I decided to conduct two quick experiments tonight with genever and arrack, the two predecessor-liquors of gin and rum, respectively. I can report inconclusive results.
Genever and Tonic (Dutch pronunciation: yeh-NAY-vuhr; English, jin-EE-ver) was an interesting and worthwhile take on the venerable gin and tonic. Genever is sightly sweeter than your typical dry gin, but loses none of the aromatic complexity of gin, and since it's aged gently on oak, picks up a gentle woodiness that makes the drink a nice crossover for whiskey drinkers. I'll continue to enjoy my regular gin and tonics, but make one of these for those who have a self-proclaimed ambivalence for gin, and see if I can't win a few converts.
Merdeka (Indonesian for "Freedom") is my name for a Cuba Libre made with Arrack Batavia. I'm actually a little disappointed; this spirit is clearly better suited for mixing with something less assertively vanilla-y. Mixed with cola, the subtle vegetal profile of the arrack is drowned out, making the Merdeka virtually indistinguishable from a Cuba Libre made with an un-aged, white rum.
Friday, January 29, 2016
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Hockey Night in Belgiumtown
When the cat's away, the mice will play. Specifically, the mice will experiment with Malort cocktails. (To my knowledge, my wife has had one Malort drink -- her first -- and has declared if we could be rid of the stuff on her account, "we" would. Fortunately, she's not the only one who knows where Binny's is.) With apologies to the famous CBC show, I was inspired to title this 'blog post after the kid who is presently slapping the puck around on his own purpose-built rink in his parents' yard three houses down; this cocktail, however, has nothing whatsoever to do with the fastest game on ice. No, it was actually inspired by a series of Malort concoctions presently being offered by the Heritage Tavern in Madison, where our dear friends Jo and Wyl took us last weekend for some excellent conversation accompanied by neo-vintage decor, friendly staff and some truly outstanding libations. Since I'm home alone for the next few days, I decided to try my hand at developing my own recipe, and try out my new Boston shaker.
Unlike my other Malort cocktails which used it as the base liqueur, to mixed results, my intention here was to create a drink that utilized Malort in a new way -- to "spice" a drink rather than overpower it (as Malort is wont to do, of course). I wanted to create a balanced, boozy cocktail using a healthy, but not heavy-handed, portion of the infamous bäsk brännvin so good the Swedes abandoned it forever. To wit, here are my results:
Hockey Night in Belgiumtown (Not the actual name)
3 oz. gin
1 oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
0.25 oz. Benedictine
0.25 oz. Malort
2 eyedroppers-ful Bitterman's Blackstrap bitters
All ingredients shaken over ice and then strained into a chilled coupe glass
Holy cow, this is a nice cocktail. I used what is rapidly becoming my favorite gin, Tanqueray Rangpur, which has a subtle citrus character which was amplified by the use of lime juice (lime, being perhaps my favorite citrus fruit, and also the one I had available); Benedictine, which provided a touch of savory sweetness and a delectable, slippery mouthfeel; and Blackstrap bitters, which provide some sweet and spicy notes. I couldn't even help myself but to slurp the first one down -- after a couple fits and starts with the new shaker, I think I got the hang of it -- and promptly made myself a second. It's outstanding: it's balanced, but the Malort is clearly there, having a civilized discussion with the lime and the spice, all the while tempered by the ever-present cloying sweetness of Benedictine. And better yet, the addition of Malort made the cocktail into an "outdoor" gin drink that actually stands up well against a cool-palate-destroying cigar in a way that I'd never really thought gin would be able to do on its own. I feel like I've taken some kind of quantum leap into cocktail design. More experimentation will be necessary.
(Notes: I made another with Bolivar bitters. This provided a very distinct floral character that was really neither entirely necessary nor welcome, but not unpleasant. I will try others. I think three eyedroppers-ful of Blackstrap might be a good amount to try next. Minus Blackstrap, two shakes of Angostura might suffice to provide the needed complexity.)
Unlike my other Malort cocktails which used it as the base liqueur, to mixed results, my intention here was to create a drink that utilized Malort in a new way -- to "spice" a drink rather than overpower it (as Malort is wont to do, of course). I wanted to create a balanced, boozy cocktail using a healthy, but not heavy-handed, portion of the infamous bäsk brännvin so good the Swedes abandoned it forever. To wit, here are my results:
Hockey Night in Belgiumtown (Not the actual name)
3 oz. gin
1 oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
0.25 oz. Benedictine
0.25 oz. Malort
2 eyedroppers-ful Bitterman's Blackstrap bitters
All ingredients shaken over ice and then strained into a chilled coupe glass
Holy cow, this is a nice cocktail. I used what is rapidly becoming my favorite gin, Tanqueray Rangpur, which has a subtle citrus character which was amplified by the use of lime juice (lime, being perhaps my favorite citrus fruit, and also the one I had available); Benedictine, which provided a touch of savory sweetness and a delectable, slippery mouthfeel; and Blackstrap bitters, which provide some sweet and spicy notes. I couldn't even help myself but to slurp the first one down -- after a couple fits and starts with the new shaker, I think I got the hang of it -- and promptly made myself a second. It's outstanding: it's balanced, but the Malort is clearly there, having a civilized discussion with the lime and the spice, all the while tempered by the ever-present cloying sweetness of Benedictine. And better yet, the addition of Malort made the cocktail into an "outdoor" gin drink that actually stands up well against a cool-palate-destroying cigar in a way that I'd never really thought gin would be able to do on its own. I feel like I've taken some kind of quantum leap into cocktail design. More experimentation will be necessary.
(Notes: I made another with Bolivar bitters. This provided a very distinct floral character that was really neither entirely necessary nor welcome, but not unpleasant. I will try others. I think three eyedroppers-ful of Blackstrap might be a good amount to try next. Minus Blackstrap, two shakes of Angostura might suffice to provide the needed complexity.)
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