I woke up this morning and could hear a train thundering through Darlington station

I woke up this morning and could hear a train thundering through Darlington station, I thought to myself; at least the transport system has not stopped yet. The morning sun shone bright in the room, blasting through the curtains, it made me feel wonderful.

Here we are again, the doors of Voodoo Café open nice and early to take in deliveries, but the town has defiantly got an air of calm about it. More like a Sunday than a Thursday. Although the Sainsbury’s Local had a fair few people in, mostly filling up their shopping trollies and emptying the shelves of everyday provisions.

What amazes me are the companies I buy from. They are out there delivering and supporting the industry in everyway they can, giving us a life line. Providing us with the Spirits, Wines and Beers so we can still sell to the small numbers of people who are well and needing to get out.

London will probably be in lockdown in the next few days, virtually all the bars and restaurants are closed. I am told and the tube (Underground) has closed today; if the North is a couple of weeks behind then we can expect the same soon.

To all our customers, friends and fellow workers we are still here, offering our services including our new takeaway service. We recommend giving us as call if you are coming out, as we are monitoring the situation on a daily bases, but having fun will lift your immune system.

Today I took delivery of a bottle of RinQuinQuin a ‘La Peach an Aperitif’ from Distilleries ‘et Domaines de Provence’ (a family run distillery steeped in history). I was fortunate to visit the distillery last year with my friends from Emporia Brands. It was an amazing couple of days where we were introduced to the distillation techniques used by the family to produce Rinquinquin and Grande Absente Absinthe, that have been passed down from father to son over the last 100 years. Our tour guide for the two days was Jean-Baptiste his knowledge of the art of distillation, the history of the local area and plants that grew on the land was inspiring. He gave his knowledge freely and with pride.

The family have for generations produced spirits in the town of Forcalquier in Provence France. An area where the scent of perfume production is never far away. RinQuinQuin is made with fresh pressed peach juice and it has an aroma of sweet peach and a little fresh citrus, the flavours are full on fruity sweetness that gives away to an earthy slightly herbatiose finish.

Tonight, I’ve mixed the RinQuinQuin with Zinfandel Rose and some Distil no 9 Vodka topped with Champagne to create a twist on a Bellini called Le Bellini Rose . If you are in town call in and I’ll prepare you one, or I’ll be adding it to our menu for when you come out of self-isolation.