Jump to content

Rafa

participating member
  • Posts

    900
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by Rafa

  1. Oldfield/Down and Brown? Are these stiff? Or good? Weirdly, I seem to have arrived at these drinks myself. Thank you for the suggestions. I think I'll go with Fernet, at any rate.
  2. I'll be out soon enough, Adam. I want something with which to toast my forthcoming freedom.
  3. I'm still at work and craving a good stiff stirred rye drink. Requesting suggestions.
  4. I think a variation on this with smoked maple in place of the honey syrup could work very well.
  5. Hmmm. Here they are: St. George gin sampler (dry rye, terroir, and botanivore), and a bottle of Willet 4-year single barrel rye. They ended up in London in excellent hands. You are a most generous guest. You set a hell of a precedent, if this eGullet cultural exchange program is to take off.
  6. I would have enjoyed this post anyway, but you just had to throw in a gratuitous (and sanitized) Lebowski quote. Also, Plantes, I just noticed your gratuitous me reference. Thanks for that one. I've got to get myself to London.
  7. Remove the "maybe" and we have ourselves a forum motto.
  8. I'm not sure if this is at its best with cheap Monte Alban mezcal. Reckon cutting it with some silver or reposado tequila would work? The mezcal makes its presence known in this drink, so if you don't like the taste of that brand, yes, go with a good tequila. Either blanco or repo should work.
  9. Four flavorful sours! What made you pick these four in particular?
  10. It might have something to do with you using a lime that had been cut open the night before. And the cheese is probably a factor; I tend to dislike cheese and cocktail pairings for that reason. (Though fino sherry is great with cheese plates.)
  11. I have no idea. I believe they will be releasing their own self-produced distillate eventually, but I have no clue whether they plan to mix it in with the LDI stuff first, nor do I know whether they're doing so now. I imagine their own spirit is still too young to release, though.
  12. Hi there, Templeton is actually distilled in Indiana—it's the same stuff that's in Bulleit, Redemption, Dickel, and a host of others, just aged and packaged differently. If you like it, you're in luck: chances are you'll like the others, and they're available all over the place. I recommend trying whichever's cheapest in your area (or alternatively whichever has the proof that's most to your liking) as it'll taste a lot like Templeton.
  13. The rye? Lucky Australians. Between this and your eight week holidays you've got us beat. That said, it could just be old stock that's still on the shelves there.
  14. A very good point. As for the whiskeys: Bourbon: I agree with everyone who's suggested you go with a rye-mashbill bourbon and wheat-mashbill bourbon. High rye bourbons include Bulleit, Wild Turkey, and Old Grand-Dad. Wheaters include Weller, Maker's Mark, Old Fitzgerald, and, at the highest end, the Pappys. You can't really go wrong with any of these, but I suggest the Wellers and Old Fitzgerald as very reasonably priced whiskeys that are overlooked in favor of the sexier and more hyped stuff on the higher shelfs. (Though Weller is in short supply lately, so maybe don't make it too popular among your friends.) For bourbons with more standard, low-ish rye recipes, you can't go wrong with something from Four Roses or Buffalo Trace. Tennessee: Your options are Jack Daniel's and George Dickel. Your friends are likely to have experience with (and possibly poor memories of) Jack, so go with Dickel. The #8 and #12 are both good. Wheat: Bernheim's the king of the category, and for a long time was the category. Now there are newer expressions from Death's Door and Dry Fly that seem promising, but you're probably safer sticking with the fully aged and well-regarded Bernheim. Rye: The most widely available ryes are Rittenhouse/Pikesville from Heaven Hill (same recipe), Overholt/Beam/ri(1)/Knob Creek from Jim Beam (also same recipe), Sazerac/Hardy from Buffalo Trace, Wild Turkey, and the approximately four thousand rye whiskeys sourced from MGP in Indiana (Bulleit, Templeton, George Dickel, pretty much everything else), all with a tell-tale 95% rye mashbill. Rittenhouse 100 is the darling of the cocktail set, for a reason. The Beam ryes tend to be milder but have their fans (I've been eyeing ri(1), despite its terrible name and packaging, because I've seen it on sale for cheaper than Rittenhouse and it's basically a higher proof, older Overholt).) Wild Turkey put its beloved 101-proof rye on hold, and the current 81 proofer is no great shakes. The older Buffalo Trace ryes are classics. The Indiana ryes tend to be very spicy with strong mint flavors, and vary mainly in proof, age, and price. Corn whiskey: Mellow Corn and Georgia Moon are fine. I don't know the rest of the category at all. Something interesting: Balcones in Texas and Corsair in Tennessee are doing interesting things and getting acclaim for it. They offer a variety of malt whiskeys and whiskeys with unusual grains, as does High West with its silver oat whiskey. Stranahan's whiskey from Colorado is basically a bourbon made from a Scotch mashbill. Oregon's Clear Creek makes a credible Islay-style peated whiskey, and Lost Spirits out of California is doing something unprecedented, and, seemingly, nuts. Have fun!
  15. Very nice. I followed your earlier suggestion and made it with gin (Boker's) in the same ratio as your drink above (minus the mole bitters) and it came out very well. The pine-fernet accord gave it an almost minty finish. I also followed the lead of the Cafe au Kirsch and made a version with, uh, kirsch: Ultraístaby Rafa García Febles, NYC.3/4 oz Fernet Branca1/4 oz Coffee liqueur, Galliano Ristretto1 oz Kirschwasser1 t Maraschino Liqueur Stir, strain, up. Good, though not for everyone. I'm going to experiment with the ratios and make a version with double the Fernet/Coffee combo but the same volume of kirsch and Maraschino.
  16. Hmm. This may open a debate, but my understanding is that Grand Marnier is officially a Curaçao while Cointreau is a triple sec. The former is brandy (or other brown spirit)-based, while the latter starts with a more neutral spirit. Difference in taste? GM probably richer, maybe slightly sweeter; Cointreau a little lighter. But I can't see why Cointreau wouldn't work. Give it a try. Or you could look up Jerry Thomas recipe 188 for English Curacoa (his spelling) a d make your own. It's not a complex recipe. I've decided to play with something resembling Creole Shrub using rum - what do you suppose constitutes 'creole' spices? Clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice? Probably these + vanilla in the Clement product. I think black pepper could do quite nicely but that's probably less traditional.
  17. This is interesting. I like it. Me too. It's interesting how so little coffee liqueur can tame the fernet, at least in my experience. I'm thinking of joining this combo to an eau de vie in a cocktail, the way that eau de vie is sometimes paired with espresso postprandially.
  18. What would that require sir?
  19. Rafa

    Orgeat

    Dan, can we get a Tiki skin for Kindred Cocktails, please?
  20. Rafa

    Cynar

    You are too kind. Thank you for trying it. I'm glad our tastes aligned on this one. If any of you haven't tried bostonapothecary's Alto Cucina yet, I highly recommend it. It's a model of balance, contemplative and delicious. And it's got a structure that lends itself to substitutions and experimentation.
  21. Those are the ones I use at home. Nice and sturdy. By the way, since I believe you live in NYC, Fishs Eddy has a storefront in the Flatiron district.
  22. A shot of Sam Ross' Sommer in the City when I got home from work. Hit the spot.
  23. 1 oz Calvados 1 oz Demerara Rum 3/4 oz Honey Ginger Syrup 3/4 oz Lemon juice 1 ds Bitters (aromatic, apple, cardamom, falernum all work) Shake, strain, rock. I like this. Egg white and sparkling apple cider make a nice silver fizz version.
  24. I remember wondering what the rum he gulped out of barrels tasted like. I guess something like Pusser's or Smith & Cross. It would probably make a good Mai Tai.
×
×
  • Create New...