mkayahara

My favourite sloe gin drink is the Modern No. 2. Edit: Of course, I have no idea if the umeshu will work with Scotch, but I can imagine it working well with gin. Come to that, it would be interesting to try it with genever.

There's an LCBO clearance centre? And you didn't take me with you? How sweet is the stuff? The things that come to mind for me right away would be subbing it for apricot liqueur in something, using it as a modifier in a Martini (as, say, a substitute for the prunelle in Fairbank cocktail), or maybe seeing how it plays as a sub for sloe gin?

Pie looks great, Chris. How is the foam done?

Can you get glucose syrup?

I, too, am a big fan of grapefruit bitters in tequila old fashioneds. Which mezcal are you using? For a while, the only one I had was Monte Alban, which is so aggressively smoky that I found a rinse to be plenty. With my recently acquired Del Maguey Chichicapa (thanks, Chris!), a half-ounce is wonderful.

Tonight I had a Nightmärzen from Beau's Brewery. A little hoppier than I understand the Märzen style typically is, but overall not bad for a lager.

Picking this up as the most recent Cleveland-related thread, can anyone tell me how formal Lola is, attire-wise? I'm hoping to make a stop there in a few weeks.

Just tried out my first home-roasted espresso blend. It was quite good, with nice flavour but maybe less body than I would like. (Though that could be as much due to my shot-pulling technique as the roast.) It was a blend of 70% Brazilian, 15% dry-processed Ethiopian and 15% robusta, roasted to FC+. Reminded me a lot of some of the Lavazza coffees I've had, but fresher.

I would check out the Ideas in Food book; they've got great instructions for onsen-tamago.

On the other hand, it is true that hard water will make your beans take much longer to soften. They do soften eventually, but with my water, I've baked beans in the oven for upwards of 6 hours and still had some be unpleasantly hard.

Keep in mind, Tri2Cook, that White Owl is an aged-and-filtered spirit, not an unaged one. I doubt you'd get the rough and tumble aspects of the white dog the recipe calls for.

Nice, I'll have to check that out. If you have some sherry, do try a Tabard.

Every time I use the 1 egg + 100g of flour ratio, I wonder how big Italian eggs must be... because my pasta doughs at that ratio invariably end up way too dry... it won't even come together. Of course, I'm not using 00 flour, either, so maybe that's the problem.

Seriously, Chris, none of us can thank you enough for your many invaluable contributions to this site, both visible and behind the scenes. eGullet just wouldn't be what it is today without you. Thank you!

Why not? Brett (Brettanomyces) is type of yeast that is found in many great Belgian beers such as lambic, gueuze and Orval trappist ale. Sure, but in minute quantities, right? My understanding is that in large doses, it's more often associated with off-flavours. So I would be hesitant about putting it front and centre in the name there. I was recently in a local restaurant when the distributor for a nearby cider-maker came through, and he was marketing their "pub cider" as being brett-forward, citing the traditions of some region of England or another. I liked it, but a friend of mine ordered a pint (on a different night, at a different restaurant), and thought it tasted off. When I identified for him some of the aromas often associated with brett, he couldn't bring himself to finish the pint! But of course, as in all things, your mileage may vary. Your description certainly makes it sound like a nice beer.

"Brett Beer"? I can't say the marketing appeals to me...

Make the batter, divide into separate bowls, mix a different colour into each bowl? You're going to go through a lot of pastry bags, though.

FTFA: "[...]the restaurant’s chocolate soufflé, which has become floury and crumbly, a dry cupcake hiding out in a soufflé mold." Is that better?

Thank you both! I'm sure I'm being too hard on myself... they were pretty good! The sauce was probably fine when it first went into the pan, but the recipe calls for you to simmer it to reduce, and I'm not sure it was necessary. When serving them, I made my husband's plate first and served it to him, then made my own, so we could both eat while they were still at least warm, even if it meant not quite eating together. Pouring some of the extra sauce over top would have been a good idea, for sure.

Newton's Law of Restaurant Complaints: For every server complaint, there is an equal and opposite patron complaint.

Last night I made the enchiladas de chile ajo featured on the cover of the Mexico issue of Saveur. I don't have much experience making any enchiladas, and this is my first time making the dip-and-roll kind, so by the time I was done the last one, the first ones were decidedly cold. I guess keeping them in the oven, or at least using heated plates, would help! I used store-bought tortillas, and found them a bit heavy. Sadly, I don't have a lot of choice for brands of corn tortillas around here. The sauce seemed a bit thick, though again I assume that's user error, but it was delicious, and I would make it again. Whenever I make chilli-based sauces like this, I'm very grateful for my Vita Mix!

Agreed. When it comes to small fruits, the food mill is your friend. If you don't have one, buy one: You'll thank yourself.

If it's genuinely uncured, then I would treat it exactly the same as any other fresh meat.

Has anyone tried the Henri Bardouin Gentiane de Lure? The Quebec liquor board used to carry it, but it looks like their supplies are dwindling.

Am I the only one who thinks this trend is super annoying? You're far from alone. The worst offender I've seen is a package that boldly proclaimed "nitrate free!" but listed sodium nitrite among its ingredients.