The 4 Cornish drinks you need to know about
Cornwall is home to some of the UK’s most wonderful scenic views, and what better way to experience them than by sitting back and enjoying a delicious drink. With the coastline nearby, the sea breeze and the rolling hills, Cornwall is the pinnacle for inspiration for these brands. We’ve created a list of the drinks you need to try on your next stay at a Cornish holiday park.
Polgoon
The beautiful seaside town of Penzance is home to the award-winning Polgoon vineyard and orchard where the delicious Polgoon wines, ciders and juices are created. After spending years working as fishing merchants, John and Kim Coulson embarked on a new adventure which led to their first wine harvest in 2016. It didn’t take long for their wine to be recognised as outstanding, and soon the artisan drink was award-winning. Today, Polgoon offer a variety of wines, ciders and juices including their ever-popular Raspberry Aval, a low alcohol raspberry fizz.
We asked Polgoon what it is about their products that makes them so tastefully unique: “Here at Polgoon we grow and press all of the grapes that we use to make our still and sparkling wines. This means that all our wines are single estate, something that is quite rare in the wine world. The grapes which grow here in Penzance are the grapes we use in our wine.”
The artisan brand takes inspiration from the Cornish coast in everything they create, as you can see clearly in their branding and website. Polgoon continues to tell us how they are hugely influenced by the beautiful county of Cornwall: “The climate, the terroir – it all plays a part in creating the aroma and flavour of a bottle of our Cornish wine. The granite soils here at Polgoon give our wines a distinct minerality that can only be described as Cornish. Some people say they can taste the Atlantic sea breeze in our wines!”
Curio Spirits
This Cornish brand specialises in creating artisan gin and vodka. Curio was founded by husband and wife team William and Rubina Tyler-Street in 2012 and have since been producing products made only with fresh and natural ingredients. Adventure seems to be at the core of this exciting brand, with even their name stemming from the word curious. The delicious range of spirits started with their Wild Coast Gin which is made with a diverse range of botanicals and blended with rock samphire.
We spoke to Rubina from Curio to find out more about their products: “Our philosophy was that provenance and quality are a must, and this is what our fans love about us. We distill four times with quality grain spirits, fresh botanicals and spring water, for a purer, smoother finish. It’s great to see customers sample Curio spirits and see the look of sheer delight on their faces. That’s when you know you’re doing something right.”
Anyone who has ever set foot in Cornwall can see that it is a place like no other, which makes it no surprise that it is the inspiration to many brands of drinks, and Curio is no exception: “Cornwall has a huge influence on our products. The flora and dramatic coastline of the Lizard Peninsular is truly inspiring so from the outset we made sure that all our gins would include local botanicals. Rock samphire, seaweed, blueberries are all locally handpicked and we use natural spring water from the Cornish Alps.
“Because we are so proud of our Cornish heritage, we had the word ‘Cornwall’ embossed on our custom-made bottles. The environment is obviously important to us all but when you work in an area of outstanding natural beauty this is certainly going to have a significant influence. So much so that we changed our bottles from premium flint to made from recycled glass – the first in Cornwall and one of few in the UK; we also changed to paper labels and recyclable capsules. And last but not least our bottles are now produced in the UK significantly reducing our footprint on the planet!”
Fowey Valley
At Fowey Valley, orchard perfectionism is key. Each apple that is used to make their Sparkling Vintage Cider is carefully selected so that the taste of the cider is nothing but delicious. The cidery is located near Fowey where the founder, Barrie Gibson, has set up a small orchard. We asked Barrie why Fowey Valley Cider is so different: “Most mass market ciders are made from apple-flavoured sugar water using chemicals and flavourings and colourings. Fowey Valley cider is only made from fresh apples grown within a few miles of our cidery and you can taste the difference.”
Cornwall’s heritage is a massive part of Fowey Valley: “The west country is the real home of cider in this country and fine cider in Cornwall goes back hundreds of years. In fact, the sparkling wine method was invented in the west country for fine cider in the early 1600s, many years before Dom Perignon (of Champagne fame) was born. Our ‘champagne-style’ cider is a direct descendant of that tradition.”
Padstow Brewing Company
The beautiful fishing port town located in North Cornwall is where you can find the Padstow Brewing Company which was founded in 2013. Due to the high quality of the beer, the company quickly expanded, and they are now able to brew around 9000 pints a week. Padstow Brewing Co. is run by husband and wife team Caron and Des Archer who work together, along with a small team, to produce their hand-crafted beer.
We asked the Padstow Brewing Co. why their beer tastes so great: “We are a truly independent microbrewery making real ale and craft beer on the rugged North Coast of Cornwall. We are dedicated to quality and flavour. All our beers are brewed in small batches to high standards. We make a wide range of products to suit the palette of every beer drinker!”
Cornwall is more than just the location of the brewery as it is embedded in the whole culture of the brand, their tag line follows ‘A pint of Padstow’. They continue: “Cornwall influences many things from our ideology to our branding, packaging and even down to the names of our beers. Padstow Pilsner, for example, is not only a reflection of the brewery but a place we are proud to represent.”
