Charred Cork Cocktail

68% of all cork is produced for wine bottle stoppers.

Cork has been used to seal wine bottles since the 6th century BC, in Tuscany, the Romans used corks to seal amphorae and barrels that contained wine, they did also use olive oil to cover the surface of the wine in amphorae which prevented oxidation, this method has stood the test of time, with a bottle of wine referred to as Römerwein, being discovered during an excavation of a 4th-century AD Roman nobleman’s Tomb in 1867 dating back to 325-350 AD, around 1650 years old.

Going back to the cork, the bond between cork and wine would rather fall apart during the dark ages, they had gone on to using a stopper made of wood wrapped in hemp, then soaked in olive oil, but the cork couldn’t be kept away from wine for long, coming back into play during the year of 1680, when a Benedictine monk re-introduced the use of the cork for sealing wine bottles.

The Sparkling Wine – No.1 Family Estate

No.1 Family Estate was born in 1977 by Adele & Daniel, they chose the name No.1 Family Estate in recognition of the many ‘firsts’ in New Zealand wine they had achieved over the years while working on their first venture, Cellier Le Brun.

They released their very first Cuvée No.1 on Bastille Day in 1999 and in 2012 their No.1 Assemblé was the first wine in New Zealand to be labelled ‘Méthode Marlborough’ in place of Méthode Traditionelle.

Check out the time when I had to deliver one of their Sparkling Wines to Middle Earth: Lord of the Rings – One Sparkling Wine To Rule Them All

No.1 Family Estate – Cuvée No.1 – New Zealand – Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Oaky, woody, smoky oak, wood chips, with green fruits, soft green fruit citrus, lightly toasted cold toast with a drop or two of green citrus on the aroma.”

Flavour – “Refreshing, mouth-watering with lightly toasted bread, crisper green fruits with softer oaky and woody characters, finishing with some subtle lime citrus on the palate.”

Silver Medal in the Oaky & Toasty Category at the Glass of Bubbly Awards 2022

The Rum – Fenspirits

Fenspirits Distillery, despite its wonderful creations, only operates out of a small shed in the fens, just outside of Wisbech.

They ferment and distil everything from scratch, fermenting sugar from sugar beet and distilling it into a 96% spirit for Vodka, before then re-distilling it into Gin, they also ferment sugar cane molasses which is then distilled into rum.

Each bottle is filled by hand, corked by hand, wax sealed by hand then labelled by…well you get the picture!

Spiced Rum – Tasting Notes – “Spiced with charming sweet spices, including cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, the best of the festive spices, with attractive sweet vanilla and a surprising zest from an orange.”

Cocktail – Charred Cork

Ingredients

• Oaky & Toasty Sparkling Wine
• Spice Rum
• Ginger Syrup
• Cinnamon Powder
• Cork

How To Make The Charred Cork Cocktail

• Start with 15mls of Spiced Rum
• Add in 5mls of Ginger Syrup
• A Small Sprinkling of Cinnamon
• Pour in 75mls/top up with your Oaky and Toasty Sparkling Wine
• For the Burnt Cork Garnish – Carefully lightly burn the outskirts of a cork and then carefully slice a slot in the base to place on the rim of your glass

Charred Cork Cocktail Tasting Notes

Aroma – “”Sweet woody spices, with charming cinnamon and ginger and notes of burnt oak and cork on the aroma.”

Flavour – “Sweet, with syrupy ginger, gifting a tingly/spicy sensation on the palate, combined with oaky and toasty characters, oaky, woody, burnt oak, alongside sweet spices of cinnamon and cloves, with faint notes of crisp green fruits on the palate.”