This spring, Cutty Sark blended Scotch whisky is celebrating its 100th anniversary with a partnership that pays tribute to the legendary ship that inspired its name.
The whisky was founded in London in March 1923, during the prohibition era, and was named after the fastest ship in the world, Cutty Sark. At the time of the whisky’s invention by London’s Berry Bros & Rudd, the famous tea-clipper was docked in England.
Fast forward 100 years and Cutty Sark is celebrating with a new range of cocktails created in collaboration with The Tea Leaf Company. The new cocktails pay homage to Cutty Sark’s tea-trading past and are the perfect way to toast the whisky’s 100th birthday just in time for National Tea Day on 21 April.
The partnership has resulted in the release of three tea-infused cocktail recipes that offer a modern twist on classic Cutty Sark cocktails. Each recipe features one of The Tea Leaf Company’s award-winning loose-leaf blends, blended with Cutty Sark’s light, easy-drinking whisky.
“Cutty Sark was founded 100 years ago as an adventurous new type of whisky, taking inspiration from the endeavours of the Cutty Sark ship and its crew,” explains James Collins, marketing manager at Cutty Sark. “Our new collaboration with The Tea Leaf Co. has been created with that same bold spirit, delving into our past but putting a modern spin on our classic cocktail serves. Cutty Sark is wonderfully smooth, mellow, and made to mix, so these flavour-packed, easy-to-make cocktails are perfect for enjoying at home with friends.”
Cutty Sark Blended Scotch Whisky: Tasting and Verdict
Open the rather bottle, with its somewhat dated design, and you’re presented with a whisky that’s got quite an appealing nose. There’s a light, herby, floral note to it, with a bit of spice and some orchard fruits.
On the palate, you’ll find a solid Speyside flavour, with mixed fruit, barley, vanilla and light citrus flavours bursting through. It’s not delicate, with a somewhat harsh note to it, but waters down nicely — it’s perhaps a whisky to mix with ginger ale or just lots of ice. The finish is just long enough, with the fruit lingering, with some malt and honey mixed in there, too.
Cutty Sark is a light, uncomplicated dram, but one that belies its relatively budget price tag — it’s just £19 from Amazon
. It’s nicely balanced with sweetness evened out by barley and citrus notes. It won’t have you putting the bottle of Glendronach 29-year-old back in the cabinet on a special occasion, but it’s a perfectly fine whisky for the base of a cocktail or three…
Cutty Sark Cocktails: CuTea Clipper
This cocktail is a homage to the Cutty Sark’s maiden voyage, where she returned from China with enough tea on board to make 200 million cups. The sweet, orchid-like flavour of the Tea Leaf Co’s No 07 Ti Kuan Yin Oolong, combined with the rich and warm notes of Cutty Sark Classic, makes this the perfect drink to unwind with at the end of a long day.
- 50ml Cutty Sark whisky
- 50ml brewed The Tea Leaf Co. Ti Kuan Yin Chinee Oolong
- Soda water
- Lemon
Stew the tea leaves in a cup of hot water for three minutes, and then leave to cool. Add the whisky and tea to a highball glass filled with ice and stir to combine. Top with soda water and garnish with a lemon wheel.
Cutty Sark Cocktails: Orange Old Fashioned
An elevated version of the classic Cutty cocktail using The Tea Leaf Co. No 05 Blood Orange infusion, which is bright and tangy, and packs a bold, citrussy punch that’s as tart as it is sweet.
- 50ml Cutty Sark whisky
- 10ml The Tea Leaf Co. Blood Orange Tea syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- 2 dashes orange bitters
- 1 orange peel to garnish
Make the syrup by combining equal parts of steeped Blood Orange tea and granulated sugar in a pan, and, over heat, stir until the sugar dissolves. Put in the fridge to chill.
Fill a mixing glass with ice and add the whisky, Blood Orange Tea syrup and bitters, and stir for three minutes. Fill a rocks glass with ice and strain the liquid into the ice-filled glass. Garnish with an orange peel.
Cutty Sark Cocktails: Smuggler’s Spice
Prohibition-era bootlegger Bill McCoy imported Cutty Sark whisky to America. In case of a raid, his speakeasy patrons would keep things hush-hush by sipping their hooch out of dainty teacups. A hundred years on, we’re serving up mugs of our Smugglers Spice cocktail featuring Tea Leaf Co’s Smuggler’s Spice Indian Chai.
- 50ml Cutty Sark whisky
- 20ml fresh lemon juice
- 20ml Tea Leaf Co. Smugglers Spice Chai syrup
- Small spoon of honey
- Ginger beer
- ½ a pear
Muddle the pear with honey and lemon in a cocktail shaker. Add the whisky and ice and shake. Strain over fresh ice into a mug. Top with ginger beer and garnish with two pear slices.
For the syrup, combine equal parts steeped chai tea and granulated sugar in a pan, and, over heat, stir until the sugar dissolves. Put in the fridge to chill.
