Smokeydoke

It's just the two of us too but I could never give up my Costco membership, I doubt I save any money, I just love that place so much!

I understand the hate for Walmart but it's not a bad store. If one can get over the stigma of "it's from Walmart" one can look pass the aisles of cheap crap and find amazing deals. Walmart has been my go-to for soy milk, cheap bread (their sandwich rolls are great), Halo-top, and Powerade. I've bought my entire Lodge Cast Iron Cookware from Walmart. I go to Whole Foods a lot more than Walmart but only because it's a pleasure to shop in and it's next to Total Wine & More. A lot of their products are only marginally better at twice the price. The big exception would be their produce, Whole Foods wins hands down, Walmart produce section is horrible.

Thank you @Smithy I will check them out. I abhor chain restaurants but I'll eat anything else. I rarely eat out, so I tend to splurge, I rarely go for burgers and fries. A nice bar with a sophisticated cocktail menu would be nice too.

Bump! Going to be spending a lot of time in Fresno. I'd also like recommendations for San Luis Obispo and the surrounding areas.

My first Creme de Violette cocktail, it has become one of my favorites. Death & Co's Bella Luna 2 oz Plymouth Gin 3/4 oz St. Germain 3/4 oz Lemon juice 1/2 oz Creme de violette (substituted for Yvette) 1 tsp Simple syrup

I've been eyeing the spicy paneer. I have a gallon of milk sitting in the fridge that's about to go bad.

I swear I bought that Chambourd because I wanted the champagne corker, it came free with the liqueur, I use it all the time, the Chambourd isn't even opened yet. And not to be a Debby-know-it-all but I love my Creme de Violette, I think it'll get more use than a lot of other liqueurs in my cabinet.

Or you can make your own! It's so much better. http://www.thesharedsip.com/best-homemade-grenadine/

Cranberry juice.

Can I ask why you went with the Panasonic instead of the CusineArt?

^^ Is that Ina Garten? I made my Cosmos with grenadine, it was delicious. Why doesn't everyone do this?

Welcome @damaaster!

It's been far too long since I've cooked from this book, it's time to start again. TEMPURA GREEN BEANS p. 62 This was a simple recipe of fresh green beans, dipped in tempura batter, then deep-fried. Served with honey mustard sauce. This was delicious, but one-and-done for me, to the dismay of poor Mr. Smokey who exclaimed, "Best green beans I ever had." It was a lot of work because you could only deep-fry a handful at a time or they would stick to each other. I must've done five batches before I called it quits and threw the rest away. A pound of green beans makes a huge batch though, enough to serve at least six people. They used to be a staple at places like TGIFs or as Meehan fondly remembers, The Red Cat. Mr. Smokey can have his fill there. This was one batch worth, as you can see the batter gets very puffy and it seems like more green beans than there really are.

@Eric Srikandan I wonder why it unraveled? It looks delicious, though.

Death & Co. It's one of my top five favorite (cocktail)cookbooks of all time. And I own a lot of cookbooks.

@EvergreenDan thanks for replying, to be honest, I was stocking for myself, but I'm open to new suggestions. Posting my liquor cabinet made me realize how sorely lacking I am in the whiskey and tequila department, which is ok by me, but not ok for guests, as they're are more likely to ask for whiskey than Creme de Violette. I got the Rittenhouse Rye mainly to round out my collection and it has great reviews everywhere. Campari seems to be the new bourbon, everyone is into it and everyone makes drinks with it. You can't go to a high-end restaurant nowadays without seeing a Negroni on the menu. I'm trying to get used to it and see what the hype is about, but I don't dig Amaros yet. Is it fair to categorize them all as Amaros? I do have a Martini and Rossi Dry Vermouth, unopened, but I might toss it and get a Dolin. But seeing that my vermouth isn't even opened yet, this is further down the list. I'm trying to work through my cabinet (this may take a long time) and get rid of my more commercialized liquors and only buy recommended brands from cocktail books, I'll get there. I can't just throw everything down the sink, it's not my nature. I think my next purchase will be Cointreau 750ml. It's time to upgrade. After that I'll see about getting another Amaro, the Punt e Mes sounds interesting, as does a Mezcal. Thanks for replying! And Smokey refers to my dog, not some recreational past time, although there's nothing wrong with that.

@Tri2Cook, don't take this the wrong way, but you and I disagree on everything. I asked for opinions on my purchases, which I got feedback for, which I heeded and changed my purchases accordingly. So far, so good. You and @sbumgarner went off on a tangent, which, in spirit, was a light joke between @JoNorvelleWalker and I. I completely understood what she was saying but somehow it blew up into a debate about what alcohols should be used in cocktails. Not good. Don't take this personally, but I'm putting you on ignore. I don't see how this forum is benefiting from our interactions.

@sbumgarner Got it. Can we (the universal we, as in everyone) get back to liquor store purchases again? I'm afraid we're going to get zapped for going off-topic, although this would be a great topic for another thread.

This forum cracks me up. I'll need a donation of the Clement XO Rhum Agricole too. And no, I've never had Joy, honestly I've heard about Appleton Rum and I know it's a good brand, but I exclusively bought Myers for years, just to make Rum Cake. I never drank rum till a few weeks ago.

@JoNorvelleWalker What is Joy? If that's the nickname for Appleton 21, I've never tasted Appleton 21, but I'm always open to donations. I'm not joking about the cocktail. Here's the link. $300 Mai Tai

I'm at Total Wines so much now, I'm getting to know all the managers by name.

Probably. If you've noticed, I also have a bottle of Chambord (why?) and I forgot to mention a bottle of Frangelico, not to mention 750ml of sloe gin.

No disrespect at all, opinions, everyone has them. I don't know how old you are, but this craft cocktail movement is new, there's still a lot of people that think like my mom. Just today, I was ogling at the fine spirits counter when the manager, an older gentleman, came up and we started chatting. He asked me what I drank. I said, "I like cocktails." He said, "you're in the wrong place for cocktails. this is you and a glass." And I said, "I completely agree. But I just saw the other day a cocktail using Appleton Estate 21 Yr Old." He looked at me like I'm crazy. Well, he wasn't too far from the truth...

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I ended up with: Chartreuse, 750 ml, that was all they had and they don't do special orders for the 375 ml. Strange, but true. Rothman & Winter Creme de Violette Rittenhouse Rye per @blue_dolphin recommendation. The sales manager agreed, it is a fine rye. Absente Absinthe 100 ml - it was all they had for 100 ml. La Cana Grande Silver Rum - I asked the sales manager for Flor de Cana White and she personally handed me this bottle of La Cana Grande and promised me great daiquiris. I kid you not. Of course, she's the manager, she's in the know, right? I did track down some Flor de Cana at a local liquor store, so I'm going to return the La Cana today. I just thought it was hilarious. The $9 should've tipped me off.

Kinda missing the point, my mother, who ran a liquor store, told me that cocktails were for "cheap" liquors and anything over $50 was to only be drunk neat or you were defeating the purpose. When I was younger and frequenting bars, this was accepted philosophy and when you ordered "top-shelf" cocktails, you were secretly laughed at, not to mention most likely swindled. I know times have changed and people are ordering cocktails with $100 bourbons with reckless abandon, but I still feel a twinge of guilt, as it was something that was not done back in the day. And I agree with @JoNorvelleWalker Chartreuse is something that "should" be drunk neat to fully appreciate the fine nuances of flavor. YMMV.