[Mixed Log] Homemade Irish Cream

Lisa pointed me to a recipe for homemade Irish cream awhile back, probably in the hopes that I would make some for her. Her gambit paid off, as I've made it for several parties since then, to much acclaim and inebriation.

I made a few tweaks to the original recipe. Instant coffee is anathema to my religion.

Sean's Homemade Irish Cream

Ingredients

• 1.25 cup heavy whipping cream
• 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 2 cups Irish whiskey (Bushmills)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 tsp cocoa powder
• (Optional) 1.5 oz fresh brewed coffee/espresso
• 1 pinch salt

Preparation

1. Blend cream, sweetened condensed milk, extracts, cocoa, and salt until mixed.
2. Add whiskey in small batches, mixing between.
3. Chill and enjoy! Lasts for a month or so refrigerated.

Notes

• Yields about 1L.
• You can use light instead of heavy whipping cream.
• Vanilla/almond can be adjusted to taste.
• A pinch of salt helps cut down the sweetness.
• Around 18% alcohol by volume (36 proof).

[Wine Log] Marshal's 2006 Barbera

Wine: Marshal's Winery - Tunnel Vision Red Barbera
Year: 2006
Region: Washington State
Alcohol: 13%

Recently married RJ and Hoppers drove on a cross-country climbing extravaganza, and were kind enough to return from their trip with piles of west-coast beer and wine. Among their generously-shared spoils was a bottle of 2006 Barbera, a varietal that I have tried once or twice, but rarely been impressed with.

The Tunnel Vision Red Barbera proved this grape to be quite delightful. The nose is rich and a lot like a (good) Malbec, with warm molasses notes, dark chocolate and spices. The color is extremely, extremely dark and opaque; very deep burgundy not at all leggy, and with a bit of sediment. To taste the wine is sweeter and more citrus than the nose would suggest, but still rich and filling with a long, spicy finish.

Absolutely excellent - I know I will regret not being able to get this wine in Atlanta.

[Gin Log] Bluecoat

Gin: Bluecoat American Dry Gin
Price: ~$27
Proof: 94

Trolling through my local libation liquidators, I saw a rather eye-catching display of Bluecoat, a dry gin that claimed to be of the American [0] variety. The display boasted of various liquor competition honors [1] while the bottle trumpeted its craft distillation. For $27 a 750, I was willing to give it a whirl.

Opening the bottle with my more seasoned gin drinking friend, the smell was strongly herbal, a much bolder tone than we were expecting. Taking our first few glasses neat, however, the liquor was no evergreen monster. Definitely a subtle gin and rather smooth.

Bluecoat proved to be more than adequate for gin and tonic, providing a muted but excellent partner to our diet brand-X tonic water. I was definitely surprised when I mixed it with some lemon-lime soda we had on hand: even at one-to-one, the drink was downright refreshing. From here to inebriation mixed with only a little bit of our home-grown, 100% genuine all-natural artificial corn syrup, lime flavoring, fizzy watter and a downright patriotic gin? Sign me up, Uncle Sam!

[0] As opposed to the London or British variety. The marketeers are quite subtle in their machinations.
[1] Liquor competition judge: best job ever or most delicious job ever? Why am I even posing this as a question?

[Mixed Log] Bartini

Once upon a time JD and Lisa went to a magical land known as Portland, Oregon. Unlike Atlanta, Georgia, Portland has an incredible tradition known as "happy hour." During this wondrous time, many many restaurants and bars have drink specials. It was at the beginning of the aforementioned witching hour that Lisa and JD stumbled across a little place called Bartini. Kind of a dumb name, but boy does it get the point across: a place where one can find many many varieties of martinis. During happy hour all of those martinis are half priced. Lisa and JD learned the true meaning of "plastered at 4 o'clock" in this fashion. On their journey, they experienced the following:

Blackberry Lemon Drop - What's it sound like? Lemon drop with muddled blackberry, yo.
HMB - muddled cucumber and basil shaken with fresh lemon and citrus vodka.
Jasmintini - jasmine essence with tuacca and vanilla bean vodka.
Spicy Affair - chili pepper vodka, Alize passion fruit, muddled lime and pear puree with "a tryst of lime." Yes, the description really said "a tryst."
Peaches and Herbs - muddled basil and mint, vodka, peach puree, lime.
Strawberry Shortcake - baily's, vanilla vodka, strawberry puree, cream. (The bartender failed his roll on this one - it came out curdled, so they gave me another).
Chocolate Kiss - baily's, vanilla vodka, creme de cacao, cream.

*Swoon* Goodbye folks, I'm hopping on a plane now - I can't recount that much deliciousness without a return trip!

[Wine Log] Mapreco Dão

Wine: Mapreco Dão
Year: 2003
Region: Portugal
Alcohol: 12.5%

Let it be known that wine is very pricey in New York City. In the little shop I found a few blocks from my hotel, this Dão was the only red wine under $10 I could find. It's a 2003, surely it can't be so horrible as that, right?

Anyway, the wine is one of the darkest I've seen - a deep dusky plum, edging more to the purple-brown end of the spectrum than the red. It is also very opaque and dark; I can't see through even a small amount.

The scent of the Dão is pleasant and rich - very much a "port" smell more than a standard red wine scent. Heavy brown sugar and caramel overtones at first, mellowing eventually into dark berries and currant.

The taste of the wine diverges hugely from the scent. The flavors in the wine are both sharp and dry, not at all heavy and sugary like the nose suggested. The most prominent flavor is a tart, lemony berry. At first I thought it was too sharp for me, but after breathing a bit it was quite drinkable.

I wouldn't seek this wine out again, but it will certainly do for an evening in the city - and being the cheapest bottle in the store.

[Wine Log] State Lane Orange Muscat

Wine: State Lane Orange Muscat
Vinyard: Goosecross Cellars
Year: 2007
Region: Mendocino
Alcohol: 8.7%

A recent Wine.Woot purchase rewarded us with four bottles of two different off-whites, one of which is the State Lane Orange Muscat. I admit that I bought this particular set just because I had no idea what an orange muscat would be like, and I was dying of curiosity.

Once this white is in a glass, I nearly think I wouldn't be able to distinguish it from a glass of water. If you stare at it really hard you can detect the slightest golden hue, but it's quite clear overall.

I had trouble categorizing the scents in the orange muscat at first, but once it was less chilled I had more luck. There are definite flowery notes, along with light fruit (citrus, banana, apple). There is also a vaguely spicy smell, like ground pepper - so subtle that I almost missed it, but it tickled my nose just enough for me to notice.

The flavor of this muscat is absolutely divine - I can already tell I'm going to be looking for a case. It is characterized by the muscat sweetness, but where so many wines edge towards "saccharine," the State Lane is just right. The spicy scent is definitely identifiable in the taste as well, and goes a long way towards balancing the sweetness and keeping it from becoming cloying. That spicy note takes on a sweeter note in the taste - more cinnamon spice than pepper spice. There are quite a few other bright flavors: a light honey flavor (honey suckle?), sweet lemon, and a very prevalent orange blossom and other flowers. It is wonderfully quenching to drink, and I can see it being great company on a hot summer afternoon.

Sorry, I thought I was done with this review, but I checked what the web site had to say about this wine... and I just had to gloat about how well my tasting notes lined up:

Vibrantly fruity and aromatic, it’s bursting with sweet orange blossom, honeysuckle, exotic lychee and fresh melon. An enticing sweetness accentuates the lush floral and tropical flavors, finishing with a mouthwatering kiss of citrus.

Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all decade.

[Rum Log]Gosling's Family Reserve Old Rum

Rum: Gosling's Family Reserve Old Rum
Bottle Number: A23/07
Price: $70
Region: Bermuda
Proof: 80

A certain someone at my New Year's party heard me espousing the amazingness of Zaya, and as he had been putting off buying my Christmas present until inspiration struck, he seized upon my apparent new Rumly Passion to pick up another bottle of fancy sipping rum for me.

Thus I came into posession of the Gosling Family Reserve, which loudly and proudly broadcasts that it is, indeed, an Old Rum. The bottle comes in a large wooden box with Old Rum stamped clearly on the side, and a metal ring aroung the bottle espouses the old-i-tude yet again. The bottle itself is hefty and matte black, with a gorgeous shiny (albeit polymer) wax poured over the top to steal the deal. The understated label is finished with a hand written bottle number - something I'd surely consider a good sign if the Pyrat hadn't just scammed me with a a similar setup.

When poured into a glass, the Gosling is a rich, dark amber - an intense color that looks as though a lighter colored rum has been super-saturated with brown sugar or infused with syrup.

The nose is primarily brown sugar, with a hint of something softer - my first impression was of flowers, but I think powdered sugar is a better descriptor after a second smell. The scent was very sharp with a final hint of citrus - lemony.

Neat, the flavor of the rum was smooth with a strong powdered sugar theme that matured into something like sweet cream. A little tangy around the edges. The finish was dry and lingering with a subtle caramel aftertaste - very delayed. There was just enough sting to keep you paying attention - more of a kick than the Zaya, but less than a strong scotch.

With ice, the tangy lemony flavor I mentioned above came out more clearly, and the rum mellowed quite a lot. The aftertaste shifted away from caramel and more to straight cream - very soft on the tongue. Once the ice melted I'd defnitely classify the flavor as "malty."

All in all, I'm very impressed with the Gosling - the whole experience was a bit like drinking a sweet scotch, much more enjoyable than the saccharine experience of the Pyrat Rum I reviewed last time. Definitely a must try - and yet another inevitable step down the path of giving me more expensive liquors to obsess over.

[Rum Log] Pyrat Rum XO Reserve

Rum: Pyrat Rum XO Reserve
Age: 15 year blend
Price: $30
Region: Caribbean rums, bottled in British West Indies
Proof: 80

Apparently making good (LOT) tequila wasn't good enough for Patrón - they decided they needed to make high-end rum as well! As it turns out they also felt the need to put said rum in really cool boxes that look like books, and thus we couldn't resist picking up some to try out - if only for the cool box and the novelty of being able to hide our alcohol in the library.

The Pyrat (yes, pronounced pirate) rum is a blend of Caribbean rums, up to 15 years in age. Getting into the bottle was both fun and challenging - first we had to untie a festive orange ribbon, then remove a plastic seal, then pull off the paper seal (while noticing the official hand-written bottling number). After that we had to examine the lovely medallion of Hoti (the Zen patron saint and protector of fortune tellers and bar tenders), and resolve that our next addition to the home network will now have a name. Finally we had to break out the pliers to get the gods-damned cork out. The previous steps were fun though!

The color is a light butterscotch (described as toasted apricot on the bottle). It swirls nicely with an ice cube without getting cloudy. My first impression of the smell was the lovely nose of rubbing alcohol; luckily this faded with a bit of air, so I was less turned off. Once the unpleasant scent faded, a more flowery scent was revealed. And I do mean flowery - we're not talking red wine "flowers" we're talking, like gardenia flowery. There are also hints of brown sugar, vanilla, and cloves.

The taste of the rum is a lot like the smell. Predominantly it tastes of vanilla-coated candy flowers with quite a big kick of lemon. There's also a hint of smooth, cool honey. The flavour improves vastly with some ice to mellow it out, and it has a very soft, wet feeling in the mouth with absolutely no sting or burn. It's very easy drinking, and has little aftertaste other than "cool and refreshed."

Tasting Pyrat provided a lot of review fodder, but I don't think we'll be buying another bottle. We have the cool box now, and plenty of other more subtle liquors to drink.

[Scotch Log] Glenlivet Nadurra Single Malt

Scotch: Glenlivet 16 Year - Nadurra
Region: Speyside
Malt: Single Malt [Cask Strength]
Price: ~$60
Proof: 112.4

This is my first cask strength, and it's been a very interesting experiencing tasting it. The flavors are much deeper and more complex, I can definitely see why proper scotch drinkers are so fond of cask strength malts. I first tasted it neat, which was good and delicious. I then tried it with a touch of bottled water, which totally ruined the glass. I would highly recommend avoiding ice or water with this scotch. It becomes cloudy, which is to be expected since it is unfiltered, but the taste drastically changed and not for the better. The notes below are for a neat.

Color: Very pale straw coloring, clear and brilliant
Nose: Oaken, and fruity. A bit of pine.
Flavor: Very oaky, with a bit of other woods. Not much peat or smoke, but not terribly sweet either. It's very smooth after the first couple sips, once your body gets used to drinking a fairly high proof liquor.

*looks up a professional's opinion*
Well, I don't know that I've ever been so far off the mark in my tastings! I tasted mostly wood, and hated it with water. This guy and I weren't even tasting on the same planet I don't think!

Without water: Intense, tickling. Fresh and clean. Resolutely fruity. A full basket of ripe fruit, mostly exotic. William pears, baby bananas, pineapple, coconut, a touch of passion fruit. Lemon pulp. Green apple. Gives a feeling of appetizing freshness enhanced by an aniseed fringe. Lingers on that fruity mood for ever. Creamy note of praline. In the back, some herbal and spicy notes. Green tea, coriander seeds.

With water: The nose becomes softer and more biscuity. Cereal notes come through with buttery aromas. Lemon curd. Freshly squeezed tangerine. A floral touch of gorse.

Palate:

Without water: Crisp, appetizing. So mouth-coating, with an oily feel immediately followed by a fizzy sensation on the tongue. Lavishly challenging for the taste buds but alcohol is perfectly tamed and never burning. Custardy. Poached peaches in vanilla syrup. White chocolate. Aniseed lollipop. Candied ginger.

With water: Gets more chewy. And even more refreshing on sweet malty and minty flavors. Thirst-quenting.

[Mixed Log] Lychee Vodka Martini

After having one of these at a local Indian restaurant, I investigated how to make one myself. Unfortunately, I was daunted by the total lack of lychees or their syrup at ordinary grocery stores. My compatriot, however, proved my stupidity in the matter by locating canned lychees at our World-Famous (tm) Dekalb Farmer's Market. Maybe they'll get proper fresh ones when they're in season.

Anyway, my mad science mixological experiment turned out to be rousing, sousing success, so I present my recipe to you, Dear Internet Reader. Though not strictly speaking a "traditional" gin martini, I figure I can get away with calling it such since I actually use vermouth.

Remember, enjoy responsibly: always drink while wearing a condom.

Lychee Vodka Martini

3 parts vodka
1 part dry vermouth
1 part peach schnapps [0]
3 parts lychee syrup (recipe follows)
1-2 lychee fruit

Mix over ice in martini shaker. Shake until mixed and cooled. Serve in a martini glass with lychee fruit as garnish.

[0] Many other kinds of schnapps probably work, too. Triple sec could also work well. Go forth and experiment!

Lychee Syrup

0.5 cups water
0.5 cups sugar
8 canned lychee fruit
0.5 cup syrup, reserved from canned lychees
1 teaspoon lemon or lime juice

Combine sugar, lemon/lime juice, and water in a small saucepan and heat until boiling. Continue boiling for approximately 2 minutes. Set in refrigerator to cool.

Once the simple syrup is cool, mix in blender with reserved canned lychee syrup and the lychee fruit. Blend until smooth.

To remove most of the lychee pulp, use a fine strainer. Refrigerate before use. May be stored for up to two weeks in the fridge.

[Wine Log] Terra Barossa Cuvée

Wine: Terra Barossa Cuvée
Price: $12.79
Vintage: 2006
Region: Australia

This wine is bright red, somewhere between ruby and magenta. It has a slightly toasty nose, with a strong blackberry note and maybe a bit of citrus - all in all a very subtle scent, rather than anything too glaring.

On tasting, we were caught off guard by how sweet the flavor was - without any sharp edges, tartness, or dryness. Lots of red fruity taste, and something that brings to mind sugared cranberries.

I'd like to point out that the web site for this Cuvée describes the taste as "medium to full bodied palate showing mouthfilling rich Satsuma plums, blackberry and liquorice," while the back of the bottle claims "full, rich, blackberry fruit characters and creamy oak." Apparently they couldn't make up their minds, either.

Overall: quite tasty and drinkable, but a little too dull. In the end it goes down nonchalantly, and isn't particularly remarkable to drink. We probably won't seek out another bottle - while good enough, we could buy any number of more interesting or less expensive wines.

[Wine Log] Medieval Rioja 2005

Wine: Medieval Rioja
Price: $11
Vintage: 2005
Region: Spain

This Rioja is a very dark burgundy, leaning more towards the brown-burgundy end of the spectrum than the plum or purple end. The Vintage Wine's website tells me that it's made from 80% Tempranillo, 15% Mazuelo, 5% Graciano grapes. It has a very sweet and fruity bouquet, with hints of cherry and apricot - it smells very wet and juicy.

The flavour of the wine itself is quite subtle, starting out almost too bland (the nice scent of the wine saves it from being boring, luckily), but finishing both sweet and tart - almost lemony.

[Wine Log] Tin Roof Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

Wine: Tin Roof Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon
Price: $12
Vintage: 2005
Region: California

I'm in DC for work this week, so what better way to spend this gorgeous evening than curled up in a patch of sunlight with a trashy book and a glass of wine? And, while I'm waiting for it to breathe, why not write a quick review in this poor, neglected blog?

First and foremost, I want to give props to the Tin Roof website - any wine site that gives me recipes for meals that pair well with each of their wines wins in my book. Now, on to business!

This Tin Roof Cab has a very nice dark burgundy color. The nose is one of cinnamon and spices, with a heavy dose of flowery plumb. It has a very hearty flavour and is very wet and rich - very little dryness or acidity for a Cab... though it does seem to be gaining a bit more of both of those as I let it sit. I'm getting a lot of blackberry and cherry, with something a little woody on the end. Overall it's very tasty and quite drinkable - I think it will do well to keep me company this evening.

[Wine Log] Bodegas Montebuena Rioja

Wine: Bodegas Montebuena Rioja
Price: $12
Vintage: 2004
Region: Spain

My artistic eye serves me well on this wine! I still haven't really mastered the skill of picking out more than one or so flavor from smelling or tasting wines, but I nailed the color of this one on the head, looking at it and saying "wow, this is a really rich, almost crystalline ruby color!" JD looks at the bottle's description, and sure enough, the exact words the used were "rich ruby color." Damn I'm good.

As for the nose, I was getting something peppery and something flowery, maybe roses? When tasted the flavors detected were spicy and sweet, though very sharp. Looking at a couple of professional reviews, the "pepper" I smelled is more widely described as "herbs" and the "roses" were "red fruits." I suppose that's fairly close. Oh, actually, I just found this review:

"Dark red. Spicy red berries and cherry on the nose, with hints of cracked pepper and dried rose. Crisp and dry on the palate, with spicy redcurrant and cherry flavors, light tannins and a fresh, energetic finish. An excellent value, and surprisingly elegant for this price point."
- International Wine Cellar (July/Aug 2007), 88 pts

So maybe we were more dead on in our descriptions than I expected! How pleasing!

The other common thread in all of the reviews I'm reading is that this Rioja is excellent for the price, which I can definitely get behind. I very much want to purchase this wine again, it was excellent!

[Mixed Log] Marlow's Apple Cider Martini

In addition to having fantastic food, Marlow's Tavern also has some fantastic mixed drinks. Last night, I tried the Apple Cider Martini, which is described thusly on their website:

All the goodness of a warm rum cider in a hot coffee mug but its actually cold and in a martini glass. Did we mention the cinnamon sugar rim?

Really when it comes down to it, the rim makes the drink. I haven't quite figured out what was in the drink... I'm guessing apple cider or apple cider concentrate (based upon the color), some spiced rum, and judging from the golden flakes left at the bottom, Goldschlagger. Yeah - I know, right? I never would have guessed the last if not for the tale-tell evidence of my increasing bodily worth.

Regardless, it was delicious. You should get over there and try it before they change up their menu for spring.

[Mixed Log] Spanish Coffee?

Look at me creating a new log group for mixed drinks. I'm such a rebel!

One of my favorite restaurants in Seattle is Bleu, up on Broadway. I'd link you to their site, but it appears to have expired and gotten renewed by a little ad-bot. Oops. Anyway, there are many things about Bleu that I could gush over endlessly, but in light of the topic of this blog, I'll just post some information about the Best Coffee Drink Ever.

1) Procure a large glass mug
2) Dip the rim in 151
3) Dip the rim in cinnamon and sugar
4) Caramelize. With Fire.
5) Fill this Delicious Glass with coffee, strongly brewed
6) Add Kahlua
7) Add Grand Marnier
8) Add Brandy
9) Dollop whipped cream on top

Viola! You have the most amazing alcoholic coffee drink ever brewed. I wish I could remember the name of this monster... I want to say it was some variety of Spanish coffee, but I can't quite remember. Maybe Kai can check for me next time he goes. I'll need to experiment some on the portions, but I suspect about an ounce of each of the liqueurs will do the trick - with perhaps a bit more kahlua and a bit less brandy.

Enjoy!