Did you know that this year Aldi are celebrating their 25th birthday? I didn’t realise they had been around that long because, for me, they’ve only really come to my attention in about the last decade. Within that time they have gone from being somewhere I kind of wasn’t keen to try (no idea why, snobbery probably) to the shop I choose first when it comes to food and booze. This is purely and simply because of the quality.

I am a girl who likes the finer things in life and while I adore all the ‘bits’ you can pick up in M&S I am simply not prepared to pay their prices when Aldi do the same, EXACTLY the same, things for a fraction of the price. My current faves are the ‘Specially Selected’ olives and BBQ meats with their awesome brioche burger buns. I swear if you go buy them you will think they are amazing too. Their food has so much class and I LOVE it.

When it comes to celebrating, which we will be doing next weekend for Jimmy’s birthday party, I always shop at Aldi and next weekend will be no exception. I will be doing cream teas for the grown ups and Aldi scones are the best while no party, even when it’s for a three year old, is complete without some fizz (for the adults of course – well something’s got to get us through the pass the parcel and the wheels on the bus songs after all)! I wouldn’t choose anything but Aldi Prosecco because it is delicious and costs only £7.49 a bottle while the Cava, which is also ace, is just £4.99! Bargainous. Aldi were crowned Multiple Wine Retailer Of The Year at the Drinks Retailing Awards in February and this is absolutely NO surprise to me!

But this post of course is to celebrate Aldi themselves, to raise a glass and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Aldi love a cocktail and in honour of that I have re-created one of their own recipes for Pomegranate Punch! This uses one of their more expensive sparkling wines but it is utterly delicious and would probably cost twice the price or more elsewhere, vodka and of course fresh pomegranates. Aldi are selling HUGE pomegranates at the moment and they are, of course, mega inexpensive! If you fancy drinking after you clink to them with me then here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

25ml Tamova Vodka (£10.39)

20 ml Lemon Juice

2.5 Teaspoons Of Sugar

3 Teaspoons If Fresh Pomegranate Seeds

Freeman’s Bay Marlborough Sparkling Sauvignon Blanc (£9.99), as desired

Methodology:

Add the vodka, lemon juice, sugar and pomegranate seeds to a cocktail shaker.

Stir until the sugar has dissolved and then shake over hard ice.

Pour into a tall glass (or jam jar if you fancy being a bit Hoxton in the mid noughties like me).

Top with the sparkling sauvignon blanc.

Decoration:

Add a few pomegranate seed and a piece of lemon. LUSH!