RAISE A GLASS

The year is ticking on by, and before you know it, I’ll be sharing Christmas gift ideas and wine treats.

This then, is my last column before I launch into things topped with tinsel and drinks with a festive flourish.

So this week’s missive is just another example of my weekly sipping routine. What have I been pouring into my glass?

The Co-op has launched a beer with the soap favourite Coronation Street as part of its partnership with ITV.

The retailer officially opened its Weatherfield store on Coronation Street in April 2018. Co-op ‘R Ale (£1.60, 500ml) worked with Robinsons Brewery to create the beer.

Kate Flanagan, from the brewery, says: “The traditional architecture of Manchester and Salford pubs gave us a lot of great inspiration for the bottle label, and we were keen to emulate the red brick, ornate tiles and stained-glass windows found across the north of England in cosy, home-away-fromhome places like the Rovers Return.”

The beer – a blend of three hop varieties – is a refreshing ale, with a malty sweetness and fruity undertones.

My soul needed warming up after a few days hunkered down in a countryside holiday cottage as the heavens opened outside. Shanky’s Whip (RRP £24, online at Amazon, Master of Malt) is an Irish whiskey-based liqueur new to the market this year.

I’m a bit of a pushover for whiskybased liqueurs and this is the first I’ve tasted from Ireland. It’s a blend of Irish spirits, and aged pot still whiskey, with the added flavour of vanilla, and then infused with caramel.

The sip is a dream of dark, delicious, burnt toffee and a finish which warms and soothes. I loved it and I’m sure it would make a gorgeous tipple poured into a milky hot coffee.

My last non-festive thought before the weeks ahead, is a warming autumnal cocktail made from Hotel STARLINO Elderflower Aperitivo (RRP £23, 75cl, Amazon, Master of Malt and selected independents).

The aperitivo has notes of pear, lychee, elderflowers and citrus.

For an elderflower negroni (you know I’m a convert to negronis!) then combine 30ml of STARLINO Elderflower, with 30ml of gin and 30ml of Suze liqueur with plenty of ice. Stir, and then pour into a chilled glass with a squeeze of lime.

Jane is a member of the Circle of Wine Writers. Find her on social media and online as One Foot in the Grapes.