Blotto

a quick spicy post (Mixology Monday)

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Craig, over at Tiki Drinks and Indigo Firmaments is hosting this month’s Mixology Monday. And he has declared the theme for December to be SPICE.

This past weekend I attended the annual holiday open house at House Spirits. There, I was finally able to obtain (finally the label was approved and finally they found time in their production schedule) a bottle (alright, several bottles) of Matt Mount’s ouzo, made under the House Spirits Apothecary line.

Using this lovely Oregon Ouzo, I made this variant on the Alexander.

Alexandros
in a shaker, pour over cracked ice
1oz half-and-half,
1oz House Spirits’ Oregon Ouzo,
1oz (Mt.Gay Eclipse) amber rum, and
a dash simple syrup.
Shake, and strain into a cocktail glass.
Finish with a grate of nutmeg.

This is a pleasant, smooth, creamy, semi-dry, slightly anise-flavored drink. If you can obtain a suitably dry and pure tasting ouzo (such as the Oregon Ouzo), I heartily recommend this lightly spiced drink.

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(Old) Whiskey River (take my mind)

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Like I said over there, my buddy Mark breezed into town with his dame on one hand and a bottle of bourbon for me in the other. This bottle had a guitar pick wire-wrapped to the slim neck of the bottle and a name on it – Willie Nelson – that echoed the name of the bourbon – Old Whiskey River. Just like Willie, it is smooth, bold and sweet. I had a glass of it right after one of my beloved Wild Turkey 101. It was milder, smoother, easier – but still flavorful. A nice contrast between the bold, rich, borderline harsh and the more tame of the latter.

This is not just a badge-engineered bourbon, however, oh no. Willie’s hand is at work in that the grains what go into this tasty bottle – corn, barley, and rye – are grown grown on independent family owned and operated farms located within 100 miles of the distillery. At a mild 86 proof it doesn’t pack a wallop that will put you out cold but the rich flavor and excellent mouth feel more than make up for it.

Like most of my go-to bourbons, this one clocks in at about $20/fifth. That makes this not only good value, but a fine salute to American farmers and a liquor with a lower carbon footprint. Dare I say this could be the most ecologically-sound liquor I’ve yet tried?

Willie, keep up the good work. This is a fine whiskey to put your name on, and we salute you for it.

Willie Nelson

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Haus Alpenz Presents

Monday, December 8, 2008

While picking up a bottle of Creme de Violette for the esteemed Iconoplast (of HAVE A BREW. DON’T COST NOTHIN fame), my eye was caught by a number of liqueurs on the same shelf. As it turns out, Haus Alpenz imports a variety of interesting spirits. Trying not to get carried away, I picked up the aforementioned Creme de Violette, and decided to take a chance on two others: St. Elizabeth’s Allspice Dram (which immediately garnered the nickname Saint E’s) and Zirbenz “Stone Pine Liqueur of the Alps”, which is essentially booze made from pinecones.

It was time for some cocktails.

Three of Haus Alpenz spirits

Creme de Violette is the Higgs Boson of liqueurs, but I have been able to find a reliable stock at Marty’s Liquors of Newton, which has become something of an addiction lately. It is the rarest of the ingredients to be found in The Aviation…

1 ½ oz. Aviation Gin
½ oz. Rothman & Winter Creme de Violette
½ oz. lemon juice
1 tsp. Luxardo Maraschino

I prefer to add the Violette last to this concoction, letting its regal purple bleed into the cloudy mixture, like squid ink into an aquarium tank. When all mixed, it becomes a cloudy, almost unnatural lavender, and left to sit this cloud condenses into the center of the glass. Letting it sit is for suckers.

The taste is sweet, but not sickeningly so, the lemon juice balancing out the sugary Violette while the gin takes over. The Maraschino is there somewhere, but it’s certainly not obvious, and I’m wondering how the drink would be without it. I’ve found some other recipes online with different proportions of these four ingredients, but the one above is the best tasting one I’ve found so far.

Next up was the Lion’s Tail…

2 oz. Infusion Diabolique Bourbon
½ oz. St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
½ oz. lime juice
a dash of Angostura bitters

Infusion Diabolique is a locally distilled bourbon infused with figs, cinnamon, and vanilla. I rightly assumed that this would go well with Saint E’s. The recipe also called for four dashes of simple syrup, but I had none on hand and was unsure of how to dash simple sugar anyway.

The resulting cocktail looked not unlike apple cider, the lime juice clouding what would otherwise be a translucent brown liquid. The acid in the lime was all that was left of it upon tasting, as a wonderfully warm and inviting taste hit my tongue; earthy hints of cloves and nutmeg and cinnamon swirled around in my mouth. It was not sharp or biting in the least, and the aftertaste called out to me, saying “I am what should be in your flask this winter.”

Onto the Zirbenz. To be frank, I both feared and respected an alcohol made out of pinecones, and the scent from the open bottle did nothing to change either of those attitudes. It smelled like pine all right, but had a strange sweetness that was evident in the taste as well. The color was reminiscent of pine bark, and the residue at the bottom of the bottle looked like it too. Time for an Alpine Sidecar…

1 oz. Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur of the Alps
1 oz. Patron Citrónge
1 oz. lemon juice

I hope you’ll excuse the replacement of Citrónge for Cointreau here; I don’t necessarily mind paying $40 for 750 mL of booze, but I do mind paying $40 for 750 mL of what is essentially triple sec. Citrónge is half the price and has the same alcohol content if not the same taste. Zirbenz replaces the brandy in this sidecar making it Alpine in nature, and giving a vaguely pink tint to it. The result? Decidely drinkable, but not particular noteworthy. It tasted like lemonade with a bit of a kick, and not much more. This probably wasn’t the best cocktail to try out the Zirbenz with, but I was a little timid with it this time around.

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The Imbiber’s 100 (Ouroboros)

Friday, November 28, 2008

Over at Art of Drink, Darcy has put together a list of One Hundred Drinks Any Serious Imbiber Ought Try (At Least) Once [100DASIOTO]. It’s a little scattered, but a good list of beverages that represent a reasonable basis for commonality.

Those that I’ve tried are in bold, below (80 of 100). Maybe I should be fitted for gills.

(Continued)

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analyzer? I ‘ardly . . .

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

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quick shots

Friday, October 17, 2008

Last night I went out to Ten 01, where Kim joined me, and we enjoyed a beautiful plate of charcuterie with a couple cocktails.

As I talked with Kelley, we discussed a bottle of Bitter Truth Celery Bitters that he just obtained from LeNell’s. He offered me a dash of it on my palm, and recommended rubbing my hands together to inhale the aroma. It is a very compelling balance of celery seed supported by corriander, with a little lime peel underneath. I have got to get a bottle of this—it is beautiful1.

Kelley also offered me a taste of the Bols Genever. This is a genever that is being re-introduced to the American market this fall2. The aroma is primarily malty, and has hints of juniper and cardamom. It has a rich mouthfeel, almost oily vicosity, and a mellow malty flavor. This article from Mixology Magazin für Barkultur talks about the history of this new old product. I can’t wait to get my hands on a bottle of this!

1. Kelley has a drink on the upcoming cocktail menu that pairs the celery bitters with an unexpected ingredient. I would not have guessed that it would work. But he mixed one for me, and it inspires me to get more familiar with that ingredient.
2. Some of the other cocktail bloggers around were able to attend a launch event in San Francisco (Drink a Week, Bibulous. Allow me to register my jealousy, even though my month has been tightly booked.

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the walnut of time

Monday, September 29, 2008

I started this blogpost way way back in August, when it seemed like Portland was in the middle of summer. It’s nice that this weekend I am finishing it, we are experiencing a sort of reminiscence of summer.

It is a bright Saturday morning in August and I am standing outside a small apartment building, waiting to pick-up some furniture from an ex-co-worker who is taking a job in another town. The street is flanked by two enormous walnut trees. The branches are laden with green fruits the size of medium-small limes. I crush one with my foot and notice that the shell and aril is crunchy, but it has not fully developed a seed and shell. The aroma from the crushed green walnut was spicy and slightly citrus. The clear yellowish ichor on the sidewalk quickly becomes a brown stain.

This reminds me that last year I had wanted to make nocino, but missed my chance. This year, I swore, I would do it.

Nocino is a traditional liqueur from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. It is made by steeping green (completely unripe) walnuts in hard alcohol, with sugar and a few spices. Recipes vary as to what sort of alcohol to use. Grappa would probably be traditional, and recent interpretations call for vodka or Everclear. Some recipes call for wine to be used in addition to the alcohol.

(Continued)

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quiet lately

Friday, September 26, 2008

I’ve been a little too busy lately with other projects to post. I have a wrap-up of this year’s Great American Distillers Festival to post, and a couple of drink recipes. But in the meantime, I figured instead of a verbose excuse for not posting, I’d show you all what I’ve been drinking lately (yes, I have been drinking lately).

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BourBonCon 2008 wrap-up

Friday, August 29, 2008

In short: A grand time was had by all. No one got arrested, the house is still standing and all cars still had all their windows intact the next day.

We chose four bourbons to whet our whistles for the evening: Wild Turkey 101, Knob Creek, Elijah Craig & Evan Williams Single Barrel. These are unpretentious bourbon whiskies in the $20 – $30 price range for a fifth at any given liquor store and all very, very fine. In the end, tho, we collectively took on the challenge of that Kickin’ Chicken and destroyed it all that evening.

Wild Turkey 101 is my go-to bourbon – it’s what I ask for at a bar even if I know you’re picking up the tab. This dirty bird kicks back if you’re not careful but packs a huge wallop of flavor. It’s easy to find, relatively inexpensive and is simply delicious. I couldn’t agree more with our sadly departed Michael Jackson when he described it as, “A Clint Eastwood of whiskeys“.

Knob Creek is one year older than Wild Turkey, being aged nine before bottling, but is 1 proof fewer at a straight 100. I find it to be less complex and bold as Wild Turkey 101, but on its own right, it is quite tasty. This was our mixing bourbon of the night and it made some very, very fine mint juleps. Our own Iconotron was manning the muddling for the evening and he made up some drinks that did our most beloved of brown liquors a damn sight finer than most have done on their own. Tasters are less consistent on this bourbon, but I certainly can see the notes of rye in it, which I personally enjoy.

Elijah Craig is the old man of the group at twelve – but you will know where those years have gone when you drink it. This is very smooth and unassuming, and the flavor builds nicely. It makes a fine drink with just the addition of a few ice cubes. The lower alcohol content – only 94 proof – certainly adds to its smoothness. I won’t turn this down, but it is a little mild for my tongue and yet another bourbon that tends to polarize its tasters.

The last bottle opened that night turned out to be quite a surprise, the Evan Williams Single Barrel. I don’t recall the vintage, but it may have been circa 1996 and was well worth the wait. This was more complex than Knob Creek but smoother than Elijah Craig, a truly excellent balance of flavor and smoothness. Certainly seek out a bottle if you can find one, ours was well worth the $30 we spent on it.

The Gentlemen’s Auxillary of the North American Booze Council also enjoyed the afternoon, as we had a shaving swap meet for lots of double-edge razors, blades, aftershaves, soaps and other goods, but the real deal was the fine drinking that went on that evening. We introduced many to the delicious brown liquor in various forms – neat, with water, in a mint julep and my preferred preparation, over ice. One internet celebrity in attendance spoke of it later as saying, “I did not fully expound upon bourboncon, but it was a life-changing event… it was not long ago I had sworn off corn-based liquors forever, and now I feel very differently about the subject. [N]ow I’ve only sworn off crappy corn-based liquors.”

“My children, bourboncon is a place inside us all.” Enjoy bourbon frequently, friends. It is proof that “Bob” loves you and wants you to be happy.

In closing, we have met the brownest of the brown. And it is us.

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Qi on the North Shore

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Qi White and North Shore no.6

Misuba, a stalwart of the Bibation Analysis Laboratory here at the Prince of Cups and a good friend, was recently in California. He made a point to stop at Ledger’s Liquors¹ during that trip, and procure a couple bottles. He brought back bottles of North Shore Distiller’s Gin no.6 and St.George Spirits Qi White, neither of which we had not been able to find in Oregon².

The North Shore Distiller’s Gin no.6 is a wonderful juniper and spice and citrus gin that it quite amazing. I taste lime peel, juniper, and pepper in it, and I’m sure

The Qi White liqueur is a silky sweet orange liqueur. None of the cognac notes that Cointreau or Grand Marnier carry are evident in the Qi. There is a hint of earthiness from the tea, and I imagine the silky sensation to be from the tannins, but the white tea buds do not seem to contribute a major flavor.

A fine gin, a fine orange liqueur. What else to mix but a Pegu?

In a shaker, pour over cracked ice
◇ 1½oz North Shore Distiller’s Gin no.6,
◇ ½oz Qi White liqueur,
◇ ½oz lime juice, and add
◇ a dash of Angostura bitters.
Shake, and strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with a twist of lime peel.

The interaction of the North Shore and the Angostura bring the spice load of the gin to the fore. This is the heady vapor that one might imagine filled the nose of the spice speculator as he boarded a ship bearing his fortune docked in the harbor of Amsterdam. There is nothing held back in this, even the sweet citrus from the Qi and lime provide foundation for pepper and cubeb³. The cocktail is all notes sharpened, bright like the Chicago sound; it compels your attention.

1. Ledger’s Liquors is a great package store in Berkeley California. I generally make a point to stop there whenever I am in the East Bay and recommend it to everyone I know in that area.
2. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission’s rather byzantine administration of booze sales makes it difficult for retail to shelve many products. At least, in our observation, they do seem to make sure that Oregon-produced spirits are available for sale in the state, although whether this is due to some sort of expedience on their part or stubbornness on the distillery’s we cannot say.
3. And those seed peppers that are not genus Piper: cloves and grains of paradise and elaichi and galangal.

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