My Half Full Glass - January 17th, 2013

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Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve Bourbon

This was one of the bottles of whiskey I picked up for my whiskey bar during the first of our two holiday open houses late last year. I like the everyday Knob Creek as a solid sipper so when I saw this bottle of Single Barrel Reserve I figured I should give it a spin.

The initial aromas give up dried fruits, caramel, vanilla and hints of charcoal or smoke. In the mouth it is sweeter than I would have expected and an element of black pepper spice is pretty accessible. The wood notes are also pretty forward, especially after a few swirls. 

At 120 proof this Bourbon doesn't mess around, the heat comes in strong and lingers, but not to a fault. This whiskey is a bit stronger than I really like and for that reason I don't think I would buy it as a sipper again. That said, when making a Sazerac or Old Fashioned cocktails the flavors of this Bourbon continue to shine and the heat is moderated to a level much more aligned with my palate.  Of the four or five of us that nearly killed the bottle, as you can see in the picture, nobody had anything bad to say, although the heat and strength of it was noted by all.

Castello D'Albola Le Ellere Chianti Classico

To some people Chianti can often be pedestrian and boring. I've had my share of flamboyantly boring examples of it over the last few years, and because of that I don't often purchase a bottle unless I have a solid personal recommendation. Boring was not the case this time, and I'm happy to say I'm actually in a position to make a recommendation worth following the next time Chianti would be a good fit for a wine purchase. I received this bottle of Castello D'Albola Le Ellere Chianti Classico as a sample from the wine lovers at Zonin

Other than the fact that the cork disintegrated while trying to open it I can't say anything bad about this wine.

The nose was vibrant, pushing forth cherry, currant and tart red fruits. The wine smells clean and friendly. In the mouth the flavors of cherry and currant were predominant  for me. Wood notes were subtle and a hint of vanilla was found after a bit of concentration. The finish is long and for an otherwise dry wine the dryness doesn't accelerate through the finish, mellowing a bit as it goes. 

I enjoyed this wine before dinner and then experienced a good match for it with Margherita pizza. I could see the pairing potential of this wine to extend to other Italian classics and hope to try it again with a cheese & charcuterie plate where I also think it will work well. I would definitely buy this wine. The average retail price seems to be somewhere between $20 and $25.

Cheers!

Jason

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Making the Original Southern Comfort

The history of liquor is fascinating. I heard the legend of where Southern Comfort came from and it turned out to be an old time infusion by a tavern owner. Something you could so very much do at home! The story, including exactly from where I heard the legend, can be found in the history section of the Wikipedia entry on Southern Comfort.

I first tried it within a week of seeing a TV show about it in 2010 and it came out mighty fine. It took about 3-4 weeks total and it sipped great on the rocks for the short time it lasted.

Since then I have infused a bunch of other flavors in vodka and infused the itch to try it for herself into our friend Amy. She came back with a tray of different flavors for us to try. Nearly two dozen in all! This year is cooking up some kind of madness with gin and the party to celebrate it all is in June.

As a gift to thank her for all of the good drinks I created from her last share, I decided to make her a quart of homemade Ancient Fire Bourbon Comfort. And I couldn’t overlook sharing this recipe with you all, it is just too good!

Ancient Fire Bourbon Comfort

1.75 L Jim Beam White
Peel of 1 orange
Peel of 1 lemon
1 & ½ vanilla beans, sliced lengthwise
1 & ½ inches of cinnamon, broken into 3 pieces
5 whole cloves
8 cherries, canned in heavy syrup, sliced in half
Simple syrup to taste

Remove 3-4 ounces of the bourbon from the bottle. Add everything but the simple syrup. Top off with the reserved bourbon as needed. Drink the rest! Recap the bottle.

Shake the bottle once per day for 2-3 weeks. Flavors and aromas will develop and you should test it to see if you like the flavors along the way. When you do, use a sieve to filter out the solids. Combine the bourbon with sugar syrup, mixing well, to taste. Store in mason jars, wine bottles, etc in a cool dry place. Serve on the rocks.

Cheers!

Jason

p.s. I apologize for the picture. I made the limoncello and the comfort on the same night and the pictures came during the drinking phase. How delightfully trashy. That’s all for you Janis!

Inspiration for a Rum TweetUp!

On January 26th, 2011 from 4-6 PM PST there will be a cocktail TweetUp and the topic this month is rum! Use the hashtag #drinkup on Twitter to share your experiences and follow all the action. We will be celebrating rum cocktails, rum history, rum adventures, new products and stories about vacations planned in the search of rum! Check in with @MyMansBelly for @AncientFireWine for more information.

In preparation for our TweetUp I offer some inspiration in the form of a rum based hot toddy, the Hot Buttered Rum.

Ancient Fire Hot Buttered Rum
(Makes two drinks)

2 oz dark rum
2 oz gold rum
6 oz water
1 tsp spiced simple syrup (recipe below)
1 tsp dark brown sugar
6 drops vanilla
1 large cinnamon stick, broken in half
1 Tbsp butter, cut in two pieces

Place the equal portions of cinnamon stick and vanilla in 2 heatproof mugs. Heat the rum, water, simple syrup and sugar in a saucepan until almost boiling. Remove from the heat and pour into the mugs. Put the pieces of butter on top of each and let it melt into the mixture.

Spiced Simple Syrup

2 cups water
4 cups sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
6 cloves
6 allspice berries

Heat water to boiling. Add spices. Remove from heat. Allow to steep for 1 hour. Return water to boiling. Add sugar. Mix over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Allow to cool. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

*** Bonus – I first made the spiced syrup (above) for a drink I entered into the Woodford Reserve Well

Crafted Manhattan competition. I didn’t win and the person who did made a ginger infused drink. The drink doesn't contain rum, but that doesn’t mean I can’t share the recipe with you!

The Applesauced!

2 oz Woodford Reserve
2 oz fresh sweet cider
1/2 oz spiced syrup
1/4 oz ginger liqueur
splash of lemon juice
2 dashes orange bitters

Combine, stir and serve. Add a cinnamon stick and orange twist for garnish

Cheers!

--Jason

Ginger Cocktails

I had a fit of creativity last night and did some trials on cocktails influenced by the flavor of ginger. I had two ginger flavored ingredients to work with, a handmade ginger syrup and ginger brandy. I didn’t take pictures of anything, simply due to being tired after coming home from a two day leadership conference. I hope the drink recipes more than make up for it. Margot helped with sampling and giving names to the drinks.

Frootsie

2 parts hand-infused vanilla vodka
2 parts Ancient Fire 2009 Pear wine
1 part ginger syrup
Splash of lime juice

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake well and pour in a rocks/lowball glass. That combination of the vanilla, pear and ginger came together to taste like Frootises, the fruit flavored Tootsie rolls. It is very pleasant to drink with enough acidity to keep it crisp.

Ginger Lemonade

2 parts gin
1 part lemon juice
½ part dry vermouth
½ part ginger syrup

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake well and pour in a rocks/lowball glass. This is a very simple drink, but by no means unworthy, especially on a warm summer day. The gin and vermouth adds some herbal notes to a nice balance of lemon and ginger.

Watermelon Jolly Rancher

2 parts hand-infused cranberry vodka
2 parts club soda
½ part ginger syrup
¼ part lemon juice
Splash of lime juice
4 drips Angostura bitters

Mix vodka, syrup, and juices in a shaker with ice, shake well and pour in a rocks/lowball glass. Add bitters and give it a quick stir. Top off with the club soda. Margot really like this one and zeroed in on the flavor before I did. I am still amazed that this combination of flavors ended up tasting like a watermelon Jolly Rancher, but some of the best things in life are surprises! With a slight fizz and crispness from several of the ingredients we will definitely be making this for friends as soon as we can.

Spiced Pear

1 part vodka
¾ part amaretto
1 part pear wine
½ part ginger brandy
1/8 part agave syrup
1/8 part molasses
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of cloves
Dash of allspice

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake well and pour in a rocks/lowball glass. This drink has a lot of complexity with the rich flavors and tastes like spiced pears common around Christmas in New England. It isn’t a drink I would go to regularly, but that says nothing about how good it is. It might even be better slightly warmed in the middle of a cold and dark winter.

Ginger Sazerac

2 parts bourbon
1 part ginger syrup
4 drips Angostura bitters

Combine ingredients in a rocks/lowball glass over ice and give it a gentle stir. I saved a spin on a classic, and one of my favorite styles of drink, for last. The ginger flavor comes through well and meets up with the smoky, woody flavors in the bourbon to create a rustic feel. I could sip on these for hours!!

One thing I have yet to experiment with is ginger liqueur, like Domaine de Canton, and the drinks above make me think I might be missing a versatile bottle in my bar. Something for next time.

Cheers!

--Jason

A Mid-Summer Night’s Cocktails

I’m going to be logging in for the Foodie Night In #fni tomorrow on the subject of cocktails. No reader of mine is surprised by this so let’s just get going.

The Spice Sherpa @spicesherpa tweeted about Ancient Fire at a #fni two weeks back. The comments were a great honor and the people seem like a lot of fun.

I looked into the guests and sponsors for August 9th and came across Crispin Ciders located in Minneapolis, MN, makers of super-premium hard ciders. Bingo! I know this corner of the fermented beverage world both as a drinker and a maker. I checked their web site and found a richly supplied section on mixology using their products. This is not something I have done much with my homemade, and for no specific reason at all. We have made punch from it and the flavored version are more like cocktails than the plain varieties.

Tonight I decided I would make some apple and hard cider inspired drinks using my own cider from 2009 and other items in my bar. The new addition to the bar was a bottle of Lairds Applejack. I don’t know how many times I have come across it in recipes and couldn’t imagine it. Having never had it the descriptions didn’t do it any benefits. Apple flavored bourbon is the best description, but I had to try it to believe it. I made two drinks using it and a medium-dry cider made in my hard cider and yeast selection project last year. All of my cider is still, meaning no bubbles making them shakable without explosions. Good for bartending.

Ancient Fire Grilled Apple

1 oz Laird’s Applejack

1 oz Jim Beam White Label Bourbon

2 oz Ancient Fire 2009 Hard Cider #3

¼ oz ginger syrup

1 orange wedge

Mix in a shaker and pour over orange wedge into a cold martini glass.

This drink means business. It is strong, full flavored, medium-sweet with plenty of apple. The citrus and ginger impart a zip that complements the hotness of the liquors in that “hot off the grill” sensation.

Ancient Fire Smashed Apple

I made a tequila-sage smash from Imbibe magazine last month. I twisted it up a bit here to create a drink you might easily experience a lights out from!!

4 oz Ancient Fire 2009 Hard Cider #3
1 oz Hornitas reposado tequila
½ oz Laird’s Applejack
½ oz honey syrup
1 large lemon wedge
4 sage leaves (from out back!!!)

Smash sage leaves in palms of hands. Muddle with lemon in the bottom of a cold shaker. Add ice and all remaining ingredients. Shake well and pour into a tall glass.

This drink was my favorite of the two, basically an apple –sage lemonade with some tequila and whiskey in it. Summer, anyone?

Weekend Bonus!!!!

I made a white sangria yesterday using a recipe I first crafted last month. It came out excellent again so that means it is finally worth sharing. I’ll tell you that you shouldn’t doubt the power of this stuff.

Ancient Fire Tropical White Sangria

2 canisters frozen Welch’s Passion Fruit juice mix
3 bottles of medium-dry white wine (I used Pear (2), Peach, G/R blend)
6 oz ginger infused simple syrup
4 oz VS brandy
1 empty canister (above) water
1 orange
1 lemon

Mix well, add sliced fruit. Allow to chill and mix in fridge. Makes 1 gallon

I can’t wait to swap notes on cocktails, entertaining, snack foods and fun parties with the crew online for the Foodie Night In tomorrow night. Check our Twitter feed for some updates and comments.

Cheers!

Jason