JAZ

We love it when passing strangers butt in, but beware! you might like it so much you never leave. Welcome!

Can't put my hands on it right now, but I think I remember reading somewhere that caffeine is one of the bitterest substances around -- certainly one of the bitterest ones we regularly ingest.

Yes, definitely. The first couple of times I made it I used 80 proof, and it turned out fine. You may want to let the vodka and lemon zest steep longer before adding the simple syrup and additional vodka -- I let mine go for almost a month -- because the lower proof doesn't extract the flavor as well as the higher proof. The upside is that I didn't have to add water to dilute the strength when I started with 80 proof.

Is there an easy way to zest all those lemons? Much as I love my microplane, I love this serrated peeler even more for getting large amounts of zest off citrus fruit: Messermeister serrated peeler You can get just the zest (not pith) off in large strips in under a minute per lemon. It's the greatest. (You can also peel tomatoes without blanching them first, if you're so inclined.)

I wouldn't think of Tanquerey 10 as an "upgrade" from the regular Tanquerey (despite the more expensive price) so much as a different style. Much less juniper, which is preferable for some drinks, less so for others.

Bourbon, Tennessee whiskey like Jack Daniels, and Canadian whiskies like Crown Royal are much sweeter than Irish or Scotch whisky, and it sounds like that's what you like. Unfortunately, I don't think you're going to find anything like that flavor profile in anything European. On the other hand, you might branch out and try some bourbons and other Tennesse whiskies-- Maker's Mark, Wild Turkey, George Dickel, Bookers, etc.

Well, then, I guess I'll pick up a bottle of the peach, but not the mint. Too bad; I had hopes for the mint.

You know, when I was at my favorite spirits shop the other day, I saw that they had Fee Bros. mint bitters and peach bitters too. Anyone tried these?

Just wanted to let everyone know that I split off the very interesting side discussion of bitters into its own thread. In case you're wondering where all those posts went, check out this thread.

I think, Tana, that it's undeniable that the trend toward naming every new drink a fill-in-the-blank martini is spurred by marketing. "Martini" conveys elegance, sophistication and, well, coolness in a way that "cocktail" does not. I don't think it's an accident of language that everything is now a "martini" rather than, say, a daquiri or a margarita, even though, in construction, the new drinks are often closer to them than they are to the classic martini. Yes, I wish that new drinks were not all called "martinis." No, I don't think it's going to stop. I really like the creativity in bartending these days (even if I personally don't like many of the drinks) and if usurping the name "martini" has helped that trend, then I (very reluctantly) have to say that it's not all bad. This is a very new attitude on my part. A very big part of me still wants a martini to be gin, vermouth and bitters. Period. As a lover of the language, I really, really wish that new drinks had the great names of older drinks -- how can a "fill-in-the-blank martini" compete with a Corpse Reviver, a Satan's Whiskers, a Monkey's Gland, a Blood and Sand? When I create new drinks, half the fun is coming up with a cool name. But, marketing rears its head in the cocktail world, just as it does everywhere else. Is a Key Lime Martini, language-wise, any worse than a Mexican Caesar Salad? I've come to the conclusion that this is one battle I'm not going to win. It doesn't mean that I'm going be calling my new drinks "martinis," but it does mean that I'm over my outrage. But, believe me, I do understand your point. You're not alone. PS Reading Steven Pinker's book The Language Instinct totally changed my attitude about "word abuse."

Welcome! Here are two versions, both by eGullet members: Click here for a recipe by beans, and here for Katie Loeb's version. Of course, they may be different from the one you had, but at least they'll give you a starting point. Good luck!

I'm happy to announce the winners of Gary and Mardee's books: The winner of Gary's The Joy of Mixology is sml311, and TrishCT has won a copy of Mardee's The Bartender's Best Friend. Congratulations! Thanks for participating in the Q&A.

For me, it's not the gin and chocolate part that sounds weird (whenever I see those little chocolate bottles filled with various liqueuers and liquors, I always grab the Beefeater ones), it's the chocolate and lemon. That combination just doesn't work for me. Maybe this drink will change my mind. But this means I now have to buy some creme de cacao. Along with some Pernod for the Corpse Reviver. This could be an expensive thread.

Without the white wine, I think it sounds okay (it'd be better with gin or tequila), but then I like Clamato. With the wine, though, I just don't know; it sounds very odd.

Beans's suggestion about the Tanquerey 10 is a good one -- the 10 is a gin that many haters-of-other-gins (read vodka lovers) actually like. Another possibility is sliver (blanco) tequila. I'm a big fan of tequila gimlets, so I know it would work for me. Depends on how you feel about tequila. For a totally different approach, you might keep the vodka but add a splash of grapefruit juice or a shake of orange bitters, either of which would add some complexity.

A couple more suggestions: Add some sliced green onions or slivers of white onion at the start, along with the aromatics. Also add a couple pieces of ginger to start (remove later -- or you can grate it and leave it in the sauce).

Try using chicken thigh meat instead of breast. It has more fat, so it'll stay moist even without brining and will have much more flavor than the breast meat. It also sounds like you used about three times the cornstarch I would have -- I use about a tablespoon in a quarter cup water, and thicken the sauce only at the very end. That way, I can control the consistency better.

Personally and on behalf of eGullet, I want to thank Gary and Mardee for such a fun and educational Q&A. It was a great week. And my thanks to all who participated, both new and old members. Stay tuned to find out the winners of Gary's and Mardee's books, and remember that if you register for their class, Cocktails in the Country, and mention eGullet, you'll get a free copy of Gary's book. Now, let's continue over drinks in the lounge. . . um, I mean the Cocktail Forum. After all, we can't leave Fat Guy to fend for himself, now can we? Click here to get to the Spirits and Cocktails forum. See you there!

Okay, for my second one, I tried your proportions (less of my cherry syrup, though) and it definitely gets the scotch up front more. I think my syrup is still throwing it off a bit, even though I eased up even more on it. It's been a while since I've had Cherry Heering, and although from my recollection, the syrup I have matches the flavor pretty well, it doesn't add the extra alcohol. So that's undoubtedly a factor. For the record, I'm using a scotch I hadn't tried before, recommended by my spirits shop. It's called "The King of Scots" by Douglas Laing & Co. It's pretty good, but lighter than I expected (I'd gone in asking for Teachers, which I guess is no longer to be found in these parts) and the guy said this would be similar. I remember Teachers as having more smoke and peat -- this is a lot like Dewars. Guess I should have gotten the Famous Grouse. Well, it was a promising start. I'll continue to experiment.

Okay, I'm hooked. I just went out, bought some scotch, came home and made a Blood and Sand. Sort of. I didn't buy any cherry brandy, because the only bottle I could find was huge, and I wasn't sure I wanted to make that much of a commitment. But I did have on hand a big jar of Amarena Fabbri cherries, so I figured I could use some of the syrup from that instead. Then, I when I grabbed the bottle of sweet vermouth from the bar, I realized there was only about a teaspoon left, but I did have a bottle of Lillet Rouge, which is close enough for me. So, my version of the Blood and Sand was 1/2 ounce each Scotch, Lillet Rouge and orange juice (I used fresh squeezed), with about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the syrup from the cherries. It's amazingly good; sweetish but not cloying, but it doesn't taste much of the Scotch, which surprised me. I wish I had a digital camera, because it was a very cool looking drink -- the cherry syrup gave it just the hue and texture that you'd think a drink called Blood and Sand would have Now of course I'm wondering how it compares with the original, so I may have to run out and buy the cherry brandy after all.

Great! I didn't know if you'd be able to make it back. I never would have appointed Doc the expert had I known.

I guess that in the grand scheme of things, whisky mildew doesn't rank as one of the world's biggest problems, but it certainly sounds nasty. Good thing I don't drink much real old whisky.

No reason why we can't continue on until the end of the day; then we can move the discussion(s) over to the Cocktail forum. Doc, you want to step into Gary's shoes and play expert?

I second the Aquavit and Balthazar suggestions, and would add Bay Wolf too.

I'll jump in here, because Doc just described my drink of choice for years. Regular. The Sapphire doesn't have enough juniper to stand up to all the lime. Edit: Never mind. We're trying to teach you to mix for yourself. Taste them both and decide. If you choose the Sapphire, you're wrong, but that's okay.