Aldi Specially Selected Creme de Cassis

You may not remember but back in the '70s kir was ‘a thing’ - the drink you invariably got offered in a cod French bistro or poured for your friends as a sophisticated aperitif back home.

With more glamourous cocktails and the rise and rise of prosecco it’s somewhat fallen from favour but it’s still a lovely summery drink and perfect for this time of year.

All you need is a bottle of crème de cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) and one or two bottles of dry white or sparkling wine - nothing with too much flavour of its own. The traditional go to was aligoté which at that time was uncomfortably sharp - you could use something like a petit Chablis these days or, cheaper, still, a pinot grigio.

If you’re making a kir royale use a fresh-tasting rather than a toasty champagne or a cheap French crémant sparkling wine like Aldi's Cremant du Jura. (Most prosecco is in my view too sweet).

How to make a kir

A small splash in the bottom of the glass - not too much or it will taste of Ribena, top up with wine or fizz - et voilà! Robert is indeed your oncle.

The reason I’m revisiting this is that Aldi is stocking a Crème de Cassis liqueur which has just won a gold medal in the International Wine and Spirits Challenge beating off competition from much more expensive bottles. I haven’t done a comparative tasting but can definitely vouch that it’s deliciously blackcurranty.

Cassis is also useful for adding extra oomph to a summer pudding or a blackcurrant sorbet which is a good idea as it needs drinking up relatively quickly. I suggest within a couple of weeks which shouldn’t be too hard . . .

Drink of the week: Warner Edwards Harrington Sloe Gin

If you’re going to stay with someone - or even just have a meal with them - over Christmas, it’s good to take along a bottle of some kind and if you don’t know their taste in wine why not make it gin?

Warner Edwards, which is run by two good friends Tom Warner and Sion Edwards, was one of the finalists in the drinks category of the BBC Food & Farming Awards I judged earlier this year. I liked their whole range, especially the rhubarb gin but sloe is perfect at this time of year.

It comes handsomely presented in a wax-sealed bottle and a box so looks as if you’ve spend money on it. (Which you have. It’s around £30 from online retailers including John Lewis and Amazon - which is expensive for sloe gin but at 30% it’s higher in alcohol than most which makes it suitable both for cocktails and sipping.) I can strongly recommend trying it with Stilton or pouring it into a hip flask for your Boxing Day walk …

Waitrose Heston Fruit Cup

I’ve never been a great fan of Pimm’s so I wasn’t expecting much from the Heston Blumenthal Fruit Cup which has just been launched by Waitrose.

It’s produced by Chase Distillery and based on the Heston Earl Grey and Lemon Gin which I was also surprised to like as much as I did.The fruit cup also includes elderflower, blackcurrant and raspberry liqueurs.

They suggest you serve it in a tall glass with lightly crushed raspberries and a couple of fine slices of peeled fresh sliced ginger. Pour over 2 x 25ml measures of the Heston Fruit Cup and 150ml ginger ale (so 1:3), add a few cubes of ice, a squeeze of lime and garnish with fresh rosemary and lime zest (not sure about the zest as a garnish but the rosemary makes it.) It’s incredibly good - fruity without being too sweet and with a lovely aromatic note from the bergamot you don’t get with Pimm's.

You can also apparently mix it with lemonade, sliced strawberries and mint.

It’s on an introductory offer at £16 until June 4th when it will revert to a rather pricier £21.35 so I’d snap up a couple of bottles now.

Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao Triple Sec

I was trying to think what would be the most useful drink to recommend over Christmas. Sloe - and damson - gin are favourites but there’s nothing as useful as an orange liqueur.

This one is a full-strength dry curaçao from Pierre Ferrand - which is made from 3 separate distillations of spices and the peel of bitter curaçao oranges (hence the description ‘triple sec) blended with brandy and cognac. Amazingly some branches of Marks & Spencer now stock it for £25.99 though you should also be able to get it from specialist shops like Gerry’s of Old Compton Street.

You can use it in cocktails such as Cosmopolitans and Margaritas obviously but it’s also a great addition to a Bucks Fizz, orangey trifles or cakes, mince pies and - a recent discovery - clementine marmalade where it added a kick you wouldn’t normally get with a sweet orange marmalade.

If you can’t track it down or don’t want to pay that much Aldi has a very decent orange liqueur for £5.99 (for 22% ABV though rather than Ferrand’s full strength 40%) though it was sold out the other day when I was in store. Or you could of course indulge in a bottle of Cointreau or Grand Marnier.