Ida

I know some of you have nice looking barware so I have a question for you. In a second hand shop I found a really pretty glass bottle. I brought it home and it cleaned up very nicely but it has no stopper. I've looked and looked for a stopper but can't find anything that would look nice on it. Problem is that the neck is just a wee bit bigger than the average wine bottle. It is clear glass with sort of a pineapple design. Would look great with a pretty infusion in it. Anyone know where I could find a pretty glass stopper that would be larger than the average wine bottle?

Marlene, Wow, you said you never cared for Grey Goose and I guess you really don't. Have you had the plain or the flavored? I've heard the flavored Grey Goose isn't good but I've never had it myself. If you've had the plain and find it to be the worst you've ever had Everyone has their own taste. Reminds me of fried green tomatoes. My husband loves those things but I can't down them.

Katie, I'm in the southwest corner of PA so I won't be going to NJ anytime soon. You say it can be special ordered? So, our local Wine & Spirit Shoppe can get it for me? If it's the best you've had hands down then it should be worth finding.

Katie, I've never heard of Zyr vodka. Is that available in PA?

Ah, Katie, you've tried the Level. You say it's very good, I'm going to have to try it. I haven't seen it in the bottle, just on a list. I didn't know it is made by Absolut. That list of vodkas to try just keeps getting longer.

I haven't tried Level. It wasn't on the shelf but it is on the shoppe list so it can be ordered. It is only $1 more than Grey Goose here. Would be interesting to know if it is better. JAZ, I thought about watering the 100 proof infusion down a little but then that would also water down the raspberry taste. I am completely new to infusing but I think I would rather use a good 80 proof and just use more of whatever I am infusing it with. Thank you for the thread info. I've read it actually, and that is what got me interested in trying some infusing of my own. I posted a ? there before but didn't get any replies. I'm sure it is a subject that has been discussed at great lengths and after all, if the best 100 proof here is Absolut then of course that is the 100 proof that I would have to use, so my ? in that thread wasn't really worth answering anyway. I find the whole infusing idea to be very interesting and would love to learn more about it from some that have already gone through the trials and errors. Like after I had my raspberry infusion steeping for a few days I read on a website that raspberries should be muddled. My infusion was beautiful and clear, but I went ahead and muddled them. Now my infusion is not beautiful and clear and it doesn't want to go through a filter. It still tastes very good, but it would be nice if it were clear. I strained it and made some simple syrup and added that. It tastes great, but next time I will not muddle the raspberries and see if the flavor is as good. I've read online that after adding the simple syrup one should let the infusion rest for a month. I don't really know if I have the patience for that. That cinnamon clove infusion keeps calling my name from the freezer. Like that stuff is going to see next month!

I'd be very interested in seeing how everyone would rank different vodkas, not considering price. I haven't tried many and I think it would save me quite a bit of money if I knew some that just aren't worth buying. I wanted a good vodka to try some infusing but hear it is better to use a 100 proof. I did a cinnamon clove infusion with Grey Goose, even though it is not 100 proof. I know you all think it's a waste of a good vodka but this infusion is wonderful, even better than I had hoped. And did I mention that it is wonderful? The best 100 proof our local spirit shoppe had is Absolut, so I did pick up a bottle of that. I was reluctant because I bought Absolut raspberry and did not care for it at all. But I decided it may have just been the fact that it was a flavored vodka. I found it to be harsher than Grey Goose and it smelled a little like rubbing alcohol, but then that isn't a fair comparison because the Grey Goose is only 80 proof. The next time I buy vodka I think I will try the Absolut 80 proof and see if it's worth using for mixing instead of Grey Goose. I infused the Absolut 100 with red raspberries. It doesn't go down as smoothly as the Grey Goose cinnamon infusion but I am keeping in mind that it is 100 proof instead of 80 and that raspberries are tart and acidic compared to cinnamon. Still, the raspberry infusion is certainly good enough to drink straight so I'm not complaining. However, I don't think I will use 100 proof for infusing in the future as it makes a very strong drink. I'd rather be able to enjoy more than a couple of drinks before getting drunk and I'd like to use enough in a drink to get a good taste of the infusion.

thanks, I'll look for it in the stores.

My family eats lots of salsa. In the summer we have it fresh of course, which is wonderful. But here in PA one cannot have it fresh year round. Not made with tomatoes that are worth eating. So for years I have been canning it. It isn't as good as the fresh stuff but it still hits the spot in the dead of winter. I made some this morning and cooked it for just a few minutes. I know it is recommended that vegetables be blanched before freezing to stop enzyme action. It is cooling now and then I will add the cilantro just before freezing. Although worrying about cooking everything and then adding uncooked cilantro seems to be contradictive. I actually freeze tomatoes without heating every year, and hot peppers too, and they are just fine. The tomatoes seem to have a fesher taste when frozen than when canned, even though they are being used for cooking. To freeze hot peppers, I put maybe a cup of diced into a ziploc bag, push the air out and zip. Then I spread it out in the bag so the bag is flat and put it in the freezer. When I want to cook with a little hot pepper I open the bag and break off a chunk of frozen peppers and rezip the bag for another time. I like them better than dried. I don't freeze more than I think I will use over the winter as they don't keep for more than a few months without looking freezer burnt. Anyway, back to the salsa. I am going to make some in a couple of days and won't heat it at all. I'll freeze it and then I will see this winter how it works out best. I am sort of flying blind here because I can't find any information on the matter. One thing nice about canning instead of freezing is that it is ready to eat anytime, no need to wait for it to thaw. Ah well, trial and error. It will be a learning experience.

I have never seen it with the roots on. Of course I've always gotten it at the grocery. Haven't even looked for it at an asian market. I live pretty far from the market so I don't get there often. Ha, the first time I ever used cilantro I cut off the stems and threw them away. I kept adding more and more of the leaves and wondered why I wasn't getting that good cilantro taste. By the time I got it canned, my salsa ended up tasting like it had spinach in it. It was not good! That was several years ago. I am older and wiser now. I haven't had the nerve to try it in my salsa since....until now. I got lots of it and washed it all really good. Made salsa and added it, stems and all, and it tasted wonderful. Then I canned it. Couldn't taste the cilantro at all. Ya see, I can't always find cilantro where I live. I have lots of freezer space. Do you think it would hold any of it's flavor if I added it to the salsa and then froze it right away? Surely there is a way that I can enjoy it in the dead of winter when the stores here don't have it.

I also have a hard time getting Thai basil when I want it. When I can get it I buy lots of it. I put what I would use for one meal in freezer ziploc bags and cover with water then push all the air out of the bag and zip it up, then I freeze it. The water keeps it from getting freezer burnt. It isn't as nice as having fresh, but I'd think it would beat the dried.

I canned some salsa that had plenty of cilantro taste before canning it but after canning there was so cilantro taste. Does anyone make their own salsa with cilantro, and how much do you use?

I know the question of which vodka to use has been discussed so please forgive me bringing it up yet again. I want to try some infusing. I like Grey Goose, it's clean, tasteless and oderless. And I don't mind paying the price of Grey Goose, although I wouldn't want to go much higher, but it is only 80 proof and I read that it is best to use 100 proof for infusing. I don't want to waste my time using a lower grade vodka because then I will end up with a lower grade infusion. I just don't know which 100 proof vodka is good. I see many use Absolut 100 proof. I got Absolut Raspberry 80 proof once and it was nasty, it even smelled nasty, so I am afraid to use Absolut. So the question is, what is a 100 proof vodka that would compare with the taste/oder of Grey Goose? Also, today I started Grey Goose with cinnamon sticks and cloves. I haven't been able to find any information on infusing spices. Has anyone here done it? It is my first try at infusing so I am only doing about 10 oz. Infusing sounds like something that would be hard to screw up too badly and one can't go wrong with cinnamon and cloves. I'll taste it in a couple of days and maybe will have to remove the cloves so they don't overpower the cinnamon.

I haven't tried many vodkas and would like to try Luksusowa after reading these posts, but I expected someone to mention Grey Goose. I find it to be very good for mixing and never have had a headache the next morning. So, I'm wondering what take you guys have on it. I've had Absolut, will never buy it again.

Thanks for the welcome and the info. The Bellini sounds quite good. My peaches are yellow. I'm not all that fond of white peaches but I suppose white peach puree would be good in a drink, as long as I wasn't expecting the yummy yellow peach falvor. Infusing vodka was mentioned. I've never had flavored vodka until very recently. I got Absolut Raspberry vodka. I was not impressed. I know the stuff infused at home would be a completely different drink altogether. I guess it's like food, nothing can touch homemade. I am sure I would like raspberry infused vodka if I made it myself and I might just do that. I have been reading so much on this site about infusing and the possibilities are endless, but I won't be using Absolut. Thanks again, Ida

This is my first post so I'll start by saying "Hello" to all. One could get quite lost in this site with all the interesting topics. Now for my question: On the way home from a short trip, we stopped in Romney, WV and got fresh peaches. The same place my daddy got them every year since before my time. I want to make a few different drinks with them but haven't been able to find much that sounds particularly good to me, although Jaymes posted a Peach Sangria that looked good. We had a few poeple for dinner and for dessert I made peach drinks with vanilla ice cream, peaches, peach schnapps, and raspberry vodka. Sounds sweet I know, but remember, it was dessert. I haven't seen cocktails using ice cream here in eGullet. Makes me wonder if I'm the only one here who enjoys such drinks. Yes, I like cocktails that are on the sweet side, but not too sweet. Does anyone have a cocktail recipe using peaches I could try? I guess I should tell a little about my taste...I don't like tequila and I don't like dry wines. I like drinks like the fuzzy navel but when I make them myself I water the orange juice down just a little so it doesn't turn out so sweet and sticky. Thanks so much Ida