hilary on Mar 18
Well today I thought I would dedicate this blog to all those out there that are looking for love. Look I am not getting all sloppy or Bridget Jones on you but I thought some romance was in order.
Last night I was having a very lengthy discussion with some girlfriends as to what is the best way to find the right guy. Oh my god if only I had the solution I would make a million pounds. It all ended up sounding a little like how to be a millionaire as to how we had all either met our partners or the ways we hoped we would find them!!
a) Phone a friend
b) Night out pub, club
c) Dating Agency
d) Or hope for the best… the old fashion free dating experience the chance meet!!! This one caused sooo many flash backs to films we had watched!
So these my lovelies these are for you xxx
Dream Love Cocktail
• 3/4 oz. Triple Sec
• 1 1/2 oz. Brandy
• 1/4 tsp Anisette
Put in the shaker and you know the rest
True Love Punch
• 1 1/2 oz white rum
• 1/2 oz Triple Sec
• 1/2 oz guava juice
• 1 oz pineapple juice
• 1 oz orange juice
• 1 dash Myer’s rum
• Dash grenadine
Shake well and serve in a tall glass over crushed ice. Garnish with orange slice, cherry and a broken umbrella
