MattJohnson

Thats interesting, I'm still getting it for about 25. They may end up pricing themselves out of their market if the price climbs any higher.

Hi Jneu, I live in Wauwatosa. I frequent Rays quite often. Good selection - although I wish they'd stock more bitters and the small bottle Noilly Pratt. Do you know anywhere in the area that has either?

Ok. I adjusted. A bit more pumpkin spirit, a bit less rye. Same sweet vermouth and Campari instead of angostura. Orange garnish. It was muuuch better - I think it was the angostura was overpowering. Pretty balanced with a pumpkin spice slightly bitter finish. Almost can't wait till tomorrow to make another. I think I'll pick up the Carpano next time I'm at the store. 1.25 oz Lakefront Pumpkin Spirit .75 oz Rye whiskey .5 oz sweet vermouth dash ( ~.25 oz) Campari

Thanks for the ideas. I think you're right suggesting bourbon - wish I had some (I have a hard time keeping it around... its too nice neat). I would like to use nicer vermouth - I use Noilly Prat for my dry vermouth - its just no stores around me carry the small bottles and while I drink regularly, I don't drink enough to use it all so it ends up in the fridge for too long. I tried to ask my store to stock the small bottles, but they didn't seem too eager to accommodate me. They stock quite a bit of nice stuff for decent prices, but they aren't very nice. Does Carpano Antica last longer than normal vermouth? Its a bit pricey for an every day thing, perhaps I need to have a party and justify it . If I understand correctly, Punt e Mes is like a vermouth thats got a bitter note to it, right? Hmm, I might try using some Campari instead of the bitters and see if the orange/bitter might give it a kick up. Its on my list to order the fee brothers sampler pack. The stores around here don't seem to stock anything but Angostura. Thanks for your help! Its great to have such a great resource to kick around ideas.

I'm in the same position - cooking for 2. One thing that has really helped me recently is dried goods. Lentils, rice, beans (90 minute beans). You cook a bit of extra, next night do a little lentil salad with vinaigrette and some fish, add stock for soup with left over chicken, re-heat that left over pot roast in the lentils. Its easy to throw some kale or chard in. They are very forgiving, cheap, and really tasty.

So I got my hands on the stuff finally. Its not sweet at all. Schnapps like with hits of pumpkin and spice at the finish. Its not nearly as assertive as I thought it would be. I made the "all hallows eve manhattan" thusly: 1 oz Old Overholt 1 oz Pumpkin Spirit .5 oz M&R Sweet Vermouth Healthy dash of Angostura Flaming orange over the top Orange twist Was very tasty, although I'm thinking that the rye overshadowed the pumpkin spice a bit. I'm going to try to adjust the ratio, favoring the pumpkin. Since the angostura has many of the same pumpkin pie flavors, I'm wondering if there is something else I could use to up it a notch as well. Any ideas?

Yeah, I've found this pretty frustrating myself. My wife and I just so happened to be at Bed, Bath & Beyond yesterday and they had a TON of glasses. Yet none of them were designed with smaller cocktails in mind. ← No kidding. Other than the Ikea glasses, the smallest I've found in a retail shop is 9.5 oz. One of the biggest revelation I've had getting into cocktails is how a small one is so much better. They don't get warm, and you can have 2!

I'm generally not a fan of pumpkin beers, but as they go, Lakefront's is the best I've had. I also really like their Riverwest Stein - hope you'll be seeing that in the Philadelphia Brewing Company tour after the series. I definitely will go for the manhattan. I was originally just going to use this spirit, but I think you're idea of cutting it with rye is a good one. I'm guessing that balancing the pumpkin is going to be key.

Well, I haven't taken possession of it yet, so I can't give you my impressions, but they say its 90 proof and I love that Lakefront has tried to setup a bet with a Phillies brewery to serve each others beer for a week if the other wins. Great guys and gals there.

A Milwaukee-based distillery just came out with a seasonal pumpkin spirit. Basically, they took a pumpkin ale from a local brewery (Lakefront - great beer - awesome tour - decent fish fry w/ polka band), distilled it, and aged in oak barrels. A friend picked up some bottles and is letting me have one. They had a couple suggestions for cocktails, but I thought I'd run it by the crew here to see what we can come up with. I was definitely going to try a manhattan. Any thoughts?

When I was 5 or 6 I used to LOVE pickled herring. I mean, if you gave me the choice between it and candy, I'd take the herring. I got really sick off it once and haven't been able to enjoy it since. If I remember correctly, I think I was sick all over my uncle... I don't think he eats it anymore either...

We had a great time at TVH. Troy took great care of us. I did a mostly campari night - starting with the riviera, moved onto the paper airplane, and finished with the summer old fashioned (non campari, but had to try the hibiscus syrup). I didn't get your message in time (had to go out of town for a couple days) but everything seemed to be ok. I just had it on the counter for 48 hours. I should have sterilized the jar as you said, but things seem to be ok. I didn't make a ton, so we'll probably use it up pretty quickly. This will be our first time making drinks with egg-whites. I'll let you know how it turns out. /Matt

Thanks, Toby. I just made a quarter batch as it will just be 2 of us trying it. I assume that one is supposed to leave it out of the fridge during the infusion and then stored in the fridge after. Can't wait to try it. Actually, I might make it down to Chicago this weekend. If I can, I'll stop by TVH and try one so I can know how bad I failed.

That was what I thought, but wanted to check. Thanks.

Thats awesome, brinza. Just watch out, someone told me that its possible to get a DUI on a bike!

How long will the infused Campari keep? My wife hasn't loved Campari (the negroni was our drink of the month - new years resolution that has been fun to keep) and I'm going to try this out and give it another go.

Not sure where you're located but try restaraunt or bar supply stores. I know there's one in Houston that will sell glassware by the dozen or (if you ask nicely) even by the half-dozen. As far as I can recall they carry the full line of Libby stuff, including the glasses shown here. I would imagine there's a place like this near you if you look hard enough. ← You're probably right. I was at Ikea anyway and was kind of surprised they actually had any 5oz glasses. I looked online after posting and found some libby stuff by the dozen for a decent price. Once I'm down a few glasses, I'll probably go that route.

For the non-professional shoppers: I've found some standard 5 oz V glasses at Ikea that are actually pretty durable and inexpensive. I keep looking for coupes but can never find them anywhere (I don't want to buy a case of em) for reasonable prices in a size that is sane. edit: Found them on their site: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80091949 6 for $10

And this is where I would say, full of faux sincerity, "Oh, sorry...I don't have any cranberry juice. But, hey, if you like Cosmos, let me make you a..." And this is where the Jasmine usually comes in, or I may go with an Aviation, with violet. I have yet to make that for someone where they haven't immediately declared it their new favorite cocktail. ← I know its cool to hate on them, but I don't think there isn't anything wrong with a well made cosmo. I understand people not wanting to make a million of them because people order it as a shortcut, but I don't think there is anything inherently bad about them. I make them like Robert Hess http://www.smallscreennetwork.com/video/41/cosmopolitan/ and think they taste great.

The only place that has it in the milwaukee area had it for 24 if I recall correctly. I thought that was a bit expensive and opted for Old Overholt.

One other thing to think about. It seems the point of the gift is to show that you noticed and appreciate his help, not to get him to drink good booze. It seems to me that Crown Royal is seen as a household name for a higher end booze. That may do the trick. I've never drank it, but I've seen it given as gifts and people appreciate it... ymmv. That said, if you don't want to go that route, I second the eagle rare 10 year. Its a really nice bourbon for the price and I think the packaging is quite classy.

Heh, used it last night for just that.

I only juice enough stuff for my cocktails or salad dressing, so I just got one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Amco-Enameled-Alumin...3900630&sr=1-17 Works great. Might try that, and if you end up juicing a bunch, upgrade. It just seems like an expensive gadget if you don't end up using it a bunch.

I agree totally! When my wife and I started trying to make drinks, it was a revelation. She "hated" gin before. Now she's a regular drinker of the classic martini.

I dunno, campari can take a bit of getting used to if you're not into bitter stuff. Maybe I'm making them wrong, but I had to dial back on the campari to achieve any sort of balance. Even then, my wife doesn't really like em.