eje

camdan, Booker's is barreled at cask strength, so that is a hot bourbon. Maker's Mark is OK. But, for a sipping Bourbon, in that price range, I'd pick the Eagle Rare 10, Knob Creek, or Woodford Reserve over it. They're all a couple bucks more. Well worth the extra cash, though. It looks like you might be somewhere in the UK. Are there any bars nearby that would pour you tasting size glasses before you invest in a bottle?

We were downtown for drinks at Bourbon and Branch the other night. Friends were in the mood for Mexican. I have wanted to try Colibri Mexican Bistro for a while now. Unfortunately, they were booked solid. In a brainstorm, we decided to try the new restaurant owned by the same folks in the Westfield center, Zazil. We started with some very tasty (and pricey) Margaritas. The guacamole made tableside was quite good, as were the fresh tortillas and assorted salsas. Unfortunately, the mains were not as successful. I didn't take detailed notes, but, I had a chicken thing that was served on mashed potatoes and then had an enormous shredded fried potato "nest" on top of it. It was bigger than the chicken and not very tasty! I really had absolutely no idea what it was doing on my plate or why anyone would think to include it. I guess it was just vertical decoration. On the whole, what was good were the basics. When the kitchen tried to stretch and be more modern, it largely failed. The prices, though, are definitely what you would expect to pay for "modern" food, not basic, well prepared, Latin cuisine. The space is somewhat industrial in style, a bit dark, and lit by indirect blue light from the walls. Kind of felt like we were dining underwater. The front of the restaurant opens into the 4th floor of the mall. Conveniently, it is only an escalator ride (or three) away from the Powell BART station.

Another question I have is about the appropriate glassware for the Crusta. Even using the smallest wine glass I have, there's no way the peel of half a lemon is really going to work here. Well, unless it is some massive orange size lemon. I keep trying to decide on scale from the Thomas engraving. Would the glass have been something like this? Tiffin-Franciscan 17306-1 3 3/8" Cordial Glass (amazon link) It really does look pretty close. I assume, as with any peel, it should be cut above the glass immediatly prior to mixing the cocktail, allowing the lemon oils to scent and flavor the cocktail. I'll admit that prior to this, I've always been confused by the Savoy recipe, and filled my Crusta (and crusta style) Cocktail glasses with ice. This week's project will have to be making myself a proper one (or two).

I haven't tried this Cognac myself; but, I did notice that Alembic (a bar here in San Francisco) is using the Maison Surrenne Petit Champagne Cognac as their rail brand. Usually comes in around $30 at retail. I've tried the Ferrand Ambre in a couple cocktails, and think it stands up quite well. Though, it's usually priced in the mid-30s, making it pretty deluxe for an everyday mixer. The Germain-Robin Fine Alembic Brandy seems to have gone up in price in the last couple years, putting its price higher than either of the Cognacs listed above. Also, before I finished that bottle, I grew a bit disenchanted with it. The Germain-Robin is good; but, seemed a bit single noted compared to the Ferrand Ambre and the few other Cognacs I've tried since I first picked it up.

This is, I think, an instance where the instructions don't quite tell you how to make the drink the right way. The whole point of the Crusta is that it has a) a sugared rim, and b) that the spiral cut of lemon peel goes all the way around the inside rim of the glass. [...] ← To me the most obtuse part about the Savoy recipe for the Brandy Crusta, is that it is quite unclear which glass is filled with cracked ice. The Savoy cocktail book makes it sound like the ice should go in the serving glass, and I've seen pictures of Crustas prepared that way. On the other hand, in the Thomas recipe, it is pretty clear that you are stirring the drink with cracked ice, and then straining it into the glass. Having the lemon peel all the way around the rim does seem a bit daunting. I guess you'd just poke it down into your drink to partake? I don't agree that the big piece of peel is optional, though. Having that in the cocktail adds a lot more lemon intensity and flavor to the cocktail, than a simple channel cut peel or the more usual peel squeezed over the top.

Bosom Caresser Cocktail* The Yolk of 1 Egg 1 Teaspoonful of Grenadine (uh, oops, I forgot the grenadine) 1/3 Curacao (3/4 oz Brizard Orange Curacao) 2/3 Brandy (1 1/2 oz Pierre Ferrand Ambre) (dash Regan's orange bitters - eje) Shake well and strain into medium size glass. (Squeeze Orange Peel on top. - eje) Bobby Jones and Francis Ouimet were well known American golfers. I can't tell if the quote above is some sort of swipe at them. Lady's Men? Golf balls are similar to egg yolks? The cocktail is pretty tasty, in a rich, egg-ey, orange-ey, (phlegm inducing,) kind of way. I guess my missing the grenadine robbed me of a subtle pink hue. A float of grenadine (or pama) might be cool. I can't say I feel inspired to go back and try it again, though, at least tonight.

Wow! I'm going to have to show this to my wife to prove to her that there are other people with more old computer stuff than me! That preserved duck leg cooked on rice looks like a great weeknight dinner. Definitely something I will try in the future!

Must be a little different then as the molasses is quite tart and is a brownish colour. I've used it in salad dressings, and also have a chicken recipe that uses it. ← After a little googling, I think the Carlo Pomegranate "Concentrate" is the same as the stuff sometimes called "Pomegranate Paste" and is distinct from the Molasses. I'll pick up some Molasses today and test my theory.

I really like the C&H Washed Raw Sugar for many things. It's a free flowing, large crystal, turbinado style sugar. It adds a subtle, yet distinct flavor to cocktails and liqueurs. I've never tried it in a mojito, though. Probably be quite tasty. You'd want to give it a whirl in a blender or food processor beforehand to break up the crystals. Washed Raw Sugar (C&H website) Interesting note, this is the only C&H product that isn't filtered through bone char. So fer your really strict vegetarians out there, it's the only C&H sugar they'll eat.

Well, if it is the leftovers from candy making, and the candy is intended for human consumption, I don't see how the leftovers wouldn't be. Unless it is handled in some way after the candy making process that isn't hygienic. A lot of sources on molasses say blackstrap isn't fit for human consumption/baking either. Yet clearly many people use it.

Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Digest and 96 Hours section, Friday, February 23, 2007 The little appellation that could, Jon Bonné THE SIPPING NEWS: Wine, food and an intelligent sense of vice. Blossoming scents of tangerine peel in the glass hint that Daphne is sweet as can be. Oscar goes green The tail end of citrus season Tastings: In Amador County, Gold Country morphs into Wine Country, Laura Compton Much-maligned Merlot so unhip it's cool again, W. Blake Gray Spirits: Mastering Tequila, one glass at a time, Camper English Pairings: Sole hooks California Chardonnay, Joyce Goldstein Recipes: Sole Amandine The Chronicle's Wine Selections: Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, W. Blake Gray The Cheese Course: Wisconsin's epic Dante makes seasonal debut, Janet Fletcher 96 Hours Bar Bites: Velvet Cantina, Amanda Berne "The place might give Puerto Alegre a run for its money as the hot Mission newcomer for the margarita-swilling crowd. Off the main drag, this place opened a little over a year ago with a darker, clandestine look -- perhaps to match its location? It's a full-service restaurant and bar with two rooms to spread out in. Insiders go for a certain cute bartender; the rest of us go to have a margarita and a bite without being rushed out the door -- at taqueria prices." Bargain Bite: Old Jerusalem, Tara Duggan "AThe best bargain restaurants often are places you might normally walk by and never notice. With an unassuming sign fighting for attention on jam-packed Mission Street, Old Jerusalem is a great find." CRITICS' PICKS: Shh ... quiet "Cozy and soothing restaurants, serving everything from sushi to salads to souffles, where you can have a conversation without shouting to your dining companions -- or just hear yourself think"

Fer a couple more Dubonnet Rouge cocktails, try the Apparent Cocktail and the Alfonso. First is a dubonnet wet martini with a dash of absinthe, and the second is a very nice champagne cocktail.

Ha! Thanks, Ah Leung! I'm really enjoying your foodblog. My boss took us out for dim sum yesterday to celebrate the new year. Even though I am a dragon, I ate like a pig.

I like this idea in principle; but, in practice, don't find it to be true for every state or country. There are still plenty of great rums, gins, bourbons and ryes available around that price, if you shop wisely and don't get sucked in by advertising hype or packaging. Well, plus vodka, if there is such thing as a great vodka ( ). But, I'll use Rittenhouse for an example. Binny's (in IL) charges $11.99 a bottle for the bonded Rittenhouse. If you can find it in CA, it is usually $20-25. It's still a great whiskey for $25; but, it's not quite as great a whiskey as it is for $12! And there are some categories where you just aren't going to find a good example of the spirit for $25. The easiest examples I can think of are the ones I gave above, 100% Agave Tequilas and Absinthes.

The shells surrounding the pits of the plums and apricots did break down inside the fruit over the month that they were steeping, either from the freezing or some chemical action. Maybe dissolved by the acid of the fruit? I was a bit surprised by this. Not sure the much sturdier peach pits would do the same.

Oh, yer right, I forgot my standard disclosure: If this makes you uncomfortable, by all means, pit your peaches, plums, apricots, pluots, etc. Though, you usually only use 6-8 plums or apricots per liter of alcohol, so you would probably reach the fatal dose for alcohol (or a diabetic coma) well before you reached the one for cyanide. The year before last, I chickened out and pitted my plums, pluots, and apricots before making liqueur. I also had not yet read jackal10's method, so didn't freeze. I was pretty unimpressed with the liqueurs I made. Especially the plum. This year, however, I both froze and left the pits in. The liqueurs were an order of magnitude more complex, and the fruit much better expressed. I've noticed no ill effects from consumption.

Oh, and I wouldn't cut up the peaches. I've tried that in the past with plums. Especially, if you have decently ripe fruit, the flesh turns to pectin thickened mush, and makes the liqueur an enormous pain in the a** to filter. If you're going to freeze, as jackal10 advises, just poke the skin of each peach a few times with a knife or fork beforehand to allow the alcohol to enter and fruit juice to exit. The cracking thing doesn't really work with thicker skinned fruit like peaches and apricots.

Boy, we're really cruising now! I hope no one minds if I go back to re-try some of these great sounding cocktails!

I've had very good luck with a whole fruit apricot liqueur following jackal10's damson/sloe gin procedure in this topic: Autumn and Festive Preserves I'll also refer you to portion of Gunther Anderson's website about liqueur making: Liqueur-making Principles and Techniques He recommends macerating stone fruit for 2 weeks to a month, and then aging at least a month before enjoying. Check the General Principles page for more info. I don't know how possible it is to make melon liqueur simply by steeping the fruit. They are very watery, so it may be difficult to get a concentrated enough melon flavor to cover the taste of the alcohol. re: 151 vs 100 proof. Chuckle, well, I prefer using vodka so it doesn't have that "grain alcohol" smell! The only real differences are personal preference and the alcohol percentage math you have to do at the end. Some folks say you get better flavor extraction with higher proof liqueurs. Higher proof alcohol is also probably better at killing any stray bacteria on the fruit.

Thanks for checking into this Marco! It's a very tasty cocktail. Coincidentally, the Dr. Cocktail column in the March/April Imbibe Magazine has a recipe for the "Boulevardier" from McElhone's 1927 book, "Barflies and Cocktails". 1 1/2 oz Bourbon, 1 oz Campari, 1 oz Italian Vermouth. Great minds think alike, eh? Rye sounds better to me, anyway! edit - Also, according to Dr. Cocktail, this Campari and whiskey drink actually pre-dates any known reference to the Negroni by some 20 years.

Is the Pomegranate Concentrate anything like Pomegranate molasses? ← I'm not sure where the line is between the Molasses and the Concentrate. This manufacturer makes a Pomegranate Concentrate and Molasses. I see them both in stores. The Pomegranate Molasses appears darker and has a couple extra ingredients. I think the concentrate is just intended to be thinned out and used as pomegranate juice for cooking and drinking. The reason I decided to use it, was, most pomegranate juice, unless you squeeze your own, comes from concentrate. Why boil away the water the manufacturer adds, when you can buy it without?

Here's a not very great picture of the 1794 from B&B. I've had them at Range and Bourbon and Branch. I think it's a Thomas Waugh original that he first made at Range. I believe he may sometimes work at Bourbon and Branch; but, they have a number of new cocktails created by local and international bartenders on their menu. I've never tried making it at home. I would start at 2:1:1, though, as rye isn't quite as assertive as gin. At Range they make it with Old-Overholt, cinzano rosso, and campari. Stir with ice, garnish with flamed orange peel.

Here's my current small-ish no-cook version. Quite intense pomegranate flavor. 1 Cup Pomegranate Juice 1 Cup Sugar 1/4 Cup Pomegranate Concentrate (Carlo) 1/4 Cup Vodka Combine sugar with juice and shake until dissolved. Add Pomegranate Concentrate and Vodka.

I think I got the same one from Surfas' and its worked well for me, too.

I was wondering what Beebe's "ordinary-quality bar whiskey" might have been. I'm always suitably impressed when a bartender makes me a tasty Manhattan or Sazerac with something like Old-Overholt or Beam. Well, actually, I'm always impressed whenever I get a good cocktail, no matter the starting spirit. But, still, it would take a miracle worker to make same with generic blended whisk(e)y.