FrogPrincesse

It's a good one. It got a little write-up a while back in LA Weekly (Best Negroni Variation) and Serious Eats (although they were using Salers at the time).

Newish Japanese cocktail gear bought at a restaurant supply store in Tokyo (Kappabashi, near the fish market): a few tall metal straws and a mixing glass. The mixing glass is a bit smaller than the other I got from Cocktail Kingdom because the glass is quite thick and it has a smaller internal diameter. It is not as pretty as mixing glass #1 from CK that I unfortunately broke (it was a seamless model), but nicer than #2 (a seamless model with yellowish glass ordered when CK apparently had some consistency issues). New glass on the left; CK glass #2 on the right I took a few snapshots in the stores. Prices were reasonable compared to US prices (100 yens ~ $1)

Nightcap from a few nights ago. Bourbon ice cream (I think I can do much better than this commercial ice cream; the bourbon flavor is very very light) with St. George Breaking & Entering bourbon on the side. I love this bourbon; it's not too sweet and has a ton of personality.

The mix of bitters is good in this drink, especially with a dark rum like a Demerara or Appleton. You cannot really taste the Peychaud's by itself, but it gives another layer of spices to the drink.

These past few weeks the Varnish in LA has been celebrating its five year anniversary with a month-long celebration where past bartenders come to serve their creations. I haven't been able to attend but I am there in spirit... Last night Chris Bostik served the Nice Legs cocktail, another delightful Negroni variation. This one is the red version of the White Negroni. Suze for the bitter element, and barolo chinato for the aromatized wine (it's a quinquina made from Barolo wine). Nice Legs: 1.5 oz Beefeater gin, 0.75 oz suze, 0.75 Cocchi barolo chinato, rock(s), orange peel.

Speaking of heat and crushed ice, it was summer in San Diego this weekend, so I decided to make a Queen's Park Swizzle. I used J.M rhum agricole (it's the 40%) which works great in a daiquiri but got lost a little in the swizzle. I want to try it with an aged agricole next.

Indeed it's a pretty straightforward process. When it's warm I like absinthe with crushed ice, frappe-style.

I forgot to thank KD1191 for reminding me about this drink. Your version with Willet rye was phenomenal, I am sure. (I am currently hoarding my Willet. I have decided it is too good for mixing.) From the Drinks! 2014 thread:

One of my favorite dishes for dinner the other night - linguine with clams. Noilly Prat extra dry for the liquid. Little bits of pancetta; a lot of pecorino. I was out of parsley and used leaves from the celeriac root I just got in my CSA. Served with plenty of homemade buckwheat bread.

Not wanting to stay on a bad impression with Fernet, last night I made myself something else that I really liked. The Fernet-lemon-mint combination was a refreshing change from the usual Fernet-ginger. The Wry Grin (Sam Ross) with Bulleit rye, Fernet-Branca, lemon wedges, simple syrup, mint.

That was campus five - here.

I did not care for this one at all - it's the dry version of the Hanky Panky, named the Kemble House (Beefeater gin, Noilly Prat extra dry vermouth, Fernet-Branca). It just tasted like Fernet diluted with gin.

From yesterday - a Daiquiri No.2 with 2 oz J.M rhum agricole, 3/4 oz lime juice, 1/2 oz simple syrup, barspoon Clément créole shrubb, barspoon orange juice. Rhum agricole in a Daiquiri of some type (my standard bartender's choice order) is always a good thing.

Last night I enjoyed a Confederation Bridge (Bulleit rye, Cynar, Drambuie, Dolin white vermouth, Angostura bitters), one of Fred's picks for 2013 top cocktails at cocktail virgin slut. I tasted orange, chocolate, and honey, with a bitter Cynar finish. It was a tad sweet but I liked it.

I concur. To me the bonded apple brandy tastes very rough, and to be honest I did not care for it much. Not all calvados are good though, I have tried some that I did not like either.

I like A Moment of Silence as well. What kind of Daron did you get, the Fine or the XO? If it's the XO, it's pretty good on its own already. I've been making all kinds of cocktails that call for Laird's with calvados and have rarely been disappointed. Here are a few ideas for you: the American Trilogy (an Old Fashioned variation), the Lionheart, the Diamondback Lounge (the original with yellow chartreuse, on the rocks), Jeff Morgenthaler's Norwegian Wood (works best with the XO), Audrey Saunders' Tantris Sidecar. Last but not least, here is one I've been making a lot this winter, a twist on Eric Lorincz's Norman Conquest: 1 oz each scotch, calvados, and sweet vermouth, 1 teaspoon Drambuie, Angostura and Peychaud's bitters, stir, strain on ice, orange twist (see here). Calvados is also excellent in ice cream and crêpes. Enjoy your recent purchase!

From this weekend, an old friend (on the left) - Lost Abbey's Avant Garde ale (which is, as its name suggests, a bière de garde), and a Triple IPA "Hop Way to the Danger Zone" from local brewery Acoustic Ales. The triple IPA had a good IPA flavor profile; hoppy and floral with some depth. Relatively low carbonation and thin body were minuses. But on the plus side, a fantastic passion fruit aroma, and it's super drinkable. Oh, and as I realized after a few sips, it packs a punch at 10% ABV... Additional tasting notes from the brewery:

Nearly identical to the Cloister from PDT (1.5 oz gin, 0.5 oz yellow Chartreuse, 0.5 oz grapefruit juice, 0.25 oz lemon juice, 0.25 oz simple syrup, grapefruit twist), ...last night I tried the Echo, Echo (from the Ordinary in Charleston) which switches to green Chartreuse and adds falernum to the mix. 1.5 oz gin (Beefeater), 0.5 oz green chartreuse, 0.5 oz grapefruit (I've also seen a version at 0.25 oz), 0.5 oz lemon, 0.25 oz falernum (homemade). Beefeater is what they specify; I think I would like it too with a more juniper-forward gin like Junipero or Tanqueray. I went with 0.5 oz grapefruit but a bit less would be ok. The falernum gave it a little zing in the finish which was cool.

Another day, another Manhattan variation. This one, The Old Friends, is from Sydney's bar Eau de Vie. It's a kitchen-sink approach to a Manhattan with a little bit of everything. I made the cocktail based on the recipe published in Speakeasy Cocktails, but there is a version in their book that is heavier on the Cynar that I want to try too. 1.75 oz rye (Bulleit), 1 oz sweet vermouth (Dolin), 4 tsp Cynar (4 tsp = 2/3 oz; I used 3 tsp = 0.5 oz), dash absinthe (St. George), dash Angostura bitters, dash Peychaud's bitters, stir, strain over large ice cube (served up), lemon and orange twist, brandied cherry.

The crust looks nice in the photos, but it was rather soft. You know, I haven't tried any of the fruit breads in the book so I can't really help you. Hopefully others will chime in.

A Warning Label, a 1934 Zombie Punch, a Jet Pilot, or even a 151 Swizzle.

Here is another loaf that I baked from the same batch of olive oil dough (Feb 25 post). The second loaf is always better as the flavor has had more time to develop. The texture was better too, although I would have preferred something crustier.

Fat Tire amber ale (New Belgium). I hadn't had that one in ages. It's ok. Malt/petit beurre biscuit flavor. But it's very thin and watery, and does not have much body. I would not buy it again.

I made the European peasant bread last night. I did not have any rye flour so I used buckwheat instead. I really liked the texture. It was really crusty but wasn't dense inside. The flavor was very nice as well.

Josh Miller on his blog did a detailed review of black rums that included Coruba, Gosling, Cruzan Black Strap, Myer's, Trader Vic, and Whaler's. It should give you a good idea of the differences between these brands. http://inuakena.com/spirit-reviews/dark-rum-challenge/