MICHAEL GREEN’S WINE NOTES #260

Some interesting new drinks have been introduced to KwaZulu-Natal by Vanda Davies and Dennis Banks, both well-known personalities in the Durban liquor industry. They are representatives in the KZN region for a new liquor firm based in Cape Town. It is called BlueSky Brands and it has been established by David de Mardt, former chief executive of Pernod Ricard South Africa.

Among the BlueSky products being distributed locally by Vanda and Dennis are Magnum whisky cream liqueur and two low calorie, non-sugar cocktails with the amusing and rather sophisticated name Thinlizzy. Tin Lizzy was the affectionate nickname given to the Model-T Ford cars which in the early 20th century were the first cars to be made on an assembly line and to be generally affordable. Nearly 15 million of them were sold between 1908 and 1927.

The Thinlizzy cocktails come in two types, a pink Cosmo and a green Majito. They are advertised as being “a guilt free drink”; they have no sugar and less than 42 calories per serving. Their sweetness comes from monk fruit, an intensely sweet gourd-like small fruit that was first cultivated by Buddhist monks in China 800 years ago.

Thinlizzy has an alcohol volume of 6 percent which comes from premium vodka. Plain vodka and other spirits are usually 43 percent alcohol. The Thinlizzy Cosmo cocktail has flavours of cranberry, citrus and lime, the Majito tastes of mint and lime.

They should be served in a cocktail (martini) type of glass, poured over crushed ice. The pink Cosmo should be garnished with a twist of lemon, the yellow Mojito with mint leaves or lime wedges. These drinks originated in the United States not long ago and have become popular in many parts of the world. They are now available in KwaZulu-Natal at most major bottle stores. Price: about R60 for a 750 ml. bottle.

The Magnum cream liqueur has also appeared on bottle store shelves. It is a delicious blend of Scotch malt whisky and Dutch cream, the result being a liqueur that has flavours of caramel, chocolate and toffee and, of course, whisky. The alcohol content is 17 percent. It comes in one of the most distinctive containers I have ever seen, a handsome reusable stainless steel flask with handles at the top and a screw-top.

Best chilled, this is a lovely drink for after-dinner sipping. It costs about R130 for one litre. –Michael Green