Drink Matron

Month: November 2011

  • Before we eat, we drink and eat…Bloodies!

    Yes, we do have pint glasses with our names on them, courtesy of my awesomely creative sister, Becky, and her wedding.

     

  • Good Morning and Happy Thanksgiving!

    Mimosas – start your turkey day out right.

  • Guest Post: Erik Nabler of Liquor Locusts reviews Hornsby’s “Crisp” Apple Cider

    In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love. As Tennyson, or somebody, so wisely said. However, in the fall, it turns to thoughts of drink. For, as the days get shorter, moods get darker, what is there to console us but the sweet kiss of C2H5OH. In other words, drink sustains us through the dark of winter.

    And to hold on to what we can of the summer and the fall, what better to drink than Apple Cider. Not the zero proof alcohol of our youth (although I am reminded of the best apple cider ever during my childhood where it had, unbeknownst to Mom, fermented-dang I was a happy kid for a bit) but the hard cider of our bitter, older years.

    So, when the Drink Matron kindly allowed me to put up a review of hard cider, I had to think hard about what to review. I thought at first of Blackthorn Dry, my favorite widely available cider. Then, as I was driving home, I realized that I did not have a bottle of it in the house, I did not want to stop at too many stores on the way home, so I am reviewing Hornsby’s Crisp Apple Cider. Sometimes you review what is there.

    So, what we find with Hornsby’s first off, is that it is priced right. On sale, in California, you can often find it for $6.99 per sixer, sometimes less. Good price for cider. The cider itself is decent. It is sweet, with a pronounced apple flavor, and simple. There is no complexity here, nor is it dry, which I tend to like. It is good in hot weather, and decent in cold. It has just a bit of “snap” to it, which can justify the “crisp” title as opposed to the Hornsby Amber. This is a cider that would go very well with cheddar cheese, or could be superb with a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich, if that is how you roll.

    As my better half so rightly put it – This is a really good juice box with kick.

    To summarize, this is very drinkable for the price. If you want a different experience, get the dry Blackthorn, but that is for another review, perhaps tomorrow.

    Erik Nabler is a blogger who writes about booze at Liquorlocusts.com. As noted, he dispenses “Cynicism, bitterness, and drink. ” Self medication has become a way of life for him and his 52 cats. Please visit the site any time and make pity comments. Erik loves pith.

  • Drinkmatron Labs: Hard Cider

    When it comes to homebrewing, the absolute easiest thing you can make is hard cider.  In this day and age where apple cider is readily available from apple orchards all over (or from a grocery store if you have to), you can get a batch fermenting in 5 minutes.  A lot of apple orchards sell freshly pressed apple cider without any preservatives added and ideally this is the cider you want to use.

    The preservatives added to juice is called potassium sorbate, and its only job in the world is to prevent yeast from reproducing.  Just in case any wild yeast makes its way into your cider, it won’t ferment so quickly and the cider will “last” longer.  It can’t stop the yeast from fermenting the sugars in the cider, it just stops them from being able to multiply.

    So you want to avoid cider with preservatives.  If you don’t live anywhere near an orchard that sells preservative-free cider, fear not, because you can still make it work.  You just need more yeast. The orchard I went to only sold cider with preservatives so I had to go this route.

    To make cider, you need:

    * Cider
    * Yeast (any brewing yeast, you can find it at your local home brew store or most Co-Ops)

    Put the cider in some kind of container that you can ferment it in.  The jug it came in will work fine as long as you can put together some sort of airlock system in it to prevent contaminants from getting in and the bottle from getting pressurized.  Add the yeast to the cider.  Wait for several months.  If you want it carbonated, mix a little table sugar in with the cider and place in pressurized bottles (like old pop bottles).

    If you’re like me and are using cider with potassium sorbate, you need more than just a packet of yeast.  Since it won’t multiply, you need to start with all the yeast possible.  I used three packets of champagne yeast.  On top of that, I made a yeast starter using some briess dry malt extract and yeast nutrient to get the yeast amped up and ready to ferment my cider.

    Now it’s just a waiting game for some tasty, tasty hard cider.

    ** Note: In Co-Op’s and grocery stores you will find a product called “Brewer’s Yeast.”  This is not what you want to use, this is dead yeast that won’t activate or ferment.

  • How to Mix an Old Fashioned

    Brandy or Whiskey, sweet or sour, making an old fashioned is as simple as the ingredients that go into it. Read on and learn ways to make this barroom favorite.

    Possibly the first drink to be called a cocktail, the old fashioned was most likely invented in the late 1880s by a bartender at the Pendennis Club in Louisville, Kentucky. The drink was simple: combine some bourbon, bitters, sugar, water and ice and bang, you’ve got yourself a drink.

    To mix a classic old fashioned you will need:

    • 2 ounces of bourbon whiskey
    • 2 dashes of bitters
    • 1 cube of sugar with a splash of water, or simple syrup
    • 3 cubes of ice
    • Old Fashioned (or rocks) glass

    In an old fashioned glass, combine the cube of sugar, water and bitters (or simple syrup and bitters). If needed, crush the sugar mixture to coat the bottom of the glass. Add the cubes of ice and whiskey. Garnish with a twist.

    Served in a glass named for itself, the old-fashioned is enjoying a resurgence in popularity, along with many of its classic compatriots. Options to making the drink are as long as its century existence, but debates on keeping the purity of the drink often negate the tasty variations.

    For most purists, the drink remains what it has always been, a whiskey cocktail with the minimum additions made. For others who enjoy a new take on an old favorite, adding a wash of sweet or sour (or in many cases soda water), mixing brandy instead of whiskey, or an added slice of orange garnish or a maraschino cherry make the drink that much more interesting. The decision, however, is always up to the drinker, to play around with the recipes and find what truly works for you.

    The following recipe has been popularized in the north central region of Wisconsin. Known as a whiskey (or brandy) old fashioned sweet (or sour), it is just one take on what has become known as Wisconsin’s state drink.

    To mix this version you need will need:

    • 2 ounces of whiskey or brandy
    • 2 dashes of bitters
    • 1 to 3 ounces of sweet or sour wash
    • 1 cube of sugar with water, or simple syrup
    • orange slice or cherry garnish (optional)
    • 3 cubes of ice
    • Old Fashioned (or rocks) glass

    In an old fashioned glass, combine the cube of sugar, water and bitters (or a splash of simple syrup and bitters). If needed, crush the sugar mixture to coat the bottom of the glass. Add the cubes of ice and your choice of whiskey or brandy. Top with sweet or sour wash and garnish with an orange slice or cherry. Sit back and enjoy!

  • Brandy colored memories

    When I was a kid, my mom drank Brandy. It sticks out in my mind – the bottle of E&J on the counter, waiting until the next time people came over to the house. I remember the smell of it – she drank it mixed with water – the sweet, dry aroma of the Brandy mixed with the wet coolness of cold well water and ice cubes.

    Because of this, Brandy holds a special place in my heart. Not that I drink it myself. While as a child that smell marked special occasions and visits from beloved aunts and uncles, as an adult I’ve never had much of a taste for overly potent flavored boozes. However, when the cooler months roll around and it’s time for seasonal warmers like the Tom and Jerry, and Christmas treats of Brandy soaked chocolate covered cherries, I’m reminded just how comforting this lovely spirit can be.

  • The Sidecar

    Of all the basic drinks listed in David A Embury’s Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, the Sidecar has the most dubious of back stories.


    Paris

    It is said that in Paris during World War I, an American Army captain often traveled around in a motorcycle sidecar. One day, when he was under the weather, he requested a libation that would help him to feel better. The bartender, trying to find something suitable to pair with the “medicinal” brandy, added Cointreau and lemon juice as a source of Vitamin C. The drink was named “Sidecar” as a tribute to its original patron, and the rest is history.

    London’s Buck’s Club

    Many believe that the Paris story is a very big myth, and that the true invention of the Sidecar can be traced back to the London’s famous Buck’s Club in the 1920s. The creation is most often credited to Pat MacGarry, one of the Buck’s Club’s most popular bartenders.

    Or Not

    Another possibility is that the Sidecar is itself a variation of the Brandy Crusta, a cocktail made with the same ingredients and which also sported a sugar rimmed glass. The most notable difference is that the Sidecar is made with Cognac rather than standard Brandy.

    French School vs. English School

    While the origin of the drink may not be of any consequence to the drinker, the exact proportion of what goes into the drink may be very important. While everyone agrees that the three main ingredients are Cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice, the debate about just exactly how much of each goes into the drink has spawned two schools of thought: the French School and the English School.

    The French School maintains that the drink should consist of equal parts of each of the three ingredients. The English School believes that the cocktail should consist of two parts Cognac for every one part Cointreau and lemon juice. While this may not seem like it should make a difference, the taste of each of these mixes is drastically different, and can cause quite an issue when a you’re expecting your drink to taste a specific way.

    The Sidecar

    French School

    • 1 oz Cognac or Armagnac
    • 1 oz Cointreau
    • 1 oz Freshly squeezed lemon juice

    English School

    • 1 1/2 oz Cognac or Armagnac
    • 3/4 oz Cointreau
    • 3/4 oz Freshly squeezed lemon juice

    Combine ingredients in a shaker half full of ice. Shake until very cold, and strain into a cocktail glass (preferably chilled). If preferred, rim the cocktail glass with sugar before straining. Garnish with a twist of lemon or orange.

    No matter how you like your Sidecar, it’s certain that what you’re getting is something classic and pleasant. Please remember to always drink responsibly and know your limit.

  • Anchor Steam Beer

    Steam beer is an interesting style of beer and, as far as I know, Anchor is the only company that still makes it.  This beer has a nice hazy, amber color that makes you think this beer is going to be a medium to full bodied beer.  But that’s the trick, it’s actually incredibly light bodied.  It has almost an airy quality to the taste that is surprisingly dry.  The taste also drops off very quickly leaving almost no finish at all.

    If you want a beer with a load of flavor, this is not the beer for you.  If you’re looking for a crisp, refreshing beer to quench your thirst on a hot summer day, this is definitely the beer for you.

    On a 100-point scale, I give this beer 90 points.  I like the beer, but having no finish is kind of off putting to me.  I can see why people might rate this higher than me, I just like fuller bodied beers more than the lighter beers.

  • Sierra Nevada Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale

    The coming Autumn time is a signal for us beer drinkers that it’s time to start stocking up on the darker beers that seem to go oh-so-well with the colder weather.  This year, Sierra Nevada brewery has supplanted their usual fall seasonal beer with Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale.  The label design screams Fall Beer with its vibrant oranges and yellows.  It’s almost as if the bottles are whispering “Pick me!  Take me home with you!” from the beer cooler.  They’re very compelling.

    I drank my first bottle of it directly from the fridge, which in hind sight was a mistake.  I was disappointed in how remarkably average this beer was.  No aroma, very little stuck out in the taste, finish was unremarkable.  But then I thought “Hey!  It’s a fall beer, why not drink it at room temperature?”  So I left a bottle sitting in the pantry until it had reached room temperature and cracked it open.

    The aroma coming from the beer was still really faint.  I must have looked like a crazy person, sticking my nose in my glass and huffing beer for 5 minutes trying to glean any kind of distinct smells.  There was the faintest hint of apples that was gone almost before it presented itself.  There was a nutty kind of aroma with a syrupy, almost caramel, sweetness that wafted in.

    When I finally drank it, I could definitely taste a malty, toasty flavor.  I was very surprised at how smooth this beer was.  It just slides down your gullet like it’s going for a nice leisurely stroll.  There was a very subtle sweet taste – like caramel.  Again, I got the distinct impression that I tasted apples, but it was so subtle that I’m not sure I wasn’t making it up.  After a couple sips I got the visualization of eating a biscuit with a slice of McIntosh apple drizzled with warm caramel.  The aftertaste was a little buttery and nutty, but it wasn’t a long finish.

    Tumbler has a thick presence on the mouth for a medium bodied beer, and an impressively short finish.

    All in all, I felt this beer was okay, but I don’t think I’ll buy it again.  On a 100-point scale, I’d give it 84 points.

  • Spent Grain Bread Recipe

    Last weekend I started home brewing again.  Being that I brewed an all-grain batch, I had a concern early on about what to do with the spent grain.  When you brew all-grain beer, all that grain you used in the process ends up being a waste product after all the starches are washed out.  So what can you do with that grain once its spent?  You could throw it on a compost heap to add some nutrients to the dirt, or you could make some seriously kick ass bread!

    I looked around online and found a recipe for it.

    • 3 cups all-purpose flour
    • 1 cup whole wheat flour
    • 1/4 cup sugar
    • 2 tsp baker’s yeast
    • 2 tsp salt
    • 3 cups spent grain (ground up)
    • 1 egg (beaten)
    • 1 cup milk
    • 1/4 cup butter or olive oil

    Mix the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients, knead, put in an oiled bowl and let it rise for ~90 minutes, punch down and put in an oiled bread pan, let rise until doubled, bake for 40 minutes at 350F, let cool for 30 minutes.

    This recipe makes 3 loaves, which is WAY more than we here at DM Labs will eat in a week and if you do the math, 3 cups of spent grain isn’t nearly all the spent grain you will have after a batch of brew.  Thankfully, bread dough freezes well for later baking.  I used up all the flour I had in my house and almost used up all of my spent grain making dough for 12 loaves of bread (all frozen now), and I froze the remaining cup or so of spent grain I have for when I restock my ingredients.

    I was expecting this bread to be run of the mill, home-baked bread, but it turned out far greater than I imagined.  This is seriously some of the best bread, commercial or homemade, that I’ve ever had.  We devoured the first loaf in just under 24 hours.