The week in pictures

This week, in Hi-Res Photos of Celebrities Holding Spirits, actor Matthew McConaughey has took his role as creative director at Wild Turkey a step further on Wednesday, announcing the launch of his own signature bourbon — Longbranch — made under the guidance of master distiller Eddie Russell.

The star, whose showreel runs the gamut of genres from Dazed and Confused to Wolf of Wall Street to Magic Mike, is the latest in a string of celebrities to reach for the bottle to make a quick buck. Back in February, Ryan Reynolds bought a significant stake in the US-based Aviation Gin, becoming its new owner and creative director, calling it the “best damn gin on the planet” (well you would, wouldn’t you).

And further down the fame ranks, just last week several of the founding members of British reggae group UB40 released the latest 2015 vintage of their ‘Red Red Wine’, named after their eponymous 1983 hit single.

McConauhey is a staunch whiskey advocate, playing an active role in helping to develop Wild Turkey’s marketing. You can watch his latest advert below.

We’ve had beer brewed with space yeast and an Oregon IPA sent into orbit via helium balloon and now the first beer bottle designed for space travel is preparing to launch.

The brainchild of space engineer Dr Jason Held, the bottle uses modified technology from fuel tanks to defy the challenges of drinking beer in zero gravity.

And from space beer, we head to small beer. This week saw the official brewery opening of Small Beer Brew Co in London’s south Bermondsey. Dedicated to brewing small beer (1%-2.8% ABV) the brewer has two lagers and is set to unveil a new expression later on this year. Co-founders James Grundy and Felix James, both formerly of Sipsmith Gin, welcomed guests and served beer from a ‘mini bar’ – Grundy’s new pride and joy. Attendees were also treated to oysters from the Oystermen, low ABV cocktails from Three Sheets & Bar Three, cheese from Bambuni and food from The Gladwin Brothers.

Rioja CI Launch 2018. London.

Over in continental Europe, seismic shifts are afoot for Spanish wine region Rioja. Oenophiles and experts in the trade gathered for the launch of “The New Face of Rioja” on Monday at the Mondrian Hotel.

There have been some major changes to its quality tiers and regulations, which you can find out more on here).

A panel discussion hosted by Sarah Jane Evans MW and accompanied by Beth Willard, Buying Manager at Direct Wines, and Neil Bruce, Head of Wine at Fuller’s, looked at what the indications approved in Rioja in 2017 mean for the future of Rioja in the UK market.

Strike a pose! This week Phipps PR took a group of willing Indie merchants to Rioja to coincide with the region’s new ‘Saber Quien Eres’ campaign. Led by Phipps’ Alex Layton, among the merchants on tour were William Roots of The Sampler, Mike Stanton of Corks Out and Thomas Whitehouse of the Oxford Wine Company.

Drew Daigle of Mail Road, a cult winery from California’s Santa Barbara County, landed in Blighty this week to give top sommeliers and premium wine merchants a taste of his wines, touring London with importer and American wines specialist Flint in tow.

While in London Drew took in all the best spots, from 67 Pall Mall to Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester.

L-R: Jillian Vose (Beverage Director at The Dead Rabbit Grocery & Grog NYC), Beibhinn O Reilly (The Liquor Rooms, Dublin), The Rabbit, Linda O Rourke (MCM Spirits), Sean Muldoon (co-owner of The Dead Rabbit Grocery & Grog NYC).

Meanwhile in Belfast, the Northern Irish duo behind the multi award-winning New York bar, The Dead Rabbit Grocery and Grog, launched the Dead Rabbit Irish Whiskey in their home town of Belfast on Thursday night at the Duke of York.

Over 100 guests enjoyed a selection of Dead Rabbit Irish Whiskey cocktails, live music, whiskey toasts and red eye stares from The Rabbit.

Congratulations to Tony Lecuroux (pictured) of five-star Blackburn hotel Northcote Manor scooped the top place at the UK heat of this year’s Ruinart Sommelier Challenge.

Battling it out against 26 other budding master somms at 67 Pall Mall in London, he’s is now set to join 14 other champions from the 11 worldwide Ruinart Sommelier Challenge finas (held in the US, Nordics, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia) for an all-expenses paid trip to France this July, hosted by Ruinart’s Chef de Cave Frédéric Panaïotis.

Joe Hall from Satan’s Whiskers. (Photo: Belvedere)

While we’re on the subject of competitions, Belvedere Vodka has named the winners of the Grain To Glass tournament, which saw nine bars compete against each other on Tuesday night to design and bring to life a cocktail vessel that represents their bar’s history.

The winning creations came from Satan’s Whiskers’s Joe Hall, and Richie Hunt from Mint Gun. Their tipples will now go on the menu at the runner up bars including Quaglinos, Nine Lives, Stillwater, Nightjar, Rumpus Rooms and Reverend JW Simpson.

Bibemdum Wines’ Julien Greenall and Johnny Greenall, owner of The Duncombe Arms in Ellasmore, Staffordshire, hosted a Chateau Changyu-Moser XV wine dinner for lucky pub guests on Tuesday night. 

With the cocktail market now valued at half a million pounds in the UK alone, Matthew Clark, set out to help licensees tap into this growing opportunity with the launch of its 2018 cocktail package. This included a series of country-wide workshops, an online ‘advice portal’, as well as its first ever cocktail competition “Stir It Up”, aimed at increasing the accessibility of the cocktail category for the on-trade.

After creating signature summer cocktails in front of a live crowd and judging panel, each contestant also battled it out in a speed round, with mixologist Alex Mills taking the crown.