British Sports Book Awards reflections, images and videos

I've been meaning to blog for a few days now about the Cross British Sports Book Awards, which took place last week, on Wednesday 1 June.

Richmond Unchained was shortlisted for the Biography of the Year award, and although it didn't win, the whole process of being nominated and attending the awards was very special.

To gain recognition for one's efforts and hard work with an award nomination is very gratifying indeed, and the chance to rub shoulders with journalistic and sporting legends, from Nigel Mansell to Michael Lynagh, from Donald McRae to Brian Glanville was the experience of a lifetime.

Before heading to the awards, I made sure that I drank a toast to Bill Richmond by finally cracking open a bottle of his favourite drink - noyaux - which I had been saving for a special occasion. I then slipped into my tuxedo, complete with a pocket square utilising Bill Richmond's ring colours, and my wife and I walked the short distance from our hotel to Lord's cricket ground, where the awards were taking place in the Nursery pavilion.

While enjoying a champagne reception I, and many other nominees, were interviewed by the awards organisers. You can watch a video compilation of these interviews below, in which I even pop up for a few seconds.

We then took our seats for a splendid dinner. Before we knew it the ceremony had begun and the nominees for Biography of the Year had been announced, and a video of the judges discussing the merits of the shortlisted titles had been played. You can watch these videos below.

One of the judges, Annie Vernon, then took to the stage and announced that the winner was Andy Bull's Speed Kings. Disappointment then, for myself and Richmond Unchained, although I cannot stress enough that Mr Bull's book is an excellent work and a truly worthy winner. I was particularly pleased to see that the winning book was one with a historic dimension to it, and featured - in bob-sledding - a sport seldom written about. You can watch an interview with Andy Bull about his book below.

With the nerve-wracking part of the ceremony out of the way, we were able to sit back and enjoy the rest of the meal and the ceremony. And very enjoyable it was too!

All in all, then, a very memorable evening. Huge thanks to my publishers Amberley for supporting my nomination, and for the organisers and sponsors of the Sports Book Awards, particularly Danielle and Alastair at Agile Marketing.

Thanks also to my friends and family for their support and encouragement in supporting Richmond Unchained, as it grew from an idea, to a manuscript and then, finally, into an award-nominated book! Particularly heartfelt thanks to my wife Kemi, my mum and sister, my friend and Richmond Unchained illustrator Trevor Von Eeden and my friends Richard and Sara Evans.

You can check out more about the Cross Sports Book Awards on their website here and on their video channel here.

Raise a glass to Bill Richmond: in search of noyaux

(C) Tempusfugitspirits.com

 

One of the qualities I have always admired about boxer Bill Richmond was his abstemious nature.

Unlike many of his pugilistic contemporaries, who fell victim to the charms of the bottle and died young, Richmond maintained a sense of self-control throughout his life, despite the rampant drinking culture which surrounded prize-fighting and despite the fact he spent several years as landlord of the Horse and Dolphin public house in St Martin's Street.

This is not to say, however, that Richmond was teetotal. The Morning Post newspaper, in its obituary of 'the Black Terror' in 1830, noted that he was "remarkably abstemious in the use of liquor, seldom taking more than a glass of sherry and water". Meanwhile, Pierce Egan, in Boxiana, noted that Richmond could be "rather facetious over a glass of noyeau, his favourite wet with a SWELL".

While researching Richmond Unchained, this quote of Egan's piqued my curiosity. Having never heard of 'noyeau' I decided to try and find out what it was and, if possible, get my hands on a bottle, so I could taste what Richmond's favourite drink was like.

I soon discovered that 'noyeau' was, in fact, an Egan spelling error, and that 'Crème de Noyaux' - to give it its correct appellation - was a once popular but now largely forgotten 19th century French liqueur, pink in colour, and made from the kernels of apricot, peach or cherry stones or - according to some sources - a combination of all three.

However, try as I might, I couldn't find anywhere in the UK that stocked noyaux, not even the legendary spirits store Gerry's in Soho, who told me they had been searching for it for "12 years, to no avail". I could find several vendors abroad who sold a liqueur named 'Noyau de Poissy', but none of them would import to the UK.

It was only when I came across a website for an American company named Tempus Fugit that I began to make some real progress.Tempus Fugit described themselves thus:

"Our goal is to source and recreate rare spirits and liqueurs from the pages of history to satisfy the demands of the most discerning connoisseur."

One such liqueur that they have 'recreated' was Crème de Noyaux, the process for which they described as follows:

"Tempus Fugit Spirits’ Crème de Noyaux is based on the historic 19th century French liqueur, traditionally made with apricot stone (pit) kernels, bitter almonds and other botanicals. Many years of research were required to finalize the production techniques for this rare and complex spirit, utilizing the natural ingredients specified in the original recipes. Tempus Fugit Spirits Crème de Noyaux represents the classic Crème de Noyaux. Prized by the most distinguished bartenders during the Golden Age of cocktails. Perfect in numerous classic cocktails, Crème de Noyaux is used as a primary ingredient or in dashes."

Eventually, I found a company in Germany named Alandia that were willing to export a bottle of Tempus Fugit's Crème de Noyaux to the UK and, after a wait of a few weeks, a bottle of Bill Richmond's favourite drink duly arrived at my house.

And what does it taste like? Well, I don't know because, like Bill Richmond, I'm pretty abstemious these days, and I'm saving it for a special occasion.

Perhaps I'll have a swig this Wednesday night before heading to the British Sports Book Awards, where Richmond Unchained has been shortlisted for Biography of the Year!

Noyaux ingredients, from Tempusfugitspirits.com

Tempusfugitspirits.com's information sheet about Noyaux