Tri2Cook

Which leads us to beer floats... but I won't drift this off topic.

Can't give credit where it's due because I don't remember where I grabbed this recipe. While trying to see if I could dig up the source (without success), I found that there are a lot of variations on it and I don't know which is authentic. Anyway, last night I decided to try this version of the... Black Manhattan 2 oz Bulleit 1 oz Averna (don't have Averna, used Lucano) 2 dashes cherry bitters 2 dashes coffee bitters

So I guess my next question would be: is there a point where you can shoot yourself in the foot trying to maintain some level of "craft"? Wouldn't using Bacardi for the 151 and replacing the gold PR with an 80 demerara be closer to authentic than any of the other scenarios presented here? Maybe pull the 151 back to 1/2 oz and bump the demerara to 1 oz. Yes, I'm well aware of exactly how "wonderful" Bacardi 151 is. I remember it from my college years. But with 1 oz of Jamaican and 1 oz of demerara sitting on it along with the other ingredients wouldn't it be contributing more firepower than flavor? I don't know, I don't have much experience in this area, it just makes sense in my head.

Me too. I use 1 oz as the base... but I like the balance so I don't know if I'd want to drop the lemon.

Hopefully I won't let it stick around that long. I can think of a few dessert uses for it in addition to using it in drinks. If it was a little less sweet, I could probably just drink it.

20%

The recipe you have is the one I planned to use. Then I saw a version on the Pegu blog that subs Mt. Gay silver for the gold Puerto Rican (I don't remember it mentioning any specific reason why). I thought if I used their recipe but subbed an overproof white for the Mt. Gay silver since I'd be using an 80 proof demerara that maybe I'd end up with something similar to their version. I'll give it a try with your suggestions.

After trying to obtain a bottle or two of St. Germain through my local store both times the LCBO brought it in recently without success, I decided to take a chance on the Chase Distillery version. Can't compare it to St. Germain since I've never had it but this one is pretty tasty to me. Fruity, cleanly floral (doesn't make me think of perfume) sweet without being syrupy. I'm happy with it. If anybody has tried both I wouldn't mind hearing how this one compares.

What I'm trying to do is work out a way I can make a reasonable version of a Jet Pilot without using Bacardi 151. On the Pegu blog they sub white rum for the Puerto Rican gold rum (not Jamaican though, their version calls for Mount Gay Eclipse silver). So what it comes down to is making some big changes or using Bacardi 151. So the next task was trying to keep the flavor profile somewhere in the ballpark within the boundaries of the changes being made. I've accepted that it won't be authentic but I was hoping I could end up with something that would let me see what the original was about. I wonder if using the right rum flavor profile and not worrying about the jet fuel (overproof) aspect would be a better idea in this case?

If a drink calls for an 80 proof white rum and a 151 demerara in equal amounts would using an overproof white like Wray & Nephew and an 80 proof demerara be a reasonable approximation in a pinch? Something tells me it's probably not that simple but I've never minded being the one to ask the dumb questions.

Nope, I'm not sure. He didn't say much about it other than it was using sound waves to liquify everything inside the orange. I was intrigued but not overly excited. A couple days later I saw the post on Ideas in Food and mild curiosity changed into real interest. But no, I'm not sure both were involving the same instrument.

Homaro Cantu and Ben Roche did an appearance on the most recent episode of Hell's Kitchen (a show which I grew tired of a long time ago but was curious to see what the Moto guys were going to do... not much as it turns out) and used it (or a variation of it, they didn't actually mention Polyscience) to make an instant sorbet. They cut a hole in the rind of an orange, stuck the sonic device into the orange and used it to completely liquify the contents which they they then made into a sorbet with liquid nitrogen. The only real advantage in that application other than the cool factor was the speed. The had pure juice sorbet in about the time it would take to juice the orange normally. The Ideas in Food use of it is much more interesting to me but I'm waiting to hear some information regarding price. I've seen lab variations of this device that probably inspired it and even the most basic I've seen are in the over $2000 range.

That seems to be a tough one Anna. I asked a similar question in another thread and never really got a definitive answer. I think because there really isn't a definitive answer in some cases. While investigating tiki drinks, I saw a drink called a Witch Doctor that I wanted to try. I couldn't remember where I'd seen it and when I searched it there was an ocean of drinks, all different, under that name. I finally tracked down the one I was looking for but I have no clue which is the original (or if any that I found were original). The only thing I know for sure is the one I wanted to try is not the first to go by that name, I found many that predate it. A classic cocktail is probably easier to track down at least some information on but even then it seems like you come across several different stories about the origins and variations on the recipes with some of them.

I'm going to try that. To be honest, I don't particularly love sweet vermouth (that's probably bordering on heresy). I use it when called for in a drink but usually try to lean away from drinks that are really heavy on it. I like the Negroni but I'm wondering if I'd like it even better this way.

I'm jealous of the violette, I've wanted to get my hands on some just so I can make an authentic Aviation but the LCBO seems to be obstinately refusing to carry it. Cynar and apricot brandy seem to come up pretty often in the cocktail world, especially the apricot, so you'll have plenty of uses for those. The Art of Choke is a nice one with the Cynar. I've stumbled across a couple cocktails with kirsch, I mainly use it in desserts, but I'm sure there are more drinks than I know about. I've never had access to the walnut liqueurs but I'd be surprised if somebody hasn't created drinks with them.

Based strictly on what you posted, I'd eat anything you mentioned. Why would 40F food in the freezer be any less safe than 40F food in the fridge? I realize there's nothing scientific about my reply... I'm saying what I would do, not telling you what you should do. I'm strict about food safety regulations at work, at home for myself I use my own judgement. "When in doubt, throw it out" is fine as a guideline but it doesn't really sound like you're in doubt to me. It sounds more like you want some confirmation that you're not wrong in thinking it's okay. With nothing to go on except what you've told us, I'd agree with you. I don't think you'll get anybody that wasn't there to tell you everything is definitely beyond any doubt okay.

Did a Mai Tai tonight. Not completely true to Trader Vic's, I used Appleton Extra and El Dorado 12 for the rums and the only curacao available where I live is blue so I used Cointreau instead.

I don't know about oil drinks in general but the guys at Cooking Issues did some experimenting with emulsifying fats into liquids for drink purposes a while back. I have the Ticaloid, a blend of arabic and xanthan gums, and it does the emulsifying job nicely but I haven't done any drink experiments yet. Of course you mentioned the meringue as an attribute you desired so I wonder if the Ticaloid and egg white could be used in tandem for even greater stability...

Truffles weren't planned but that could be fun... I developed a savory bicuit roulade a few years ago that I think worked out pretty nicely and was looking for other things from the sweet side to incorporate into the theme for the savory side. I thought a layer of a veggie flavored ganache in the savory roulade that I could finish with a shell of some sort (picture savory swiss rolls) might be interesting. I then decided that, as much as I enjoyed the experimenting, it was a bit gimmicky and haven't returned to working on it. Maybe I will someday just for fun.

I wonder if we're seeing a real-world scenario where one's perception of bitterness is playing a role in how something tastes. I'm wondering if an increased perception of bitterness (from the Campari of course) mutes the orange notes to more of a bitter citrus that brings grapefruit to mind or if a decreased perception of bitterness allows those same notes to come to the front resulting in an orange-forward taste.

I was wondering about that myself. If I had to pick a single flavor I was getting from the Jasmine on the initial taste, I'd say grapefruit... despite it not being in the drink. I enjoy that drink, both for it's taste and for the alchemy involved.

I've been working on veggie ganaches off and on for a while now. I haven't had a specific need for it at this point so I haven't put in the work I should have to get it right. My goal was to get the taste of the vegetable as forward as possible while minimizing added sweetness except where it would be beneficial. I'm guessing that's what you're after as well. Where I think our goals probably take different roads is that I wasn't really looking for a confectionary application. I had savory uses in mind. As such, I was experimenting with using cocoa butter as the base instead of chocolate. It made keeping the flavor of the veggie intact much easier but obviously leads to other problems for confectionary uses... a major one being cost. I did a smoked tomato and 70% ganache a few years ago that I was happy with as far as chocolate goes and somewhere in the dessert topic are the mousses I did, one with peas and one with carrots, that were used in a sweet application. Chocolate wasn't involved with the mousses but the veggies worked pretty well in a sweet application. Anyway, I haven't got my ideas exactly where I'd like them to be and it's kinda taken a back burner to other projects for now but maybe there's something in all of this rambling that will help.

The Tantris Sidecar is a little on the sweet side but it is tasty. Well worth a try in my opinion.

Already did a tiki drink after dinner then made my daily pilgrimage to the Cocktail Virgin-Slut blog only to find the Drink of Laughter and Forgetting. With a name like that, I had to try it.

I'm definitely going to do some more Campari-tiki, thanks for all of the leads and suggestions. That Ken-Tiki sounds especially interesting. Bourbon tiki! But for tonight I went with... Montegomatica 1 1/2 oz Wray & Nephew Overproof 1 oz Fernet Branca 1 oz Falernum 1 oz lime juice Shake with crushed ice, pour into a glass, float 1/2 oz Cruzan Black Strap (Gosling's Black Seal had to stand in again), mint garnish.