Broken Shed Vodka and Quina Fina Tonic

 I have a renewed respect for cows this morning armed as I am with the knowledge that they, or should I say whey, is the source for the good stuff in Broken Shed Vodka.

Broken Shed pull off the neat trick of taking this unpromising sounding by-product of the cheese making process and through the alchemy of fermentation and quadruple distillation produce a fine liquor.  This is then blended with the purest of Southern Alps water (the other main ingredient) to produce a premium quality vodka.

The guys behind Broken Shed call Wanaka (in the South Island) home and the Broken Shed refers to their original, less than auspicious, distillation facility. The vodka itself is smooth with a pleasing oily consistency and has some welcome heat in the finish. It’s an approach that has already gained them plaudits, recently picking up a Silver Medal at the 2011 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

“Purely for medicinal purposes Old Boy” has been the clarion call of the colonial lush for years in far flung corners of the Empire.  In the case of Gin and Tonic (specifically tonic) this has some basis in scientific fact.  Quinine, extracted from Ecuadorian Loxa bark has been used by native people for generations for its fever reducing qualities.

It’s to this source that Quina Fina Tonic (kee-na-fee-na) founder Alexander Gledhill returns for the quinine in his drop. Appropriately it comes packaged in a dinky brown glass apothecary style bottle. It’s an all natural product containing no preservatives or chemical nasty stuff.

Quina Fina lacks the cloying sweetness of its mass produced rivals and its citrusy acidity sits well with the aformentioned vodka or indeed puts a welcome spin on the ubiquitious G+T.

New Zealand mixologist Jacob Briar has created some original cocktails featuring Quina Fina Tonic. Check them out here.

Chin Chin!

Both products are available from Glengarry Wines and a growing number of discerning drink vendors nationally

Whisky Galore!

The third Thursday of each month sees Malt Club at Glengarry Wine’s Victoria Park store.  It’s hosted by Glengarry head honcho and whisky enthusiast Jak Jakievich which explains their fine in-store selection of single malt whiskies.

As befits my heritage, I know a little bit about Irish Whiskey but I am a relative novice when it comes  their Scottish counterparts.

The format this month was a blind tasting with eight Malts up for identification and discussion.  Jak gave us newbies a brief introduction to Scotland’s whisky regions Speyside,  Highlands, Lowlands, Islay and the islands with an explanation of their various styles from peaty and briney Island malts to the richer chocolately Highland styles.

Whilst my team of novices had no chance of identifying the brands, we certainly had fun sampling the delicious range of styles on offer. The rich and caramelley Chivas Regal 18yo and toffee banana nosed McCallan 10yo were personal favourites and were complemented nicely by a fine selection of cheeses from Dida’s – Glengarry’s on-site Spanish Tapas Bar.

We also sighted one of the first bottles in New Zealand of the resurrected Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt. A faithful recreation of the whisky which was recovered from beneath Shakelton’s Arctic hut last year, abandonned after his unsuccessful South Pole expedition in 1907. After analysis it was recreated by Richard Paterson, master blender at Whyte and Mackay. It comes in authentic period packaging and will only be available in extremely limited numbers.

Malt Club was fun and filled with gregarious chaps (and a couple of ladies) one of whom won a bottle of Jura having correctly identified four of the featured whiskies.

I’m particularly excited about Tuesday August 16th  when Malt Club will flip the script and have a rum special hosted by Mount Gay Global Brand Ambassador, Chester Brown. A rare chance to catch this legendary character in New Zealand.

Malt Club happens again on June 23rd. Check their website for details of upcoming events.