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Taking time to live well
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Photography: Gary Congress

Photography: Gary Congress

Recipe | Crab apple whisky

Lottie Storey October 4, 2017

Harvest crab apples from a local wood or hedgerow while they’re ripe for picking and make this gorgeous tipple, which will be ready just in time for Christmas.

Serves 10–12
About 750g crab apples
70cl whisky
5 tbsp honey or sugar
3 slices of fresh ginger

1 Give your crab apples a good wash and dry. Halve them and place in a 1-litre sterilised jar. Top up the jar with whisky as you go. Swirl in the honey or sugar. Tuck in your ginger slices or any other spices you might want to add (a cinnamon stick, halved vanilla pod, cardamom, cloves).

2 Make sure the apples are fully covered by the whisky. Secure the lid. Let it infuse till Christmas, or longer if you can wait. If you can, leave it for up to 3–5 years it’ll veer towards the likes of Calvados. So, maybe make one for now, and one for later.

Recipe from How to Eat Brilliantly Every Day by Abel & Cole (Ebury Press). 

 MAY ISSUE   Buy  ,   download  or  subscribe   Order a copy of:  Our new Homebird bookazine    Flourish Volume 4 , our wellbeing bookazine  A Year of Celebrations  – our latest  anthology  See the sample of our latest issue  here   Listen to  our po

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

 

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In Eating Tags issue 64, october, alcohol, whisky, crab apple, christmas, homemade
1 Comment

Burns Night: Notes on Whisky

Lottie Storey January 25, 2017

Fancy a wee dram, but not sure which one? Here's a cribsheet on some of the best bottles today

The Balvenie Thirty

Rich, smooth and with distinct honeyed overtones, this mellow Scotch malt has spent over 30 years relaxing in European oak sherry and oak whisky casks

Glenfarclas 21

Produced at a family-run distillery, a full-bodied Speyside Scotch with hints of nutmeg, tropical fruit and almonds on the nose, and a pleasant smoky finish

Talkisker Single Malt

Talkisker is the only distillery on the Isle of Skye and they're proud of their connection to the sea. Watch out for the 'lava of the cuillins' - a chilli pepper catch in your throat

Ancnoc 16 Year Old

Pronounced 'a-nock', this is a malt whisky that describes itself as having a mind of its own. Look forward to zesty fresh flavours, spice and a 'stick to your teeth' toffee

Redbreast 15 Year Old Whiskey

One of the few remaining 'pure pot still' Irish whiskeys, its fans say it tastes of sugar-coated fennel seeds, cinnamon and, um, children's cough medicine

Hibiki 12 Year Old

A Japanese blend partly matured in plum liqueur barrels and charcoal filtered through bamboo. Boasts an exotic nose, a smooth vanilla-rich taste and a generously long finish

 

Read posts from the February issue:

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Competition: Win with Nature's Path Organic cereals
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Recipe: Feelgood fish fingers
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More drinks ideas:

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 MAY ISSUE   Buy  ,   download  or  subscribe   Order a copy of:  Our new Homebird bookazine    Flourish Volume 4 , our wellbeing bookazine  A Year of Celebrations  – our latest  anthology  See the sample of our latest issue  here   Listen to  our po

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here

In Eating Tags january, burns night, whisky, whiskey, the expert, alcohol
Comment
Featured
 MAY ISSUE   Buy  ,   download  or  subscribe   Order a copy of:  Our new Homebird bookazine    Flourish Volume 4 , our wellbeing bookazine  A Year of Celebrations  – our latest  anthology  See the sample of our latest issue  here   Listen to  our po
February 27, 2026
February 27, 2026

MAY ISSUE

Buy, download or subscribe

Order a copy of:
Our new Homebird bookazine

Flourish Volume 4, our wellbeing bookazine
A Year of Celebrations – our latest anthology

See the sample of our latest issue here

Listen to our podcast – Small Ways to Live Well

February 27, 2026
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The Simple Things is published by Iceberg Press

The Simple Things

Taking time to live well

We celebrate slowing down, enjoying what you have, making the most of where you live, enjoying the company of of friends and family, and feeding them well. We like to grow some of our own vegetables, visit local markets, rummage for vintage finds, and decorate our home with the plunder. We love being outdoors and enjoy the satisfaction that comes with a job well done.

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