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OK, this pineapple has been "brining" for 48 hours in a bottle of rum with 1/4 cup of dark brown sugar, and a split vanilla bean. I'll strain the liquid through 2 layers of cheesecloth, add the juice of 4 limes, simple syrup to taste, put it back in its bottle and refrigerate. Reserve the tasty pineapple chunks; but, respect them. They are quite alcoholic. In a cocktail shaker, add a couple more drops lime, 2 dashes angostora, and 2 oz of daiquiri mix, shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a couple cherries and some of the reserved pineapple. Other serving options, include freezing and serving as shots, adding more juice and some soda for a long drink, putting the whole thing, pineapple and all in a blender with some ice... PS. Recipe was based on one I got from the Coyote Cafe Cookbook by Mark Miller.

Oh, yeah, a proper cup of drip coffee is made with 2 Tablespoons of ground beans per 6 oz cup. Dilute with hot water, if you need. The coffee at Peet's isn't made strong, the coffee in the rest of America is weak, weak, weak. I think my mom uses 1 or 2 Tablespoon per 10 cup pot. Brown water. So sad.

Peet's has always been known for having very strong coffee. It seems like high caffeine content is something they look for in the beans they use. Even if you buy the beans and take them home, they seem to have more of a "jitter factor" than a similar amount of almost any other brand's beans. Interestingly, one of the founders of Starbucks started out in the coffee industry as a Peet's employee. I also believe, Alfred Peet helped the Starbucks folks get started in the business, even supplying them with beans while they were ramping up their operations.

Cafe Organica Link. Interesting pictures in the events section. I guess I've never seen anyone using a blow torch in a coffee shop, before... Those pousse cafe type coffee shots, whatever they are, look very attractive, as well.

Noticed on this month's K & L Wines Newsletter that a Napa company is choosing a Nocino for their initial release. Nocino della Cristina, by Monteverdi Spirits. Anyone tried yet? They've got quite a list of restaurants, bars, and liquor stores lined up. However, I can't quite imagine Absinthe or Citizen Cake serving the Nutslide or Nutty Nikita.

This does sound good. I did one with Gin, fresh Pomegranate juice, and a rinse of fernet, which was subtle and quite nice. I can't imagine adding more than 1/2 oz to a short cocktail. You're just extending the fernet and blowing away all your other flavors. What's the actual difference between Fernet Branca and Branca Menta? I haven't done a side by side, but, Menta just seems a bit sweeter to me. Not really mintier or anything.

In North Beach, some people swear by Graffeo's beans. I dropped the Ecco Caffe folks a note and Andrew suggested the Blue Bottle stand in the Ferry Building and Ritual Coffee Roasters on Valencia. Looks like Blue Bottle also now have a store in Hayes Valley on Linden. I've had Blue Bottle's beans in the past. Will be interesting to try again. -Erik

Thanks Molto... My those do sound good. The sorts of places my wife and I will try to check out if we can get off on my own for a while. I'm also looking for places that are a little more down to earth. My parents are older and those places are a little fancier than they probably enjoy. I would love to get to Cyclo, though. I wonder how they feel about Vietnamese? I know they do eat Thai.

I keep hoping someone will list someone or somewhere in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I can go try some quality espresso! Anyone? Suggestions? I know the oddly named Ritual Coffee Roasters (shouldn't they roast their own beans?) get their beans from the well regarded Stumptown, so at least they are starting with a quality product. Philz? Haven't been there, yet...

I know! It was your recommendation here on eGullet, which encouraged me to try some. Amazing stuff!

Looking at older recipes, I see they usually call for anisette and/or absinthe. I haven't tried anisette; but, my understanding is it is a fairly simple sweet anise flavored liqueur. Absinthe, as I understand it, is a complex herbal liquor. Seems like what we ended up with is a spectrum of products, some of which ended up closer to anisette, and some of which ended up closer to the original absinthe. Pernod and Ricard, to me, are fairly sweet, and not particularly herbaceously complex. Another "pastis" I've tried, from Henri Barduoin, is much drier and an order of magnitude more complex.

The Shipyard Brewing I'm familiar with is in Portland, Maine. (Old Thumper, Pumpkinhead...) I think you are talking about somewhere else!

Not a candy maker; but, all the rock candy I had, uh, probably 30 years ago was just big white sugar crystals. Not caramel like at all. Makes my teeth hurt to think about it. BTW, 250 degrees F is Firm/Hard ball and a sugar concentration around 90%. Color doesn't start to change to brown until around 330 degrees F and a sugar concentration near 99 percent.* edited to add more sugar stuff. *Source

My wife and I are planning on driving from San Francisco, CA to Phoenix, AZ (Sun Lakes, actually) later this month. We'll be in AZ for about a week and are looking for recommendations in the area and fun places to stop along the way. Thanks!

I just noticed K & L have 3 monthly wine clubs. I haven't tried the wine clubs; but, usually enjoy the store's selections. Looking at the history of the wines they've shipped they look pretty tasty. Wine of the Month Clubs

Saw pickled walnuts at The British Shoppe today and had a brainstorm. 1 1/2 oz Plymouth Gin 3/4 oz Nocino di Flannestad Shake in an iced cocktail shaker and strain into martini glass. Garnish with half a pickled walnut. Flame an orange zest over the top and scent the rim of the glass. The gin and nocino both skirt the edge of bitter and sweet, making a great aperitif cocktail. Okay, the pickled walnuts are ugly. Tasty, though. Been practising the flaming orange zest thing since seeing the showmen at Employees Only on Eat This with Dave Lieberman. This time I was close to their pyrotechnics.

Picked one of these up, since its cheap, and might be a potential workaround for my upcoming holiday Coffee Hell. Doesn't quite have the body of french press and definitely not the delicious fine foam you would find on a good espresso. On the plus side, it is very fast, not messy at all, easy to clean, and makes a very good highly concentrated cup of coffee. Especially, it seems to give excellent expression to the aroma of the bean. I think it would be perfect for an office setting. All you would need is a cup, the Aeropress, ground beans, and something to heat your water.

Konnyaku is made from the tuber of a voodoo lily. Same plant family as taro, which is usually Colocasia esculenta, but not very closely related. Here are some pictures of the voodoo lily, Amorphophallus konjac, tubers and plants in bloom. They're spectacular to grow; but, the flowers can be very stinky. The most famous of the Amorphophallus is the Titan Arum, whose bloom can be 4 feet tall, and whose odor is often described variously as rotting meat, dung or rancid cheese.

Well, I'm not exactly a youngster, nor do I think I am all that old. In any case, I find 5:30-6:30 PM to be a bit early. 6:30-7:30 PM to be my preference. After 8:30, unless I've planned ahead, I get a bit grumpy. This is often a source of friction between myself and my franc-o-phile friends; but, we usually work something out around 8. The problem I've noticed, is that, often, the later you dine the less accurate the hosts estimations of your dining reservation will be. If you make a reservation between 6-7:30, you will generally be seated close to its time. If you make a reservation after 8, at least in San Francisco, god knows when you will actually be seated. I guess this is a consequence of poor planning, lingering guests, or whatever; but, when I make reservations after 8, I find my party often waits much beyond its planned time for dinner.

Hmmm... I'm trying to imagine the flavor combination of coffee vodka, lime juice, and vermouth with a maraschino cherry. I can't quite bring it together in my mind without feeling a little ill. Especially if I imagine the lime juice to be Rose's.

In "Vintage Spirits...", Ted Haigh suggests a more film noir way to ask for it at the bar is as a "Bronx with Bitters". :-) It got me wondering if there were cocktails named after all 5 boroughs. Manhattan and Brooklyn, of course, but, I couldn't find anything for Staten Island or Queens.

Actually, not. Black Walnut trees' roots, buds, nut hulls, and to a lesser extent leaves and bark contain substances which are poisonous to some other plants. Makes landscaping and gardening under them a bit challenging. Click here for more information on Black Walnut toxicity. Another reason, they are not the most popular trees in the world. Anyway, after reading this thread, I got a jones for Black Walnuts and bid on a few too many ebay auctions. Ooops. Will soon be coming into a bit of an embarrassment of riches. I'd be glad for some suggestions for use beyond chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. -Erik

Thanks Janet! That's what I thought. Tried an Income Tax cocktail last night, and that is one I can really get behind. Relatively straight forward, yet complex. Might be my new favorite cocktail. Certainly something which I will make again.

I was reading this wired article recently, and it claims, "absinthe oxidizes like wine once the bottle is open." At that proof, it doesn't really make sense to me either. The only thing I can think of, comes from the manufacturing procedure, where I believe he states the absinthe distillate is infused (macerated?) with wormwood post distillation. Possibly, the character from that second infusion evaporates with age after opening.

Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Digest, Thursday, December 08, 2005 WINEMAKER OF THE YEAR, DUCKHORN TAKES WING, Linda Murphy Letters to Wine: Shipping wine more difficult than before, readers say Wine Business Insider: Former winery executives buy Red and White trucks, Cyril Penn Cline Cellars has sold its Red Truck and White Truck brands...Wine Opinions of St. Helena says a backlash reaction to ratings of wines by Robert M. Parker Jr. seems to be forming among a significant segment of high-end wine consumers... If they won't like $100 beer, give a Champagne wet suit, Bianca Antonacci, Rachel Marshall and Stacey Wickman Gift ideas for wine aficionados. WINEMAKER OF THE YEAR, DAVE GUFFY, Linda Murphy WINEMAKER OF THE YEAR, KRIS CURRAN, Linda Murphy WINEMAKERS OF THE YEAR, ADAM & ED SBRAGIA, Linda Murphy WINEMAKERS OF THE YEAR, CAROL SHELTON, Linda Murphy WINEMAKERS OF THE YEAR, MENDOCINO WINE CO., Linda Murphy The Cocktailian: 1838 is a very good year for rum and Yellow Chartreuse, Gary Regan Featuring a cameo from Edward Hamilton! Recipe: 1838 Cocktail Adapted from a recipe by Bobby "G" Gleason, beverage specialist at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. BOOKS: Train your brain with these tomes, W. Blake Gray Writeup of "The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia" (DK Publishing, 664 pages, $50) by Tom Stevenson and "The World's Greatest Wine Estates: A Modern Perspective" (Simon & Schuster, 708 pages, $75), by Robert M. Parker Jr. The Cheese Course: From ravioli to cannoli, Calabro ricotta fills the need, Janet Fletcher Pairings: Onion sauce improves a lamb and Syrah match, Lynne Char Bennett Recipe: Lamb with Syrah-Balsamic Onions The Chronicle's Wine Selections: Washington State Syrah