I don't know about the weather where you are, but down here in the West Country it's been raining for days and it's blowing a gale!  Seriously, where has the summer gone?  We even had the heating on last week! I thought I'd share this delicious cocktail to cheer things up a bit, and hopefully get us back in the summery mood!

Flirtini

Ingredients

1 bottle of Prosecco
125ml vodka
500ml pineapple juice
Lime juice
Mint leaves

Method

Mix everything together in a large jug. Pour into your favourite glass, and garnish with a squeeze of lime and a mint leaf.

Cheers!

We all know one of the quickest ways to lose weight is to cut down on alcohol because it is often packed with hidden sugars.  You might be surprised to learn exactly how much is in our alcoholic drinks.

Guidelines suggest men shouldn’t consume more than eight teaspoons (32g) of sugar a day or women six teaspoons (24g) a day.

Luckily, as Prosecco lovers we are quaffing one of the lowerer sugar content drinks, with a quarter of a teaspoon of sugar per glass.

Here’s a league table of sugar content (figure shown is the number of teaspoons):

Pint of Guinness or stout - 5
Pint of premium lager - 3.5
568ml bottle of Magners pear cider - 8.5
Pint of Strongbow dry cider - 3.5
175ml glass of mulled wine - 11 
175ml glass of medium sweet wine - 2.5
Vodka and Red Bull - 7 
Gin and tonic - 5.5 
Vodka and Coca Cola - 6.5 
Sambuca shot - 4 
Amaretto shot - 4 
50ml glass of Baileys - 2.5 
50ml glass of Port - 3 
50ml glass of sweet sherry - 2 
Smirnoff Ice - 7.5
Barcardi Breezer - 5.25

Interesting reading, and a good reason to stick to the sparkles!

I've been sent details of a great offer in Majestic Wines.  They are offering 33% off all Prosecco until midday on Monday 20th.  They stock 11 varieties, including the elusive Romeo and Juliet Prosecco that I've highlighted in Morrisons that Prosecco Watchers have struggled to get hold of!

https://m.majestic.co.uk/prosecco

I have James at Eurowines to thank for sending me a couple of bottles of Prosecco to review.  This followed a Twitter review I had written on one of my favourite Proseccos, and James suggested I try the below two as they are even better!

Challenge accepted, two bottles arrived a couple of days later, beautifully packaged, and an info pack included.  Bottle wise, they are both really beautiful - aesthetically pleasing in the sense that I would buy them just for the packaging alone.  I was really excited to try them as they looked to hold so much promise!

Colli Soligo

Cantina Colli del Soligo was founded in 1957 to meet the needs of prosecco producers in the soligo area. The winery is located midway between conegliano and valdobbiadene along the "white wine road" at the base of beautiful steep hills that are volcanic in origin and reach an altitude of 300-400 meters above sea level. The winery is only 50 kilometers from beautiful venice.  You can read more about them and their products here - http://www.collisoligo.com/en/

In summary, both of these are absolutely delicious - if you get the chance to try them then I would whole heartedly suggest you do - I am off to place an order now!

More details at www.eurowines.co.uk

Last month, Mr PW and I were lucky enough to be invited to a new Prosecco launch in Mayfair.  It was an exciting affair, involving a last minute hotel booking, and a dash to London following a job interview that afternoon. 

A taxi ride across from Battersea took us to the beautiful and impressive old church, converted in a function space - called One Mayfair.

After a drinks reception, we were taken down into the crypt for a tour through time of the Gancia portfolio.  This was interesting and entertaining, with samples and nibbles along the way.  At the end there was a choice of Prosecco cocktails at the bar and more nibbles! 

There are two varieties of Gancia Prosecco - DOC Dry and Valdobbiadene Superior DOCG.  They are both a beautiful light straw colour, with delicate crisp bubbles.  Both also have a gorgeous aroma, with hints of orange and lemon.  Flavour wise, the DOC is an easy to drink Prosecco, pairs well with nibbles and Italian foods, especially cheeses and hams.  The DOCG is delicious to savour on it's own, as an aperitif before your meal.

I was also very lucky to receive a launch pack in the post last week, with a bottle of the beautiful Prosecco and a gorgeous picnic rug.

This really is a fun and delicious twist on a standard fruit salad. 
It's boozy, it's fizzy, and it's perfect for the summer sunshine! 
You can use whatever fruit you  like really - just experiment with
whatever you like!

Ingredients

3 sliced peaches
3 sliced plums
3 sliced nectarines
A sliced orange
1 punnet of blackberries
1 punnet of raspberries
Prosecco
Vanilla pod
1 tablespoon of chopped mint leaves
Juice of two limes
Zest of one lime
2 springs of thyme
2 tablespoons of honey
Basil or Mint for garnish

Method

Ensure everything is well chilled beforehand.
Put all of the ingredients in a large bowl or serving jug and combine.  Top up with Prosecco, ensure the fruit is fully covered with the Prosecco and then pop in the fridge for 30 mins.  To serve, you can either pour into a glass, add the fruit to a glass of Prosecco, and garnish with mint or basil,  or you can scoop the fruit into a bowl and top with cream!

Cheers!

You read it here first....Prosecco crisps, that's right,  Prosecco crisps and being brought out by Marks & Spencer this Christmas!

Apparently they will be sprinkled with pink glitter to fizz in your mouth!

Maybe they will send me a sample to review (wink wink)!

This one is delicious, and so light and refreshing...

Ingredients

Prosecco
3 nectarines
Chilled glasses

Method

Peel and slice the nectarines, then using a fine mesh sieve, push through all the liquid, alternatively you can pop in a blender.

Spoon a big dollop into the bottom of your glass and top up with prosecco.

It should be 1/3 nectarine puree and 2/3 prosecco ideally.

Cheers!