eG Foodblog: donbert - Roll Your Own...

[KatieLoeb]

Well, since I'd never tried it before, I really couldn't tell you if it was a good one or bad one. It was merely my first one. But I found it had an interesting sweetness to it, as well as a pleasing dry finish. It reminded me of what I thought sweet potato vodka would taste like. The place I had this was a Korean restaurant/karoke club. I suspect it wasn't from the higher end of the spectrum.

Many moons ago I thought that Geikkikan was good sake because it was all I knew. Now I realize it's the Japanese equivalent of Mad Dog 20-20.

edited to add:

You may point and laugh now, if you wish...

[Hiroyuki]

The place I had this was a Korean restaurant/karoke club.

Many moons ago I thought that Geikkikan was good sake because it was all I knew.  Now I realize it's the Japanese equivalent of Mad Dog 20-20. 

edited to add:

You may point and laugh now, if you wish...

←

karoke = karaoke?

Geikkikan = Gekkeikan?

I'm not out to correct spelling errors; I'm just curious.

I think Gekkeikan is a good sake. We must give credit to mass-produced sake too. But I must admit that I haven't had Gekkeikan for decades. Whenever I want to drink sake, I buy local sake (jizake) these days.

***

Jinro is the most popular soju in Japan. Is this the case in the United States too?

[Pan]

[...]Jinro is the most popular soju in Japan.  Is this the case in the United States too?

←

Yeah, seems to be. It's available in Korean restaurants I patronize. You can read a funny account about my first time drinking soju about three years ago by clicking here.

Don, that's funny about the 50-year soju.

[johnder]

I got a present for you don... it isn't scm, but could be an interesting dulche experiment.

I will bring you some tomorrow.

[KatieLoeb]

The place I had this was a Korean restaurant/karoke club.

Many moons ago I thought that Geikkikan was good sake because it was all I knew.  Now I realize it's the Japanese equivalent of Mad Dog 20-20. 

edited to add:

You may point and laugh now, if you wish...

←

karoke = karaoke?

Geikkikan = Gekkeikan?

I'm not out to correct spelling errors; I'm just curious.

I think Gekkeikan is a good sake. We must give credit to mass-produced sake too. But I must admit that I haven't had Gekkeikan for decades. Whenever I want to drink sake, I buy local sake (jizake) these days.

***

Jinro is the most popular soju in Japan. Is this the case in the United States too?

←

Yes and Yes. Because I can't spel.

Don't know about the brand name of what I drank. It was a green bottle with a screwcap. That's all I remember. Especially after I'd had a few.

In fact, after I'd had a few I was ready to tackle singing some of the songs in Japanese and Korean that were in the song catalog. In their native languages. Neither of which I speak.

[MarketStEl]

The place I had this was a Korean restaurant/karoke club.

Many moons ago I thought that Geikkikan was good sake because it was all I knew.  Now I realize it's the Japanese equivalent of Mad Dog 20-20. 

edited to add:

You may point and laugh now, if you wish...

←

karoke = karaoke?

Geikkikan = Gekkeikan?

I'm not out to correct spelling errors; I'm just curious.

I think Gekkeikan is a good sake. We must give credit to mass-produced sake too. But I must admit that I haven't had Gekkeikan for decades. Whenever I want to drink sake, I buy local sake (jizake) these days.

***

Jinro is the most popular soju in Japan. Is this the case in the United States too?

←

Yes and Yes. Because I can't spel.

Don't know about the brand name of what I drank. It was a green bottle with a screwcap. That's all I remember. Especially after I'd had a few.

In fact, after I'd had a few I was ready to tackle singing some of the songs in Japanese and Korean that were in the song catalog. In their native languages. Neither of which I speak.

←

Fortunately for the rest of us, you didn't proceed to tackle that part of the songbook.

Which had NO vintage R&B. No Motown, no TSOP -- nothing even remotely resembling it.

That was my first time drinking soju too.

[mizducky]

I see y'all have been having fun while I was busy.

I am coveting that meal of raw tuna, rare lamb, and roasted maitake.

I'm digging that picture of the freaky demon on the bottle of soju you polished off.

Milk sugars--never really thought about them much. But now I'm contemplating the possibilities of dulce de leche'd yogurt.

And I only tried gjetost once or twice long ago, and didn't really "get it" ... but now that the connection with dulce de leche has been made, I'm going duh on myself. And thinking I should give it another shot.

Fascinating stuff.

[donbert]

Just got home after a long evening of eating and drinking. Usually I eat out more often so I'm catching up on a weeks worth today. Stand by while I wrestle with image gullet.

[donbert]

(Here are the pictures for now. I'll post comments on everything tomorrow morning.)

Started the evening off at Ureña after work for a couple drinks and some tapas.

Persimmon MdO Caipirinha

They were out of the Fig Blackberry so the bartender made this for me instead. The persimmon and lime balanced each other out really well while not covering up the distinctive cane and slightly smokey flavor of Mae De Ouro.

White Asparagus Soup Amuse

Just delicious, I would have been happy with just a big steaming bowl of this on a cold night like yesterday.

Picho De Gambas Y Chorizo

Shrimp, chorizo, goat cheese with chorizo aioli.

Cochinillo Confitado

Confit of suckling pig, granny smith puree, star anise scented sauce. Perfect crackly skin with fork tender meat.

Tarta de Ropa Vieja

Duck confit, port chorizo, foie gras, and truffle with a chorizo aoili. Further proof that deep frying things make them even better.

Braised Short Rib

Growing up the only preparation of short rib I had was kalbi (korean bbq of short rib). I'd take this over kalbi any day now.

Khukri Egg Nog

Khukri is a dark rum from Nepal that I first tried at Rum Fest this year. It has a really deep caramel and almost molassas flavor. My first instinct upon smelling it was to cook with it but this is the best cocktail I've had with it thus far. The egg nog was very light and all the sweetness came from the rum.

Deconstructed Creme Catalan

If I didn't know better I would have guessed that this was something that Sam Mason put together. One of the many amazing things about Chef Ureña is that he does all the pastry for his restaurant as well as the savory. This was a perfect example of a playful deconstruction. Instead of marrying all the flavors into a single creme dish each flavor was separated into components with different textures. The bruled cream, huckleberry sauce, grapefruit jelly, and anise sorbet could have easily each a stand alone dessert.

I then met up with a friend in the bar room of Gramercy Tavern for dinner.

Tequila Grapefruit Crusta

Jim Meehan started us off with this cocktail while we were waiting for seats to open up at the bar. Very refreshing use of tequila.

Bacardi Cocktail sans Bacardi

[cocktial geek]The "Bacardi Cocktail" is essentially a daiquiri with grenadine and there has been a very intense discussion about who put "Who put the Grenadine into the Bacardi Cocktail?" over on DrinkBoy. Also of note is the fact that Bacardi at one point won a lawsuit against bartenders/bars that weren't using Bacardi in a Bacardi Cocktail.[/cocktail geek]

Guinea Hen with Foie Gras

Possibly the best thing I had all night if had to choose one. Perfectly cooked guinea hen, slight hint of pink in the center. So many places overcook all their fowl which ruins not only the moisture but the texture. The combination of the guinea hen, the foie and raisin dressing under the salad was divine.

Gin and Jim's Homemade Tonic

We got to try Jim's tonic that was mentioned in the NYTimes last wed. Jim, Johnder, and some others have been working on their own tonics here if you haven't read about it yet.

Rabbit Sausage with mustard onion confit (potato bread from balthazar on the side for making sandwiches)

They had two special sausages last night. My dining companion and I couldn't agree which was better but they were both great. I have to guess that these sausages were poached because of thier amazingly soft texture.

Merguez with Fenel, Frizee, and Squash

This was my favorite of the two. The fenel with sweet squash and spicy lamb worked really well together.

Fresh Bacon with Poached Pear and Spaetzel

mmmmmmmmm.... bacon.... 'nuf said

Farro "Risotto" with Carrot

Yeah, I'm still on this farro kick and couldn't resist ordering this. Farro doesn't create the same kind of creamy texture you get with Arborio where the grains of rice stick to each other. Each individual grain of farro plumps up and has a similar feel of biting into barley.

Whiskey Tea Highball

The smoky flavor of lapsang tea with scotch was a great way to end this meal.

And to cap it all off one final drink at Pegu before heading home.

Death in the Gulf Stream

Eric, formerly of Pegu and now at Trois in Atlanta, turned me on to this drink earlier this year. It's a great last drink to wake you up after a long night of drink and was invented by Ernest Hemingway.

"take a tall thin water tumbler and fill it with finely cracked ice. Lace this broken debris with four good purple splashes of angostura, add the lime and crushed peel of lime, and fill glass almost full with holland gin... no sugar, no fancying. It's strong, it's bitter, but so is English ale strong and bitter, in may cases. We don't add sugar to ale and we don't need sugar in a Death in the Gulf Stream... or at least not more than 1 stp. Its tartness and bitterness are its chief charm. It is reviving and refreshing, it cools the blood and inspires renewed interest in food, companions and life" Charles H Baker Jr, The Gentleman's Companion, 1946

The 4 dashes of angostura really dries out the drink and was just what I needed to settle my stomach after all that food.

edit: added notes

Edited December 8, 2006 by donbert (log)

[johnder]

whoa! I am sad I passed up on this food fest. Then again, I am not sad how I would feel this morning after drinking till 1:30am.

[Daniel]

Hey Donbert,

Nice Blog, I just found this yesterday and have really been enjoying it.. What a cool place you have.. I really enjoy your enthusiasm and your knowledge of the drink.. What a display you put on last night, very impressive.. Thanks for sharing this with us.

Edited December 8, 2006 by Daniel (log)

[Jean Blanchard]

What's the garnish in the whiskey tea highball? Fun blog!

[Jean Blanchard]

Upon further inspection, I see that it's just lemon.

[Nishla]

Holy crap. Did you eat all that yourself or did you have help? Looking at all that food makes my lunch seem very disappointing in comparison.

[donbert]

Ok, so I've gone back and updated last night's post with comments.

No breakfast today, was still full from last night .

Lots of SCM simmering away on the stove. Got to go restock on alcohol and prep for cocktails. Maybe a banh mi for lunch or something from Fairway when I go buy fruit later...

whoa!  I am sad I passed up on this food fest.  Then again, I am not sad how I would feel this morning after drinking till 1:30am.

We have to go to Ureña for tapas and drinks soon.

Hey Donbert,

Nice Blog, I just found this yesterday and have really been enjoying it.. What a cool place you have.. I really enjoy your enthusiasm and your knowledge of the drink..  What a display you put on last night, very impressive.. Thanks for sharing this with us.

Thanks Daniel, I'm still in awe of your pork party. ::oink::

Holy crap. Did you eat all that yourself or did you have help? Looking at all that food makes my lunch seem very disappointing in comparison.

The sausages and farro risotto were split but everything else I somehow managed to eat on my own. The short walk in the cold between Ureña and Gramercy Tavern followed by an hour wait for seats at the bar helped me get my second wind.

I was tempted to stay for another drink at Pegu but the Death on a Gulfstream is such a great closer that I didn't want to follow it up with anything.

[eje]

(Here are the pictures for now. I'll post comments on everything tomorrow morning.)

Started the evening off at Ureña after work for a couple drinks and some tapas.

[...]

I then met up with a friend in the bar room of Gramercy Tavern for dinner.

[...]

And to cap it all off one final drink at Pegu before heading home.

Death in the Gulf Stream

←

Wow, what an evening out! Looks great, man.

But, you ended the night with a Death in the Gulf Stream?! I have to say I admire your take no prisoners approach!

[donbert]

Wow, what an evening out!  Looks great, man.

But, you ended the night with a Death in the Gulf Stream?!  I have to say I admire your take no prisoners approach!

For some reason I thought the recipe for a Death in the Gulf Stream was 12 dashes of Angostura and that's how I've been making them at home. As you can tell by know I like dry and bitter drinks. Though I learned the hard way not to try this with the Riemerschmied Angostura.

[donbert]

Went to LeNell's to stock up for tonight and tomorrow.

This store is seriously the meca of all things cocktail, with a special focus on American Whiskeys.

[donbert]

The only thing I've eaten today.

$1 dumplings.

[donbert]

Egg prep for the nog.

Egg Nog station. (reusing the sake bottle to hold the egg nog batter)

Stirrings Soda samples to play with.

[donbert]

Dulce de Leche Experiment!

8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

[donbert]

First drinks of the night a (2006) Stagg Nog and a Baby Saz Nog.

[alanamoana]

Hey Donbert,

I love the photo of the dulche'd scm! Amazing experiment, can't wait to find out what the favorites are.

Here's something you might want to try in some eggnog:

I used it in my eG Pastry Challenge dessert after learning about it from a former boss of mine. It is pretty fiery stuff straight, but really enhances food when a little bit is used. More of a butterscotch-y flavor than rum-like.

Blog-on!

[eje]

Dulce de Leche Experiment!

[...]

8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

←

Wow!

FWIW the commericial dulce de leche I picked up (manufactured in chile) is closest in color to number 16.

I'll post a photo in the cocktails forum later this week.

George T. Stagg eggnog, what an idea!

[KatieLoeb]

Hey Donbert,

I love the photo of the dulche'd scm!  Amazing experiment, can't wait to find out what the favorites are.

Here's something you might want to try in some eggnog:

I used it in my eG Pastry Challenge dessert after learning about it from a former boss of mine.  It is pretty fiery stuff straight, but really enhances food when a little bit is used.  More of a butterscotch-y flavor than rum-like.

Blog-on!

←

Ay-yi-yi! That Stroh 80 is deadly stuff. The 80 stands for 80 percent alcohol or 160 proof!! Even hotter than 151 rum! It tastes different than most rums because it's made from sugar beets, not molasses or sugar cane like other rums. I keep a bottle of it in the house for when I have a really bad cold or the flu. I make up a packet of that OTC TheraFlu stuff and add a healthy shot of the Stroh to it. It knocks me out cold, I sleep like a corpse, sweat like a racehorse and wake up cured from whatever ailed me. It truly exorcises the demons from you when you aren't well.

It would make some wicked strong nog.