In search of a cocktail with a personal touch

Besides the sexiness and allure of cocktails, there’s something fundamentally appealing about them – we get to have a mix of lots of flavours in one glorious go, and we get to seem a bit more exotic than, say, our regular G&T allows.

A good cocktail can be like acquiring a new identity for the evening. So it was with much excitement and anticipation I headed down to Demijohn: The Liquid Deli in Oxford’s Little Clarendon Street this week to find out what flavours I’d mix into my very own Rebecca cocktail….

The Liquid Deli looks like a cross between Professor Snape’s potion cupboard and Tom Cruise’s bar in the film Cocktail.

In this way, it immediately appeals to both the child and the alcohol-loving woman in me. On each side of the shop are shelves lined with cauldron-esque goblets and rustic wooden kegs filled with brightly coloured liquids.

There’s even some promising-looking shot glasses that I can’t wait to get my hands on. I must warn those of you who hope to take up permanent position in the shop, shot glass poised: Demijohn is not licensed to sell liqueur over the counter for you to enjoy in-store – it is not a bar.

Happily, however, the shop does have a very special tailor-made licence that allows you to go in and sample as many of the tempting treats as you wish.

If you sample widely enough you’ll be Hippy Hippy Shaking it, Cruise-style, out the door.

It’s as I’m thinking about the Hippy Hippy Shake that an impossible question is posed to me: What kind of alcohol do you prefer? Shop manager Darren Anderson looks at me expectantly. I want to tell him that it depends on my mood, on the event, or on how bad a day I’ve just had.

But I don’t need to – he instinctively gets the measure of me. A little bit of everything? he ventures. And thus began my slow demise... Darren and his team of keg-carrying, bottle opening alchemists are more than happy to help you find just the right flavour, or to suggest good mixes.

And boy, did they help me. I personally found the Morello Cherry Liquer (£4.20 for 100ml) absolutely gorgeous. It reminded me of Calpol which I think says more about pharmaceutical companies’ cunning, getting us hooked at an early age, than it does about the medicinal properties of glorious alcohol.

Then there was Orange Seville Gin... and Butterscotch Liqueur… and their best-selling Rhubarb Vodka… Oh, it was all good, who am I trying to kid?

he team also put on regular Cocktail Evenings, including chats about the drink on sale, all-important samples and the opportunity to enjoy – legally – a full glass of whatever you fancy. According to Darren, the shop tends to have slightly more women customers than men.

Could it be the brightly coloured spirits? The fact that you expect Sexy Snape to appear in the doorway at any moment?

I imagine it may be the chance to experiment, as we ladies love to do, and take home manageable-sized bottles starting at 100ml so that a lonely, dusty specimen doesn’t have to spend year after year sitting at the back of your shelf.

Or could it just be that we women know a good thing when we stumble (and stagger) across it..?

I should also mention that Demijohn stocks vinegars and oils and chutneys too. But they’re just not as much fun as liquor, whiskey and spirit cocktails now, are they?

ESSENTIALS

Demijohn: The Liquid Deli can be found at 20 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HP, Call 01865 552 179 or see www.demijohn.co.uk

Opening Hours: Mon-Sat: 10am-6pm, Sunday: 12.30-6pm

The shop offers many choices for sizes, the smallest is 100ml, the largest 3,000ml (phew). You can even have a personalized message placed on your bottle for free. (I’d suggest ‘Hands off: it’s mine…”)

To put your name down for an exclusive Cocktail Evening, go online to contact (ttp://www.demijohn.co.uk/contacts) or you can pop into the shop yourself and put your name down…

Rebecca’s cocktail

My favourite was simply Morello Cherry with a dash of prosecco – I call it the Moorello Cheeky Cherry