Drinks of the Month

Indulgent chocolate drinks for Easter
Why should the kids have all the fun at Easter? These days there are a number of indulgent chocolate-flavoured liqueurs and wines that make up for being (almost) too old for an Easter egg.
The first is a Polish chocolate vodka liqueur under the Chopin label called Likier Czekoladowy which is so thick and unctuous it’s almost like a chocolate sauce (maybe that’s how it’s meant to be served) While it’s definitely for the sweet-toothed - think chocolate flavoured condensed milk - it’s also got an impressively natural chocolate taste. You can buy it from The Whisky Exchange for £14.15 a 50cl bottle and, I suspect, a fair number of Polish shops and delis.
Even better is an Italian whisky liqueur called, rather entertainingly, Cioccowhisky in which you can actually pick up both the chocolate and the whisky. I liked it but thought it might not be so appealing to the sweet-toothed chocolate-loving friend I was testing it out on. However a blissful look passed over her face and she said it was “the best BY A MILE.” That’s £16.15 at The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt.
If you enjoy the combination of red wine and chocolate about which I’m never wholly convinced (love red wine, love chocolate but a bit dubious about the two together) you may like Rubis which tastes like chocolate flavoured port and which you can get delivered next day if you’re on Amazon Prime. They charge £12.75 a bottle though you find it cheaper elsewhere - Frazier's in Solihull for example do it for £9.49. Harvey Nichols has it for £13. I also tried the Marks & Spencer’s copycat version Chocolate Ruby which isn’t quite as good but should be easier to get hold of. In theory. It’s not showing on their website.
Also frustratingly elusive is the M & S Black Forest Gateau liqueur which is actually as rich and indulgent as its namesake. You can buy it as part of a set of six liqueurs for £60 online but may be able to pick up an individual bottle in store. Which I would. Think boozy cherries with a hint of chocolate. Good enough to dispense with the cake ...

Feeney’s Irish Cream Liqueur
If you’re not a fan of whiskey or the black stuff* there’s another way you can celebrate St Patrick’s Day this week and that is with Feeney’s Irish cream liqueur.
Before you say ‘bleugh’, bear with me. I don’t have a sweet tooth and I found myself demolishing an entire glassful.
It is of course outrageously sweet - imagine condensed milk and double cream blitzed with a Galaxy bar. Which would be pretty cloying at room temperature but well chilled or poured over ice it tastes - rather wonderfully - of frozen chocolate bars.
It would be be ridiculously good poured into a chocolate milk shake (adults only, obvs) or you could use it to make the pannacotta in my St Patrick’s Day supper menu.
Tempted? It’s on offer at £12 a litre at Tesco which compares well to £12-13 a standard 70cl bottle elsewhere. Do it!
*Guinness should you be unfamiliar with that phrase.
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