We bring you…letterbox cocktails!

THIS IS NESSIE HAVE PARTNERED WITH LOCAL PUB AND MIXOLOGY EXPERT TO BRING DELICIOUS LETTERBOX COCKTAILS STRAIGHT TO YOUR DOOR.

When Mr TIN and I decided to move our family out of London and to the country back in 2009, one of our key criteria was having a really nice, local pub – close enough to walk for a quick drink (or even a long drink). We had been used to south London living, with pubs and bars moments away and while we wanted the space, and the country lifestyle there were certain things we didn’t want to give up!

We could not have been more lucky with our local. A 15th century gem called The Wiremill set right by a beautiful lake that is just a short stomp across the fields. We don’t even have to cross a road (a bonus if you’ve had one too many!). The tables outside overlook the lake, and in the evenings you can watch people waterskiing across it. One of our favourite parts of a weekend is now walking to the pub on a Sunday – or at least it used to be.

Seven out of 10 UK pubs and restaurants fear they will become financially unviable and forced to close next year as a result of the pandemic.

British Beer and Pub Association

While The Wiremill has struggled during the pandemic, rather than sitting back and feeling sorry for themselves they have stepped up and done what they can to help. In the first lockdown they were delivering food to the homeless for free and organising food boxes for local people who had just come out of hospital. When they were shut down they turned their hand to click and collect food, taking advantage of their access to catering supplies to provide for the local community. It’s no ordinary pub! But I think that’s how everyone feels about their local.

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On a run early on this year we stopped to stand by the lake and enjoy the peace, admiring the resurgence of nature. There were two kingfishers nesting 50 metres from the tables that had never been seen there before. The birds were so brave they sat down mere inches away from us, social distancing clearly doesn’t mean a lot to our feathered friends. While we were chatting to the birds we spotted a rather beautiful display of cocktails that the landlord, Tim, was testing out.

The cocktails he was designing came in letterbox sized packaging, made from recycled plastic bottles and are fully recyclable. Each flavour is designed by Tim then made up by his expert team of mixologists for each order. We absolutely loved them and thought, now how can we help support Tim and his team, to help safeguard the jobs at the pub during Lockdown 3.0.

Tim has the same attitude to business as we do, he’s creative and full of endless energy, his willingness to reinvent his business almost daily as he navigates a way out of this crazy situation I’ve found inspiring. We saw the cocktails as a fantastic us to collaborate with another local business and bring our lovely customers a little slice of lockdown joy. We’ve worked with Tim to bring together a collection that combines my illustrations with his cocktails to make something totally unique. Each cocktail is illustrated and comes beautifully packaged, they are small batch, freshly-made and totally delicious!

Supporting this business that is so much a part of our community and the local area is also really important to us at This Is Nessie, as is bringing our customers something that might make their smiles a little wider that day. The cocktails themselves are amazing, the presentation is perfect and the attention to detail is awesome. Our mission has always been to deliver smiles to the nation’s letterboxes and we cannot think of anything more smile inducing than this. They can be sent directly to someone who needs to be cheered up, or just deserves some spoiling. We hope you love what we’ve come up with, let us know what you think!