JAZ

In a book called How the Mind Works, the author, Steven Pinker, discusses the phenonenon of disgust and food. Some of the points he makes: 1. He distinguishes between disgust and mere dislike. Disgust, he says, is a psychological aversion to certain foods, invariably from animals. We might deeply dislike vegetables, but we're not disgusted by them (unless, perhaps, they're rotten). Although various cultures consider different foods disgusting, it's always some animal part or product that's too disgusting to eat. 2. Since the list of non-disgusting items varies from culture to culture, it stands to reason that there's a learning process involved. Until the age of two or so, most children will put anything they encounter into their mouths -- bugs, worms, even feces. After the age of about two, their willingness to try new foods plummets. 3. Some anthropologists thus think that our deep-seated food aversions (disgust, in other words) are taught to us at a very early age -- a baby puts a grasshopper in her mouth, and her mother makes a face, takes it out of her mouth and says "that's disgusting." As adults, we can get over these aversions, but it takes a conscious effort, and, probably, a significant ability to disconnect the emotion of disgust. Mere dislike, though, is something else entirely. Bitter and spicy foods are unpleasant to most children, and quite rightly. Bitterness often goes hand in hand with toxins, so it makes sense that our instinct is to spit out bitter foods. As we age, our sense of taste becomes less sensitive, so once unbearably bitter foods become more palatable. So, many of the so-called "acquired tastes" are significantly bitter -- coffee, beer, olives, many vegetables -- or strongly flavored like spices. It seems likely to me that if one has an aversion to something based on texture, it's probably a (possibly unconscious) association with something we consider disgusting -- we tend not to like slimy, squishy textures because so many slimy foods are disgusting to us. With some effort, we can usually make ourselves get over these aversions. A dislike that's based on true taste, though, is a different story. I can't stand blue cheese, for instance. It's not a learned thing, because everyone else in my family loves the stuff. It's not the texture -- I like other cheeses with the same texture. It's the taste, or more precisely, the smell. If I have a really bad cold, I can eat it (which, by the way, is a good way to tell if it's a texture or a taste you dislike -- if it's the texture, a cold won't make any difference). Now, I like a lot of foods I disliked as a child, including beets, but I'm fairly certain I will never like blue cheese. I do inadvertently try it from time to time, and every time, whether I'm aware that the food contains blue cheese or not, the smell and taste make me gag, literally.

A comment by slkinsey on the "Crimes Against Alcohol" thread has me wondering what brands of various liquor we use in our "everyday" cocktails. Do you buy whatever's on sale, or stick to a particular brand regardless of price (or something in between)? What do you tend to have on hand at home to whip up your favorite libations? My bar is unusually full right now, because of some research (yeah! research!) I'm doing, but here's what I have (with some comments on how usual the item is): Gordon's gin. Always a staple in my bar. I can usually find it at one of a couple of markets for $14-$15 for a 1.75 liter bottle, so it's by far the best buy for a decent gin for cocktails. Cascade Mountain gin. I liked this a lot the first time I got it, but now I'm thinking it's a bit one-dimensional for what I spent for it. It can't, for example, stand up to much vermouth in a martini. A more usual selection for martinis is Boodles -- or regular Bombay, Beefeaters or Tanquerey in they're available for less than Boodles. Bacardi rum (white). I've only recently been drinking rum (really bad experience with rum and eggnog years ago put me off it) so I haven't had much exposure to different brands. I got a some for a drink I was working on for a class, and ended with a large bottle left over. Now I'm liking some rum drinks quite a bit, so I think it'll be a standby. Is there a better brand, comparable price? Svedka vodka. Since I'm not a vodka drinker, I don't go high end with it. Three quarters (easily) of the vodka in my place goes into bloody marys. But when I do need it for other cocktails, this brand seems to be smooth and drinkable. I actually had an airline bottle of Skyy a while back, and side by side, I think the Svedka was less harsh. Teacher's Scotch. I used to drink a lot more Scotch than I do now, and I almost always used to have a bottle of some single malt or other on hand. Now I buy them rarely, but I like a Teachers on the rocks once in a while, and it's great in cocktails. These days, I get the single malts when I go out. For tequila, now I have Sauza Conmemoritivo, but a more usual choice is Hornitas. I don't drink tequila straight, so no need to get anything really high end. I got a mini bottle of Herradura Silver to try Gary and Mardee Regan's eGullet drink, the Mischief (because that's whay they specified), but I found I preferred the Hornitas, and it's my favorite for Margaritas, which is where about 90 percent of my tequila goes. I don't generally have bourbon or rye on hand, but I found a good price on Hirsch 13-year-old rye, so I picked some up for Manhattans. I'd like to pick up a bottle of the Evan Williams 10-year-old bourbon after reading a glowing review of it in Wine Enthusiast, but I've only seen the 7 year old. And bourbon is something I can easily live without. Marie Brizzard triple sec. Cointreau might be slightly better, but at less than 2/3 the price, Marie gets my vote. Dry vermouth is usually Noilly Prat -- right now I have Martini & Rossi because it was on sale, but I really prefer Noilly. I don't use as much sweet vermouth and haven't found any standouts, so I usually buy whatever's decent and on sale. It's M&R now. Any suggestions on good brands? I also have a bottle of Punt e Mes, but I'm not clear if that falls into the sweet vermouth category or not. Blond Lillet. It's a staple. Velvet Falernum is a newcomer to my bar, but I've grown very fond of it, and my favorite spirits shop has it, so I've been buying it and plan to keep it on hand. Campari. I don't always have it, but I don't go too long without it. It occurs to me that the one thing I haven't been keeping in stock for a while is brandy. I had a sidecar the other day and remembered how much I like them, so maybe it's time to pick that up. Any recommendations?

With or without the kid and umbrellas, if you need suggestions for a summer cocktail for your group, check out this thread: Summer Cocktails

A few years ago, I was stocking up at Trader Joes for my holiday baking, with about 4 pounds of chocolate, 6 pounds of butter, several varieties of nuts, and a big bottle of vanilla. On the way to the checkout stand, I noticed a pretty good Scotch on sale, so I snagged a bottle. While I was checking out, the clerk said, "Going to do some baking?" I smiled and replied, "Yes, what clued you in?" to which he replied, "The Scotch."

It sounds great -- I think you have a good balance of familiar foods and different preparations to stretch your guests' palates without overwhelming them. Once you get them hooked on the fun of new culinary experiences, you can suggest more future "experiments."

I just spent a day going through the book section at the store, pulling titles and marking them down for a big sale later this month. The way I'm going, none of them will reach the shelves for the sale. I picked up four more (less than $20 -- how could I resist?) Squeat, I'm going to have to break down soon and buy the Diana Kennedy book -- it's so interesting.

As far as I've read, the only spice that inhibits yeast is cinnamon.

I prefer Fernet Branca precisely because it's not too sweet -- less cough syrupy than Jaegermeister.

You could try Martini & Rossi Bianco. It's nice on the rocks or with a splash of soda, and I imagine it would work well with fruit. In fact, maybe I'll puree some of the plums dropping off my neighbor's tree onto my steps and try it.

That sounds wonderful. I love Earl Grey tea. I'm not so crazy about foamy drinks, though -- what's the texture like? Does the egg white make the whole thing like a light mousse, or is it more subtle than that? With advance apologies to Audrey, could I make it without the egg white and get a good drink, or is the texture key?

Well, I've done pickled beets with red wine in the "brine" -- can't imagine that vermouth would be that different. Anyway, we'll find out.

I'm not sure this survey tells us much at all. Some societies (like the US) have a split personality when it comes to alcohol consumption -- lots of complete abstainers and lots of "abusers"; while others (like France) have a more moderate consumption practiced by more people (in other words, not as many abstemious citizens, but not as many abusers either). It'd also be more interesting to know in what form the various countries tend to imbibe their alcohol -- beer, wine or distilled spirits. By the way, I'm sure that I, personally, up the average in the US.

Again, it's simply a difference in perspective. You are paid to not be judgmental about what your customers drink, just as a waiter is paid to not be judgmental about what his customers eat. But, that doesn't mean that one may not have an opinion about eating a well-done dry-aged porterhouse or drinking a big glass of Jaegermeister on the rocks (both of which I would characterize as misuses of good products). Indeed, I would suggest that we wouldn't have much to talk about on eGullet if we were constrained from remarking on trends having to do with what people choose to eat and drink. Strictly speaking, those in the service industry can be as judgmental as they want; they get paid not to show it. I get paid to listen to (sometimes) really stupid questions and comments about cookware and not let my opinion show. It doesn't mean I don't have an opinion. Beans gets paid to serve anything her patrons want and keep a straight face. That, I completely understand. What she seems to be saying, though, is that she doesn't ever have a negative opinion about her patrons' requests, and that seems to require superhuman control.

Where, oddly, the dill is often absent. Really -- check out most brands of "dill pickles" and you won't find any dill.

Can't help you with the souvlaki, but here's the tzadziki recipe I use (it's actually based on a Turkish version I had in a cooking class years ago; I also have a fabulous carrot salad recipe from the same class if you're interested). Drain 2 cups whole milk yogurt by spooning it into a cheescloth lined sieve. Wrap the cheesecloth over the top and weight it down with a small bowl filled with water. Refrigerate for a few hours. Peel, seed and grate one medium cucumber. Drain and pat dry. Mix the yogurt and cucumber with 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp. finely minced garlic, 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil, and 1 tsp. each chopped fresh dill and mint.

But how did this one nasty Teutonic digestif get selected over and above every other spirit as the American college boozer's liquor of choice? Was there some incredible campus marketing campaign once upon a time? Is it some cultural reference I missed? (A Baffled Brit) There was a huge marketing campaign for Jaegermeister about 15 years ago -- scantily clad "Jaeger" girls would visit bars, pour chilled shots, give away merchandise and in some cases stock the bar with a special Jaegermeister pouring machine. It was very successful, you have to give them credit for that -- the simple fact of chilling it down made it vastly more palatable to the average bar patron. Me? I'd just as soon drink Vick's 44. (And I like digestifs.)

Well, if you want to give it a try, I'd start with 2 ounces of Gordon's and just over 1/4 ounce of M&R. One key is to get it as cold as you can -- stick your glass in the freezer for 10 minutes or so, use lots of ice in the shaker, and if you're using the big home freezer type cubes, you probably want to shake it (but not so hard it froths. If you have commercial ice (smaller chunks, in other words) you can probably get it cold enough by stirring. When I drink Gordon's in martinis (not my first choice, but very acceptable nonetheless) I add more vermouth (about half an ounce) but you may want to start with the lesser amount. Sorry I can't help you with the proportions for the vodka -- I've never had a vodka martini. If you like olives, by all means use them to garnish. A dribble of olive brine does, indeed, make a martini into a "dirty martini." I'd suggest trying the martini without it first, then -- if you think it will add a welcome note -- pour a tiny amount in.

Thanks. I was thinking of using vermouth in the pickling brine -- do you think if I substituted it for the water it would work?

Back to the topic of vermouth. . . Which vermouth(s) do you pour in your martinis? My preference for dry vermouth is Noilly Prat. I got a bottle of Martini and Rossi because it was on sale, and I'm not crazy about it. I find it less delicate, somehow. In fact, I poured a martini using Cascade Mountain gin and M&R in my usual 4 to 1 proportion and found the M&R to be completely overwhelming. Ended up at about 8 to 1 to make it work with the Cascade. I'm also a big fan of Lillet as a stand-in for dry vermouth, and find Vya to have a similar flavor profile.

I'm going to try my hand at pickling pearl onions. I have an idea to start with (a combination of a couple of recipes) but am wondering if anyone has a tried and true recipe. I'm not planning to sterilize and seal these -- just refrigerate them -- but I can adapt traditional recipes.

My problem with that method is that the bread dries out by the time it toasts, because I can't get it close enough to the broiling element (I don't want crostini, I want toast). Plus you have to turn it over, plus you have to remember that it's in the oven. Not a reliable option for me.

I like vermouth in my martinis. When I order martinis at bars and restaurants, I specify how much vermouth I want (it varies depending on the gin -- somewhere between 6 to 1 and 4 to 1), because it's almost always a lot more than the bartender would add without direction. But I'm sure I'm atypical in that regard. If I ordered a martini and received a cocktail glass with straight chilled gin, I would send it back. You can always spot a bartender from the it-can't-be-dry-enough school of martini making, because he or she will pour vermouth in the cocktail glass (being used to pouring vermouth in and then dumping it) and then, unsure how to proceed, will add the chilled gin to it, which upsets me greatly since it raises the temperature of the martini unnecessarily.

The toaster came yesterday, and it's great. So great that I had toast for dinner. And a salad, but mostly toast.

This sounds like a promising avenue of experimentation to me. I read somewhere (man, if I had a dollar for every time I used that phrase!) that one of the most common errors in "smelling tests" is to mistake chocolate for vanilla and vice versa. Perhaps some potatoes have an unusually high level of vanillin in the skin?

I'm just curious, Sam -- what do you use for gin cocktails other than martinis? I generally have two bottles in the bar -- Gordon's for cocktails with lots of other ingredients for distraction, like the (now) famous 20th Century or Corpse Reviver, the Jasmine, or a Bronx on those very rare occasions when I drink one. I've even come around to Gimlets made with Gordon's, although for years I made them with Tanquerey. But then I have a bottle of something better (Boodles is my standard; Cascade Mountain my new favorite) for martinis. Do you have a two-tier gin system too? Do you think it's a waste to use premium gin in other cocktails?