FrogPrincesse

Haha. Well that is too bad... I am pretty sure you could pull this off. I met one of the distillers from House Spirits a while back and he explained that the aquavit was made exactly like a gin, but with different spices. The caraway seed and star anise are very prominent so it's quite distinctive.

@lesliec Thanks for reporting on this one. I have the opposite problem, I only have Krogstad and not Linie! They are completely different though. Krogstad is like a caraway- and anise-flavored gin, there is not a hint of sweetness/sherry like the Linie has. Too bad we cannot pool our resources!

I suspect maybe you make yours a tad stronger than most people? Also, sadly, the ability to metabolize alcohol is directly related to weight and sex (men having an automatic advantage).

So how does donkey compare to horse meat? I grew up eating horse meat but never had donkey, so I am curious!

A bunch of recent classics from the past couple of weeks. 10:3:2 Daiquiri with Dillon rhum agricole, lime juice, JM cane syrup. I really like this rhum agricole. It's cheap and very flavorful, high proof too (55). I think @Rafa recommended it a while back (thanks!). 2:1 Martini with Sipsmith London dry gin, Noilly Prat extra dry vermouth, Regan / Fee Brothers / Angostura orange bitters. I am still completely in love with this London dry gin. It is pretty much perfect for a Martini. Norwegian Wood (Jeff Morgenthaler) with Krogstad aquavit, Daron XO calvados, Martini Gran Lusso vermouth, yellow Chartreuse, Angostura bitters. A very nice winter drink. I liked it a lot with the Gran Lusso. It has a bitter edge that was nice with the caraway notes of the aquavit. Toronto (David A. Embury with ratios from PDT) with Rittenhouse 100 rye whiskey, barrel-aged Fernet Francisco, demerara syrup. I did it up but maybe it's better on a large rock... Still debating this. Also which Fernet do I like best in this... That's a good question!

Beautiful macarons! I made a big batch of David Lebovitz's chocolate chip cookies (from Ready for Dessert). I was out of walnuts so I used a mix of pecans and Italian almonds. The chips are Trader Joe's semi-sweet chocolate chips. I baked a dozen and froze the remaining ones (already sliced), so they are ready to go whenever the mood strikes.

I wasn't sure where to post this, but since it is Montenegro-heavy, I decided to start a new thread! Forged & Bound (Jacques Bezuidenhout via Gaz Regan) with Wild Turkey 101 rye whiskey, Amaro Montenegro, St. George coffee liqueur (substituted for Galliano Ristretto), green Chartreuse, Abbott's bitters (Tempus Fugit). It was boozy as expected and surprisingly rough around the edges for something with so much Montenegro. Interesting flavors. Chartreuse and coffee is a great combo already, and Montenegro adds saffron and deep/muted orange peel notes.

@Tri2Cook Not sure either! Lol. Use a white rum - your Havana Club anejo blanco would work great, and add a touch of something for spice - allspice dram, or falernum (a barspoon or less). That'd be a decent substitute.

See here.

Great. Very helpful!

Question. While researching the Creole bitters by The Bitter Truth I came across the Creole bitters by Berg & Hauck. Berg & Hauck are the two German bartenders who are behind the brand The Bitter Truth. So are these the same thing in a different packaging? I am asking because I was considering buying this little sample pack which has the Creole and also celery and lemon that are missing in my collection (plus it's only $19...). There is also the sampler pack by The Bitter Truth, but it's currently $27 plus shipping, and the selection isn't as interesting (at least not for me, based on my existing bitters collection).

Creole Saz (Joaquin Simo) with Dillon rhum agricole (substituted for Barbancourt 3 stars), Pierre Ferrand 1840 cognac, JM cane syrup, Peychaud's bitters, St. George absinthe (instead of Vieux Pontarlier). I realized too late that Barbancourt 3 stars was an aged rum, so it would have made more sense to use an aged agricole. Oh well, it was probably a bit more youthful and brash than the original, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I enjoyed this very much.

Also refer to this existing thread for more suggestions...

@Chris Hennes is this for mixing, sipping? Del Maguey is a good brand, El Silencio, Fidencio...

@tanstaafl2 Rather than the barrel-aged Peychaud's I was very tempted to get the Bitter Truth creole bitters which are supposed to have a slightly different flavor profile. They are used by Death & Co in their "house Peychaud's " (2 parts Peychaud's to 1 part creole.)

The New Fashioned Old Fashioned (Jens Kerger via Gaz Regan) with Elijah Craig 12 bourbon, marmalade, The Bitter Truth xocolatl mole bitters, The Bitter Truth Jerry Thomas' Own Decanter bitters. I used homemade yuzu marmalade (that has a touch of Hibiki 12 in it, because why not...). In the same vein as the Omar Bradley with the cinnamon smoke (aided by the bitters) making it spicy and smoky at the same time. It is pretty good although I got a lot of cigarette ash from the cinnamon.

I was looking for something gin-forward the other day and tried the Pink Elephant. It reminded me of an elegant Bramble with the alliance of gin and blackberries. There is also a Hemingway daiquiri inspiration there with the lime, maraschino and grapefruit combination. It called for blackberry liqueur, I subbed blackcurrant syrup (blackcurrants taste similar to blackberries but are very tart and have a slightly tannic flavor that I always loved). You really need a juniper-forward gin like Tanqueray for this to really work. And it works - it is a simple yet really great drink. Pink Elephant (Brian Miller) with Tanqueray London dry gin, Luxardo maraschino liqueur, syrop de cassis/black currant syrup, Oro Blanco grapefruit juice, lime juice.

@QuadrigaExactly... I have good balsamic already but I've been waiting for strawberry season to try this drink! This one is pleasant but honestly the cocktail doesn't do justice to this tequila. The book called for Azul, I used Ocho plata La Magueyera which is a first rate tequila, vegetal with a touch of smokiness. The cocktail wasn't bad, but it wasn't especially remarkable. Gilda Cocktail (Brian Miller) with single estate tequila Ocho plata 2014, lime juice, pineapple juice, cinnamon bark syrup

Thanks @Rafa !

Brian Miller's take on the traditional Bumboo is a beautiful rum old fashioned. I didn't have the Santa Teresa 1796 that is specified in the recipe and chose what I felt was the closest rum I had, El Dorado 8. All the little additions (vanilla & demerara syrups, 3 types of contrasting bitters) make the rum shine. Bumboo (Brian Miller) with El Dorado 8 Demerara rum, demerara syrup, vanilla syrup, Peychaud's bitters, Abbott's bitters, Jerry Thomas' bitters, nutmeg

Pineapple and Fernet in a base of Lemon Hart 151 rum, with some Benedictine & Angostura marrying all the flavors together. Winner!!! And fun too. Free Rider (Billy Helmkamp via Gaz Regan) with Lemon Hart 151 demerara rum, Benedictine, Fernet-Branca, pineapple juice, lime juice, demerara syrup, Angostura bitters.

A killer Daiquiri variation with batavia arrack. The pomegranate and mint manage to tame the batavia arrack somehow. Arrackuiri (Phil Ward) with Van Oosten batavia arrack, lime juice, simple syrup, pomegranate molasses, mint.

Well, I have to admit that I got really excited for a moment when I first hard about it. Lol. When my current bottle runs out (I am close), maybe I will switch to that one. Same with the new Cynar (that one I tried) - it's fine, but not a must-have in my opinion.

I read a few reviews when they came out and didn't feel compelled to get them...

I felt that it was a missed occasion to talk about beer seriously. The flavor profile of each beer was mentioned but not the particular style (golden ale vs. wheat beer vs. stout etc) which would have been an important factor in a food-pairing challange. The whole thing seemed very superficial to me.