VODKA, what’s the point?

Vodka is distilled to have no flavor, which explains why there are so many flavored vodkas.  Might I add that they are almost all made with artificial ingredients. It’s cheap and less time consuming this way.  If I want my beverage to taste like citrus, how about I just add citrus?  That said, a master taster should be able to find something worth noting in every spirit.  The only time vodka has any “flavor” or anything interesting to offer, is when tasted next to other vodkas for the sake of comparing.

Brief Conclusion:

Grey goose: slightly sweet, smooth, by far the most tolerable.

Absolut: Creamy, smooth, tolerable.

Kettle One: Crisp, icy, winter, dry finish.  A “quality” vodka.

Sky: Alcohol. Alcohol. Alcohol BURN.

Belvedere: The attractive bottle is incredibly misleading.  This vodka tasted dirty, spoiled, and it burned. AVOID.

Titos: Tasted just like Belvedere.

Sky Ginger: BLAH.  Tastes like Canada Dry, which is most likely what the average consumer would want from a ginger vodka.  It should be noted that Canada Dry contains NO ginger.

Vodka is merely a vehicle to get drunk, which is why it’s so popular.  If I am going to poison myself with alcohol, it better be delicious, flavorful, and made with quality ingredients.  Say NO to vodka.

Tequila and Wine?!?!

Tequila, more then any other distilled spirit, is the most similar to wine in terms of the many factors that go into the outcome of its flavor and quality.  Where the agave is grown, at what altitude, the soil it’s grown in, the varietal of the agave, how long it takes to mature, when its picked, what type of still, which type of barrel, and how long to age are all factors in determining the flavor and quality between different tequilas.

Aside from the Jose Cuervo, Kalena’s Kitchen (www.wekerd@wordpress.com) and I chose to taste only top shelf tequilas.

Contenders:

1800 Blanco (aged no more then 2 months 100% Blue Agave)

Cazadores Resposado (aged 2-12 months, 100% Agave)

1800 Resposado (2-12 months, 100% Agave)

Herradua Anjeo (aged 1-3 years, this one 2 years, 100% Agave)

Jose Cuervo (A MIXTO, meaning only 51% Agave, the rest being other  a blend of sugars from agave and molasses- A.K.A the cheap stuff. This particular tequila is the #1 selling tequila on the planet)

1800 Silver:

Nose: I could not distinguish any particular aroma, but no alcohol burn whatsoever.

Taste: Salty, very vegetal, clean, hint of sweet.

Cazadores Resposado:

Nose: Warm, mild burst of aroma, no alcohol burn.

Taste: Very smooth, gentle, a bit of allspice.

1800 Resposado:

Nose: Pleasant citrus, mild.

Taste: Burnt vegtables.

Herradura Anjeo:

Nose: Carmel, soft, did not smell like tequila. (Which is no surprise because barrel aging is what gives spirits that bakers confectionary flavors)

Taste: Very spicy, a little fruity, with a vanilla finish.

Jose Cuervo (Mixto):

Nose: Sharp, biting, burn.

Taste: Burning alcohol, no interesting flavor notes, syrupy aftertaste.

We both agreed that the Herradura Anejo was our favorite.  It would be delicious served on its own, or easily mixed into interesting cocktails.  As far as Jose Cuervo goes, neither of will be purchasing a bottle of that anytime soon.

Oh! Rum! The heart of my youth!

When I was in high school, I considered myself to be a real rum connoisseur   My siblings and I would steal Malibu Coconut Rum from my parents while vacationing in Kauai.  We would then smother it with POG (Pineapple, Orange, Guava) juice and swill it zealously in between jumping in the ocean and riding our bikes to town.  We thought we were incredibly clever and kept this up each summer that we returned.

Onto the present.  Although fascinated with the world of mixology, I don’t actually drink a lot of spirits in my spare time. If I do partake, I tend to go for Irish whiskey. So, I went into this rum/cachaca tasting blindly and unbiased.  From what I have learned from my studies, the highest quality or “top shelf” rum is made from freshly pressed cane juice VS. molasses.  I learned that a lot of popular rums, if not all, do not advertise their base product.  Bicardi, Captain Morgans, Sailor Jerry, Flor De Cana, are all guilty!

Contenders:

Bacardi Silver

Leblon Cachaca (Cachaca is Brazil’s signature spirit or “rum”.  What makes it different then most common rum is that it must be made with cane juice.  So I went ahead and bought a small batch bottle of cachaca to throw in the mix!)

Sailor Jerry

Captain Morgans

Flor De Cana

Myers Rum

Kalena and I were on the same boat for all of these tasting.  I think we are getting the hang of this!

RESULTS:

Bacardi Silver: Nose: Vodka, hint of sweet.

                           Taste: No sweetness, earthy, light, savory mushroom, vodka like, clean finish.

Leblon Cachaca:  I was really excited to try this product.  Aged 6 months in XO cognac barrels, small batch, pot stills!

                                 Nose: Vegetal, lime, tequila like.

                                 Taste: Aloe vera, mild version of tequila.

Sailor Jerry:

                        Nose: Vanilla bomb. But not real vanilla, more like a car air freshener or a cheap candle.

                        Taste: Oily, throat clogging coffee mate-esk (think too sweet and packed with gross oil). A poorly made, terrible spirit.

Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum: Any rum that is MEANT to be mixed with coca cola, cannot be a good thing.  And it really wasn’t.

                                                          Nose: Hot burning alocohol. Log cabin.

                                                          Taste: Acetone.

Flor De Cana: By far my moms favorite, I didn’t have one.

                           Nose: Warm, mild, inviting, hint of cinnamon.

                           Taste: Smooth but peppery finish.  No heat until a few seconds after swallowing.

Myer’s Rum:

                         Nose: Molasses.

                         Taste: Burnt sugar. Spoiled.

Craft, crafty craft craft…Lemon Bomb!

We aren’t mesin’ around.  Kalena and I are taking this whole craft cocktail thing seriously.  So when the neighbor’s friend dropped 60 LBS of lemons on the doorstep, we thought, Hey! Lets make homemade lemon liqueur!!!!

Here’s what we did:

(FYI this is 1 of  potentially many buckets)

2 cups thinly sliced lemon rind

8 cups vodka

Put in sealed jar(s) for 10 days.

Shake everyday!

Then, bring 3 cups water to boil w/2.5 cups organic sugar

pour over (strained) vodka

Bottle in sterilized jars and refrigerate up to 30 days!

Cocktail experiment to come soon!!!

FACE OFF: Gin

I teamed up with Kalena’s Kitchen for an in depth tasting of various gins.

Contenders:

Seagrams Extra Dry Gin

Bombay Saphire

Beefeater

Tanqueray

Death’s Door

We compared our own tasting notes to that of each companies:

Seagrams: Them: Light bodied, sweetish, earthy.

US: Nose: Absolute grapefruit bomb. Single note. Sharp.  Taste: Grapefruit, pepper, light bodied, smooth, quick nice cooling at the end.  

Conclusion:  Decently distilled, would work best in a mixed drink, perhaps one with a tropical emphasis as the grapefruit is overwhelming in this gin.

Bombay Saphire: Them: Light bodied, citrusy, sweet.

US: Nose: No sharpness, a bouquet of many unfamiliar pleasant aromoas. Taste: Hint of pine, much like the nose, tastes like a bouquet of herbs.  So many different hints and flavors but none that stood out as very familiar.  Well balanced, no single note over powered the others.  Very well balanced.  Light bodied. 

Conclusion: This was the most versatile gin we tasted.  Could be prepared as a martini, and would also be great in any mixed gin beverage.

 Beeferater: Them: light bodied, impeccably clean, floral, pine tree.

US: Nose: Juniper dominant. Taste: Straight foreword gin.  Clean, crisp, dry finish.  No bells and whistles.  A gin drinker’s gin.

Conclusion: Do not order this gin if you are not much of a gin drinker.  There are no pretty notes and flavors, its very straightforward.  It’s quality is good enough to be served on it’s own or mixed.

Tanqueray: Them: Full bodied, fruity, oily, dry, juniper dominant.

US: Nose: Juniper bomb. Taste: Juniper dominant, very rich and oily.  Went down hot and failed to cool on the finish.

Conclusion: Because this gin is very full bodied, oily and juniper dominant, we agree it would best be served with a fizzy/acidic mixture.  Would make a great classic gin+tonic because the flavor of the gin would not be over powered by the tonic.  

Deaths Door: This is a small batch gin from a craft distillery in WI.  I invested in this bottle because I really wanted to see how a craft gin would hold up against the more popular/well known gins.  Needless to say, this gin kicked butt.  It was the absolute most interesting, delicious, dynamic and fun gin we have ever tried.

Them: Pine, Corriander, fennel.

US: Nose: Ice cold Wisconsin forrest.  Very pine foreword  but a wintery pine.  Taste: Bursting with flavor.  Unlike the nose, the pine taste did not over shadow the coriander.  Bittersweet orange rind.  Incredibly smooth to swallow, all the way down.  A hint of heat afterwards which cooled off.  No alcohol burn whatsoever.

Conclusion:  This was our winner.  Dynamic, interesting, artfully crafted.  Should be enjoyed AS IS.  Such a special gin that adding anything to it would be a waste.  A new take on gin, recommended for all the huge gin fans out there!

 

Time to clean out your liquor cabinet! Educational tasting #1.

I am at the point in my mixology education where I am learning to master tasting techniques.  So I got together with Kalena’s Kitchen (www.wekerd.wordpress.com ) to do some educational tastings!

We kept it simple.

3 darks, all common spirits- after all, this is what we had readily available.

The Contenders:

Jameson, Irish Whiskey

Seagrams’s Seven, Bourbon Whiskey

Dewar’s, Scotch Whiskey

Spirits should not only make you relaxed, giddy and elated, they should also to be aromatic, dynamic, tasty and delicious. Anything added to the spirit should accentuate it’s flavor, not mask it (Jack and Coke, Seagram’s and seven).

We followed these simple steps:

1. Swirl booze in glass (just like vino!), sip, chew it up, really let it touch every area of your mouth, then spit.  This cleanses your palette.

2. Sniff sniff sniff. But hold glass away from your nose, after all, this is strong stuff.

3. Sip into mouth, let it roll alll around the different areas of your mouth, including lips.

A high quality spirit should have many different scents and flavors and should have a clean crisp finish.  Unfortunately, this was not the case for most of our contenders.

Jameson:

Salty Dog: Nose: Real vanilla extract. Taste:  Spice on the very tip of my tongue, fire and ice finish.

Kalena: Nose: Allspice and black pepper. Taste: Very hot burning nothing.

Seagrams’s Seven

Salty Dog: Nose: Artificial honey. Taste: Syrupy and hot.  No natural tasting flavors whatsoever. Burning sensation invaded my entire mouth.

Kalena: Nose: Sweet alcohol. Taste: Cooled off at the end, no flavor.

Dewar’s

Salty dog: Nose: Paint thinner. Hint of lemon zest. Taste: Bonfire.

Kalena: Nose: Burnt wood.  Taste: Burnt wood.

Conclusion:

Salty Dog: Jameson’s was the superior spirit.

Kalena: They were all disgusting.

Dairy-Free Delights

I make my own almod milk.  It is very simple and it has a taste unlike any store bought brand.  Over the holidays, I created many new almond milk cocktails.

Queen Victoria’s Homemade Almond Milk:

1 cup of raw organic unsalted almonds

2 cups of water (add more or less depending on how thick you want it)

2-3 organic soft majool dates

1/8th cup organic grade B maple syrup

sea salt to taste

(all sweeteners can be altered to you liking)

Soak almonds in water overnight, then strain water. Place all ingredients in blender, puree until smooth.  Using a cheesecloth, fine strainer, or almond milk strainer, strain into air tight container.  Double strain for a silkier texture and store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

My Creations:

The Real Deal Almond Joy:
2.5 oz. Kettle 1 Vodka
.5 ounce coconut syrup (made from cane sugar)
3 oz. Almond Milk
real dark chocolate syrup
Drizzle chilled martini glass with high quality dark chocolate syrup. Shake all ingredients and strain.

Pumpkin Pie Face:
2 oz. Kettle 1 Vodka
1 oz. Pumpkin Smash
.25 oz Allspice Liqueur
2.5 oz. Almond Milk
Garnish: cinnamon sprinkle and a cinnamon stir stick

Health Nutty Eggnog:
2.5 oz Bulleit Bourbon
1 oz. Frangelico
3 oz. Almond Milk
Nutmeg sprinkle and Cinnamon Stick

Captain Vic’s Favorite:
2 oz Bulleit Bourbon
1 oz. Amaretto
3 oz Almond Milk
Serve over ice in

My almond milk also goes great on granola, check out Kalena’s Kitchen’s homemade recipe:

http://wekerd.wordpress.com/2011/05/28/homemade-granola/

Bitters!

House made bitters have become a very big deal in the craft cocktail scene.  Wanting to hone my skills, I decided to try my first batch.  I teamed up with Kalena’s Kitchen (www.wekerd.wordpress.com) to see what we could come up with!

I chose People’s Market in Ocean Beach as my source of herbs and barks. They have a wide collection and all of the ingredients are top quality.

All Organic:

Wild Yellow Dock Bark (All bitter’s have some sort of bark.  It’s what makes them bitter.  I chose this bark because it had a nice smell)
Chrysanthemum Flowers
Red Clover Blossom
Allspice Seeds
Black Peppercorn
Chamomile Flowers
Dried Ginger
Coriander Seeds
Hops
Cloves

Alcohol of choice:

100 Proof Smirnoff Vodka.

Bitters are made with the highest proof alcohol that can legally be purchased.  For our first batch, we chose vodka, hoping that its mild flavor would allow for optimal herbal flavor.

Using a mortar and pestle, gently grind herbs together. Place in pan and warm.  This process releases the essence so that the bitters have a stronger flavor.
Place in air tight jar with alcohol and store in a dark place.  Over the course of one month, shake weekly.  Then they are ready to go!

        

The pursuit of the “Ginger Bomb”

NOTE: I HAVE HAD 3 FAILED ATTEMPTS AT MY GINGER BOMB COCKTAIL INVENTION, THE PURSUIT GOES ON!

One of my favorite flavors on the planet is fresh ginger.  I frequently juice it and use it in much of my cooking.  Ginger is a cleansing agent, a stomach settler, and is rumored to help with sinus infections and colds. I want to use this powerful plant to make a cocktail for all the ginger fanatics out there!  I am going to call it “The Ginger Bomb”, as I tend it to be exactly that. Pictured Below:

Organic evaporated cane juice, raw ginger, and crystalized ginger candies for possible garnishes.

Ginger Simple Syrup:

Sliced ginger chunks ( I juiced my ginger for a more powerful flavor)

1 cup of organic evaporated cane juice (or sugar)

1 cup of filtered water

Cook on stove, stirring until sugar is disolved. Let cool, pour into jar and refrigerate for up to 1 month

VOILA! Ginger simple syrup!