FrogPrincesse

According to this guy, Hamilton 151 is superior to the red label and new version Lemon Hart 151 that you just bought, at least in a Zombie. But they haven't included the yellow label Lemon Hart in the comparison...

You have the old stock to compare against? (Lots of discussions about this on Tiki Central)

Negroni or Manhattan both assume that they have a decent vermouth on hand. You are taking a huge gamble! Plus the most basic bars will have no idea how to make a Negroni (or a decent Manhattan), so you will have to guide them through the (simple) steps, which is far from ideal if they are busy... I used to try to walk them through the process, equal part Negroni or 2:1 Manhattan with bitters, and then when I thought we were all good, I would watch in horror as they would start shaking the drink in front of my eyes! I've since given up. G&T has a lot less room for error.

So what's your default safe order @EvergreenDan? Shot of whiskey?

Funny. The G&T is one of my "safe" drinks to order. I add plenty of lime and am usually happy. It's also what I get on planes! I am a 1:2 person, except with overproof gin where I add a bit more tonic water to compensate for the alcohol content.

Yes, Hi-Time has (almost) everything. I try not to go there too often because that is a very dangerous proposition! The VJOP is great. I've had it in a Martini while in London some time ago, at the Blind Pig.... It's been on my list of things to buy ever since.

Well, I know I could still find it, if not in SD, at least in Orange County. But it was really convenient to put it in my shopping basket when I shopped at TJ's, and the price was right too!

I have a brand new batch of homemade orgeat, so I made a pair of Army & Navy (David A. Embury) with Sipsmith London dry gin, lemon juice, homemade orgeat, Angostura bitters. Sadly it's the end of that beautiful bottle of gin, and I don't believe Trader Joe's has it in stock anymore...

It is vague indeed. I generally use about 2 oz. More and the cocktail feels diluted down, less and the champagne doesn't make enough of an impact.

Personally I don't understand the hype about Carpano Antica. I mean, it's fine, but it tends to take over any drink, and its vanilla notes can be distracting.

Gin & Tonic with 33 Portland dry gin and Fever Tree bitter lemon. I am a big fan of the Fever Tree tonic, so I wanted to try their bitter lemon. I like the taste but the first sip struck me as overly sweet (although the nutritional info tells me it has the same sugar content... go figure!).

The Pixie is a compact and fairly inexpensive little machine. I used one for a few weeks while my Lattissima was being repaired and really liked it (great customer service from Nespresso by the way, with a free loaner AND a free repair for a machine that was technically out of warranty).

Tipperary (PDT ratios on the left, and Bartender's Choice ratios on the right) with Green Spot Irish whiskey, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, green Chartreuse, and Regan's orange bitters for the Bartender's Choice version. Compared to the traditional (Harry Johnson) version, PDT only has a rinse of green Chartreuse. It still makes a great cocktail, but I feel it changes the feel of it quite a bit and makes it resemble a classic Manhattan compared to the Bartender's Choice version. As a side note, I am slightly disappointed by the Green Spot. I am a novice at Irish whiskey and prefer Redbreast. Maybe it will grow on me. PDT calls for Black Bush. I wonder how that compares in this drink?

I use whole milk, citric acid, and salt (recipe upthread). Here are pictures of the process from my foodblog a few years ago.

Lucky you! I love apricots.

I don't, but I imagine that something like apricot chutney would be really good! Apricot season is long over however, at least where I am located.

Culinary Artistry is the exact title. I believe a few other eG members have it. I have The Flavor Bible by the same authors, a more recent book that has some overlap based on what I read, but a different scope overall.

So far so good! I am at page 43. Have you done any of the experiments from the book? They look like fun.

Piperade is a dish from the Basque region of France, near Spain. It's bell peppers, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and piment d'espelette (a chili pepper from that region), slowly cooked. The bell peppers are cut into strips rather than diced. It's usually served with eggs or ham. And then leftovers are wonderful reheated or cold; I think it actually tastes better the next day.

Sure. It's still a bit Manhattan-esque in the sense that someone who likes a Manhattan would enjoy it and find it familiar. As long as it tastes good, right? ...

@EvergreenDan Not following... Anyway, the place was opened by Alex Day and David Kaplan of Death & Co (+ Devon Tarby), so I am sure they are well familiar with New York and its boroughs.

This is a little more liquid than what I am used to, and also quite yellow on top, which I don't mind but bothered my daughter who prefers the more basic Greek yoghurt. Organic cream top plain whole milk yoghurt

Thanks to @Thanks for the Crepes who posted a link to a collection of recipes, and frequent mentions by @shain, here is a Shakshuka with red peppers and cumin (Yotam Ottolenghi), with a little organic yoghurt on the side. I had two red bell peppers from my CSA that I needed to use, so this was good timing. Everything else was basic pantry items. The dish itself is pretty good, but honestly now I have a serious craving for piperade which I find I little more interesting (of course I am biased... I grew up with that stuff).

Of course. Yakima Valley is the main hop-growing area in the US, and one of the most important in the world. And actually there is such a high demand, crops are bought years in advance. It's predicted that at some point in the near future there won't be enough around given the current popularity of highly hopped beers.

Wonderful Great pictures. Did you take any pictures of the hop fields by any chance? As a hophead, I find this fascinating.