Things have been pretty chilly here in Jerez, with record low temperatures in recent days. There has been snow all over Spain, even in places that don’t often get it. One way I like to fight the cold is with a little nip of something strong. I used to be quite fond of a shot or two of single-malt Scotch Whisky.

I’m not sure about the rest of the world, but in the UK Spanish brandy usually equates in peoples’ minds with cheap and probably fairly nasty. Something not to be drunk without a mixer; an barely palatable alcohol-delivery mechanism. I have to admit, that is what I used to think, however, since moving to Jerez nearly 4 years ago I have met and got to know a family of very interesting Spanish brandies.

Brandies de Jerez, like the wines and vinegars from this area, are carefully crafted, fantastic spirits but somehow manage to hide their light under a bushel. They really should be a lot more famous. These are not just Spanish brandies, they are in a different league.  The Jerez brandies are aged in a solera system and I don’t know of any other brandy aged in this way. Solera usually = quality, so I’m fairly certain the best Jerez brandies could give top examples from around the world a good run for their money. The solera system also produces every-day Jerez brandies which are pretty damned good!

Amusingly, both my current and former cold-weather tipples of choice are related; second cousins probably. Old sherry butts are used to age Brandy de Jerez and most whiskies have a sherry butt or two in their genealogy. Some of the bodegas around here go as far as making …

As much as I love wine, I also adore a solid mixed drink. There are days that call for a Bombay Sapphire and tonic with just a spurt of lime, while others call for a dry vodka martini with three olives, not two or four, but exactly three. Therefore, as we begin to wrap up our month long devotion to Spanish cava, all varying styles and types, it behooves me to mention some intriguing, and not so intriguing, cava mixed drink recipes we recently stumbled up in Las Buenas Companias: El Libro de los Cocktails de Cava by Jose Maria Gotarda. Given to us by the European Marketing Manager for Raventos i Blanc, Rosa Aguardo, this book was originally designed as a promotional tool for their wines. Although I was unclear how successful it was in marketing their cavas, I was crystal clear on the fact that Rosa preferred her cava pure, without any additional bells or whistles added. We, on the other hand, love to experiment with our cava, and of the 25 recipes compiled in the book, I’ve whittled the list down to the top five recipes I found interesting for one reason or another. So what you’ll find below is not only the recipe itself, but the hows and whys behind the creation of the drink.

Terciopelo Negro, Black Velvet

1/2 Guinness
1/2 Cava Brut

Ever been to an Irish bar and asked for a Black and Tan or Black Velvet? My first experience with a Black Velvet (Guinness and Woodpecker) left me speechless at 21 wondering the physics as to how they layered liquid on liquid. Thinking the Irish were mixed drink magicians, only later discovering that their passion for alcohol was more of an Olympic sport, I was humbly …