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WORDS Shamim de Brún Valencia Island Vermouth is
a winner baby! Last month the incredible wifely team of Anna and Orla Snook O’Carroll took home the Drink Award at the Irish Food Writers Guild Awards for their brand Valentia Island Vermouth. Vermouth is a stalwart in the cocktail department and up till these ladies up and decided to shake up the game, it was almost universally from mainland Europe. On Valentia island, this trailblazing duo dove headfirst into the local flora and fauna, getting all experimental in their kitchen to whip up their very own vermouth creation. Their concoction now has some serious accolades. It’s well worth a try. You can pick up a bottle from Mitchell & Son, Redmond’s, Baggot Street Wines and Spirits, Martins Off Licence and all good independent bottle shops. valentiaislandvermouth.ie Diplomático Rum is about to be everywhere A lot of the time rum gets a bad rep. Diminished and belittled because it is one of the only spirits that you can make anywhere in any way you please. But Diplomático is a brand of rum from Venezuela that is high quality, diverse and a bit funky, in the best way. The rum comes from a distillery at the foot of the Andes mountains that has been producing high-quality spirits since 1959. This year it is poised and ready to take Dublin by storm. They recently had a no-holds-barred event at The Shelbourne, and the rum, distributed by Edward Dillon, has landed in some of Dublin’s finest cocktail bars. Expect to see it crop up all over the gaff this spring and summer. rondiplomatico.com Ranked in the Top 20 of BEST PIZZA in Europe! Cirillo’s offers authentic Italian antipasti, pasta dishes, and wood-fired pizzas for lunch and dinner, with all our pasta, breads, and pizza dough made fresh in-house every day. OPENING HOURS MONDAY - FRIDAY: 12 pm - 2:30 pm 5 pm - close SATURDAY: 1 pm - 10 pm SUNDAY: 2 pm - 9 pm CONTACT LOCATION 140 Baggot Street Lower Dublin 2 BOOKING T. 01 676 6848 E. info@cirillos.ie Closed Bank Holidays www.cirillos.ie 41