Paper Hats for Cuddly Teddies!
It’s Christmas – Go Crackers!
Following the success of their popular spirit-filled Christmas Crackers, Drinks by the Dram has introduced whisky and gin crackers for Christmas 2015.
‘Lewis’ The Bear modelling the fine paper hat – the joke has been hidden to protect the innocent!
Launched in 2014, Drinks by the Dram’s Christmas Crackers swap out the usual prizes of keyrings, whistles and tiny playing cards for a selection of delicious spirits and liqueurs, presented in 3cl wax-sealed ‘drams’. The set features 6 Christmas Crackers, each containing a different dram along with the traditional paper crown. Oh … and crap joke!
For Christmas 2015 they have extended the range of Christmas Crackers to include two sets focussed exclusively on whisky and a set focussed entirely on gin, alongside their classic set filled with an array of top quality spirits and liqueurs.
Luckily for me, I got sent some Drinks by the Dram Whisky Crackers – that’s generously bonkers of them!
The Whisky Crackers Contents are:-
– Glenfarclas 25 Year Old
– Kilchoman Machir Bay
– The Lost Distilleries Blend
– Dalmore 15 Year Old
– Deanston – Batch 2 (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)
– The Macallan Amber – 1824 Series
“Not bad!”, I hear you cry – well you didn’t and I wouldn’t have heard you anyway but you get the point. Anyway, in the spirit of spiritous research I decided to pull a couple myself and sample the liquid goodies (I couldn’t resist trying the hat on as well.)
I was on my own so it wasn’t as much fun so I had to make-do by tying one end to a door handle and cracking my crackers that way. Well. One must do what one must (I heard that said somewhere.)
Tasting Notes – Glenfarclas 25 Year Old (43%)
A premier bottling from a Premier brand – enough said.
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Nose: Powerful sherry, fruit, vanilla and creamy sweetness. Palate: Smooth and creamy sherry with a tangy zest. Sweet, fruity, spicy cake mixture. Finish: Long finish with some nice spice. Overall: A gorgeous dram this – make sure you win the pulling the cracker bit and claim this one for yourself. After all, who the hell said ‘Christmas is for sharing’? They obviously didn’t have a 3cl. sample of this bad boy! |
Tasting Notes – Dalmore 15 Year Old (40%)
Launched in 2007 and matured in matusalem, apostoles and amoroso sherry casks.
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Nose: Amazing colour to this dram, rich and golden. The nose has orange, sherry and sweet fruitcake. Palate: Thick and luscious on the palate. Orange and chocolate battle it out with some tasty sherry. Finish: Velvety finish with a great balance of syrupy sweetness and spicy pepper. Overall: A fine dram from a trusted brand. Let this one go to someone else but only as long as they promise to do ALL the washing up! |
Just to summarise, the full range of crackers are:-
Drinks by the Dram Whisky Crackers
RRP £64.95
Drinks by the Dram Gin Crackers
RRP £47.95
Drinks by the Dram Spirits & Liqueurs Crackers
RRP £37.95
Drinks by the Dram Premium Whisky Crackers
RRP £109.95
The Completely Crackers Range
The Premium Whisky Christmas Crackers (RRP £109.95), feature altogether more exclusive drams like a 23 year old Bowmore, a 21 year old Balvenie and even a 50 year old single grain whisky.
Gin enthusiasts can also crack open some fantastic tipples with the Gin Christmas Crackers (RRP £47.95), containing drams of spectacular juniper-based-libations like award-winning Professor Cornelius Ampleforth Bathtub Gin, St. George Terroir and 1897 Quinine Gin.
And of course, there will be new jokes this year (but don’t expect them to be any better than last year’s jokes).
I’m NOT going to share the jokes with you, I’ll spare you that and let you discover them yourself – and then inflict them on your family and friends!
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