The Short Buzz: A Sparkling New Year

Posted by R.K. Gella

Say Champagne, think celebration.  The two have become quite synonymous since Dom Perignon accidentally stumbled upon the recipe in the Abbey cellars during the 17th century (and to think the French monk initially sought to rid his wine of effervescence in which he considered a flaw.)

Four centuries later the world still prizes the tickle of bubbly.  And as the anticipation for grandest party of the year peaks, the revelers stock up on the tipple of choice for the occasion… sparkling wine.

Wait.  Sparkling wine?  Don’t you mean…

The reason for my refrain of using the term Champagne comes two fold:

1.    To present an accurate statement.
2.    To avoid any lawsuit the CIVC (Comité Interprofessionel du Vin de Champagne) may charge me for misrepresentation.

I jest on my second reason, but only slightly.  The CIVC has gone through tremendous length and litigation to preserve the integrity of their wine.  But preservation might have come at a cost.  For those unfamiliar with Champagne, choosing between Champagne (wines strictly from the designated region that comply with AOC classifications) and other sparkling wines (wines from a variety of regions that utilize different types of methods) may come down simply to the price tag.

In June the New York Times reported that there was a bright outlook for Champagne, with emerging economies growing a taste for the wine, however, financial turbulence has halted those expectations as demands for luxury products have dropped dramatically.

The Financial Times reports that Champagne sales have declined by 5% in the US over the course of nine months, leaving producers with the hope that sales increase during holidays.

Unfortunately, their hopes might be thwarted by Champagne alternatives.

In the US, Cava (a Spanish sparkling wine of Macabeo, Parellada, Xarel·lo an Chardonnay created in the same method as Champagne) has taken over sparkling wine sales in attribute to its quality and price point.  Cava, produced throughout eastern Spain (though primarily in the Penedes region), is often a fraction of the price of Champagne making it a more desirable buy.

And for those who are looking to drink immediately, sparkling wine is seldom left to age, benefiting frugal purchases, which comes as a contrary to the usual outline of purchasing still wines.

Other sparklers that can be equally as enjoyable and economical include sparkling Prosecco or Asti wines (Italian), German Sekt, and California sparkling wines (many investments come from French houses).

If you must stay in France, remember there are several regions outside Champagne that make quality sparklers without the hefty price tags.  Vouvray, located in the Loire Valley, crafts quite drinkable wines from Chenin blanc, while Blanquette de Limoux from Languedoc in southwestern France, applies noble craftsmanship using Mauzac, Chenin blanc and Chardonnay.

This is in no way to dissuade you from a vintage Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame or Perrier-Joet Fleur de Champagne – especially if someone else is pouring it – these remain remarkable wines, yet what is truly more remarkable, and completely possible to find, is a wine in which quality rationally aligns to price.

The Short Buzz: Le Beaujolais Nouveau est Arrivé!

Posted by R.K. Gella

Wading in fantastic burgundy tinted spas under colossal bottles of Beaujolais, the celebration was in style of which only Japanese wine buffs could pull off, as they inaugurated the coming of Beaujolais Nouveau.

A young and vibrant wine, it’s France’s early gift to the world and the first wine released from this year’s harvest.

While the rest of the world plays catch up with Japan – who had the advantage of beginning the new day – it wouldn’t be curious to find wine drinkers purple toothed by lunchtime.

In their defense, the wine meant is to be drunk immediately, as most of this vintage will begin to decline after Christmas.

Produced from Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc, known otherwise as Gamay, in the region of Beaujolais, the wine is zesty and youthful, with spiked fruitiness benefiting from carbonic maceration.

Released every third Thursday of November, the wine has gained a following around the world, particularly in France where festivities will occupy the streets.  In the US the wine is purchased at bargain prices ($9-$12) and has become somewhat of a Thanksgiving tradition.

Although the wine has its detractors and flaws, over the next couple of months an estimated 65 million bottles will be consumed.  A good percentage of that will occur today.  (I’ve begun my share.)

However, with a steady loss in profits since 2004, and the culmination of a bad harvest – the worst since 1975 – and a hard hit economy, many winemakers are validated in their apprehensions.

“Despite low yields due to bad weather this year, we didn’t change the Beaujolais Nouveau’s price much because we know it’s hard for our customers in times of crisis,” said Nicolas Pasqua, manager of Ma Bourgogne, a Paris restaurant specializing in Beaujolais and Bourgogne wine, near the Champs-Elysees.

But for today at least, most of the worry will be left for tomorrow as the world raises their glasses and celebrates because “Le Beaujolais nouveau est arrivé!”

The Short Buzz: Drinking the Essence of Douro Valley

Posted by R.K. Gella

The last day of the NYC Wine and Food Festival finished with a spectacular arrangement of seminars hosted by notable beverage writers, educators and producers. 

On Sunday afternoon at Del Posto, George Sandeman – representing the seventh generation of the legendary House of Sandeman – talked about the tradition of tawny port and its future.

Trying through the ports in ten-year increments, one captured baked cherry and vibrant peach in a young 10 year and ended with hazelnut, cedar, leather and vanilla in a mature 40 year.

For many, Port evokes thoughts of an old boys club, pontificating aloud after dinner centered on topics of the economy and politics through a rich haze of cigar smoke.   Recently, a more sensual image has been fostered, aligning port with romance, chocolate and seduction.

Granted, a versatile marketing team is pertinent, but also acknowledge the pliability of the product.

Port wine or Vinho do Porto or Porto, is a fortified Portuguese wine that comes from the specific area known as the Douro Valley.  Any port style wine not from the designated Douro Valley cannot officially be labeled as a port.

The character of Douro wines is influence largely by the river that cuts through the hillsides.  Because of the sloping hillsides on which the vineyards rest all the fruit must be harvested by hand. 

The five key grapes used in production are Tinta Barroca, Tinta Cao, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Francesca and Touriga Nacional, although there are over a hundred varieties that can be utilized.

During fermentation, a carefully observed process, distilled grape spirits  (brandy) is added to kill the yeast therefore ceasing fermentation.  This technique not only raises the alcoholic content of the wine, but also results in a presence of residual sugar, which adds sweetness to the wine.

Of the various styles of port the most popular are the bottle aged ruby ports and the barrel aged tawny ports. 

With rich red tones and luscious berry fruit, ruby ports are claimed to be better suited for Portuguese palates, while tawny ports, with baked fruit and cooking spice flavors, are overwhelmingly more appreciated by English palates.

And as mixologists have rediscovered their roots, port cocktails have become trendy once again.  The earliest cocktails were not made with vodka or its flavored counterparts instead bartenders used a mixture of aperitifs, digestifs, bourbons, gins and ports.

Death and Co. here in NYC is known for classic flavored cocktails.  Here is one of their port cocktail.

The Baltasar and Blimunda

0.5 oz. Sandeman 20 Years Old Tawny Port

2 oz. Beefeater Gin

0.5 oz. bitters

0.5 oz. vermouth (Punt e Mes recommended)

Stir. Serve up and garnish with flamed orange twist.

The Short Buzz: A Cocktail to Defy Space and Time

It is believed by a growing number of mixologists that a cocktail garnish should attribute more function than aesthetic filler.  In Sydney, Australia, the philosophy is being applied in a sprits of beach essence sprayed over the faces of blindfolded consumers strapped to an I-Pod.

Grant Collins’ aforementioned design is one of four sensory cocktails debuting at Zeta, a trendy nightspot in downtown Sydney.  The cocktail is actually a colada of rum, pineapple and coconut, but it’s the semi private area, the blindfold, and shots of Hawaiian Tropic sun tan oil that complete the drinks experience.

Mr. Collins states he was influenced by Heston Blumenthal, the chef of Fat Duck, whose menu graced a seafood dish paired with the ambience of ocean sounds.  Mr. Collins asserts the process can “heighten the link between the drink and the experience. Listening to the music makes your mind drift, and the blindfold heightens your sense of smell.”

Along with beach inspired meditations, the Zeta drink menu also totes a salty sea breeze cocktail paired with aquatic renditions and a martini designed to whisk one away to New York City circa 1950 at tunes of the Rat Pack.

But the complete experience is not without consumer participation, “You have to almost will yourself to be transported,” Mr. Collins advised. “For us, it’s about creating the right environment for that to happen.”

For those not dissuaded to work for metaphysical travel here is Zeta’s Tiki Sensory Colada (blindfold and sun tanner not included):

Tiki Sensory Colada

1.5 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve rum

.3 oz. coconut liqueur

2 oz. unsweetened coconut milk

3 oz. pineapple juice

.3 oz. ounce simple syrup

Combine the ingredients in a shaker with ice.  Shake vigorously, and then pour into a hollow pineapple or a tall glass.  Serve with a straw.

The Short Buzz is a regular post highlighting spirits.  

The Short Buzz: The King of N’Awlins

There are few cities in the world with an official drink, but as Lu Brown, bar chef of The Swizzle Stick Bar in New Orleans so appropriately stated to NPR last month, ”If ever there was a city that deserved an official drink, it was New Orleans.” 

She made the elated comment following the Louisiana House of Representatives decision – a vote of 62-33 – to appoint the sazerac New Orleans’ official cocktail.

But as Eric Asimov asks why in today’s The Pour (he would have preferred the more palatable Ramos gin fizz), I applaud the Louisiana legislature for such a bold and historical statement.

The sazerac, with birthrights in the bayou, a combination of Rye whiskey, bitters, citrus and absinthe, it may be less accessible than the Ramos gin fizz or a hurricane cocktail, but its nuanced qualities hark back to the flavors of pre-civil war New Orleans, a time of generational family remedies and root tonics.

When Antoine Peychaud poured first of the mixture in his apothecary in 1850, there could be little foresight to his contribution in the evolution of mixology.  Today, a new generation of bartenders and mixologists are learning the history with vigilance to the impact of this deceivingly simple cocktail.

And being deceptively easy, with only but a few ingredients, a sazerac, if attempted by even the slightest inept bartender, can result in a concoction abrasive enough to turn Blanche DuBois from the bottle.  Performed earnestly, the character is sweet, earthy and floral, with pleasant medicinal notes.

Albeit, bearing precise measurement and technique, sazeracs are still sipping drinks, even for the most experienced southern gentleman.  As David Woondrich, author of “Imbibe!” quipped in The Pour, comparing the sazerac to the Ramos gin fizz:

“I love a sazerac.  It’s poetry in a glass, though so’s a gin fizz. I can’t have too many of those because of all the cream and the eggs.  Of course, I can’t have too many sazeracs either, because I’ll fall down.”

This is the recipe bar chef Lu Brown uses at The Swizzle Stick Bar in New Orleans.  This is perhaps the best recipe and technique I’ve seen.  However, I prefer to use real absinthe – it being attainable now – in place of Herbsaint.  I recommend St. George Absinthe, which is distilled in California.

Sazerac:

Ingredients:

1 tbsp of Herbsaint

1.5 oz Rye Whiskey, preferably Old Overholt or Sazerac rye

0.5 tsp simple syrup

4-5 dashes of Peychaud bitters

2 dashes of Angostura bitters

1 twist of lemon, no pith

Instructions:

Coat or wash glass with Herbsaint by swirling.  Discard the excess Herbsaint. Fill the glass with ice to chill.

Pour the rye, simple syrup and Peychaud’s and Angostura bitters into a shaker with ice. Cover and shake vigorously.

Discard the ice from the glass and strain the shaker mixture. Rub the rim of the glass with the lemon twist, add to the drink and serve immediately.

 

The Short Buzz is a regular post highlighting spirits. 

The Short Buzz: Blowing the Dust Off Sloe Gin

When I mentioned a piece on sloe gin that appeared in the NY Times a few weeks back, a sommelier friend of mine scoffed, proclaiming it must having been a very sloe news day.  The pun aside, the retort was expected.  The notion of a return to the gin-based liqueur does seem rather dubious, though there are a few less skeptical bartenders who are willing to experiment. 

An alias to the Alabama Slammer and muse to the Sloe Gin Fizz; could the ruby tinted liqueur that lost its American popularity some forty years ago find new life in the US?  Well, it would be in the high hopes Plymouth Sloe Gin producers, whose product hit the market earlier this month.  The makers of Plymouth Gin, a recognizably superior gin product in its own right, have reproduced an 1883 recipe that they boast will offer artisanal quality.

Unfortunately, the reputation of sloe gin has become entangled with the memories of overly saccharine liqueurs and lackluster cocktails.  Plymouth is fervent on capitalizing on shifting attitudes and has exported 1,000 cases to the United States.

“It’s almost like a serious liqueur,” told a mixologist to the NY Times, who happens to be revitalizing sloe gin onto his cocktail menu.  “Almost like a serious liqueur,” is not necessarily confidence building, but as trends come and go, sloe gin has an outside chance.

Traditionally macerated with sloe berries, clove and cinnamon, the recipes vary, as it is sometimes referred to Schlehen Wine or SOS wine depending on the English community.  There is a German sloe gin, called Schlehenfeuer, which tends to be higher in alcohol content (76 proof) than its English counterpart (usually around 40-60 proof), and sometimes is made with rum or vodka.  Mast-Jägermeister AG produces the most commercially successful brand of Schlelenfeuer.

In Spain, particularly in the Basque region, there is Patxaran, which is not distributed in the US.  Like sloe gin, the recipes vary, although the maceration of sloe berries takes place in a clear anisette opposed to a gin or vodka base.

The flavor of Patxaran tends to be fruity with perfumed spice notes unlike the sweet, bitter tang of sloe gin.

Sloe Gin in bars at the University of Alabama resulted in this drink:

Alabama Slammer

0.5 oz amaretto almond liqueur

0.5 oz Southern Comfort liqueur

0.5 oz sloe gin

0.25 oz orange juice

0.25 oz lemon juice

0.25 oz simple syrup

Combine ingredients and ice into a shaker.  Shake vigorously and strain into a highball glass over ice.

The Short Buzz is a regular post highlighting spirits.  

Image is courtesy of stock.xchng.com

The Short Buzz: A Real Gin Fizz

Posted by R.K. Gella

Summer is upon us, and moods are prompted for brightly sapid libations, clean and cool, able to assuage under the rising temperatures.  Already with a wide array of hedonistic temptations to choose from this season, a new method is being infused to classic recipes to offer a bit of bubbly character.

Flat drinks are being gassed up.  I’m not speaking in terms of splashes of soda water or tonick-ing up a highball of gin, rather, injecting the effervescent goodness right into the spirit itself.

Places like David Chang’s Momofuku (Ko, Saam, and Noodle Bar) have been infusing bubbles into spirits for quite some time, like unfiltered Sake and now Banyuls, a French dessert wine.

As Dave Arnold, the director of Culinary Technology at the French Culinary Institute, told the NY Times yesterday:

“Take a gin and tonic, which seems like it should be a really great drink but rarely is… There’s usually not enough gin flavor and not enough bubbles.”

That’s what carbonating the spirit saves you from, flavor-loss and dilution.

Lower East Side darling, and home of internationally recognized gastro-chemist chef, Wylie Defresne, WD~50, has been experimenting with carbonation for the past year.  Two successes have come to fruition in the Cabo San Lucas, a combination of vodka, hibiscus tea and yuzu juice; and the Son of a Preacher Man, rye whisky, ginger liqueur and lemon juice.  Each cocktail is pre-made then charged with carbon dioxide before serving.

A carbon dioxide charger/home soda maker can be found online, but for those who would rather just purchase the pre-charged spirit, it might be difficult.

As of right now, O2 Vodka, which holds the patent on its sparkling pure grain distillation, is the worlds first and only effervescent spirit sold within US borders.

 

The Short Buzz is a regular post highlighting spirits.   

The Short Buzz: The Organic Martini

The wine shop on my block has a corner rack specifically devoted to organically grown bottles.  Next door to my favorite bar to grab a salted Tecate or Micholada, a wine bar has opened, dealing exclusively in organic wines.  The term organic wine possesses a tone that in a way sounds fittingly appropriate, especially when paired with a menu of locally shopped ingredients prepared by an eco-conscious chefs.

But how about an organic martini?  Or better yet an organic gin-fizz?  Appealing?  Perhaps.  Niche?  Yes.  Healthy?  Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Organic wines are still finding their way under the heavy scrutiny of connoisseurs.   So how about organic vodkas, gins and other hard spirits?

Last week the Wall Street Journal highlighted a few of these spirits on their constructs attempted to facilitate marketability within a popular trend.  

As many in the industry see it, organic, is a too umbrella term.  Consumers are often led to believe organic is synonymous with healthy, which is not the case. The USDA defines organic wine, as “a wine made from organically grown grapes and without any added sulfites.”  Sulfites are a natural occurring phenomenon in wine, so what exactly does “without any added sulfites” mean?  It means just that. 

Vintners add extra sulfites to their wine in order to stabilize the wine.  If a wine contains sulfites, it can no longer be labeled organic, but may be labeled, “made with organic grapes.”

However, there is no proof to being any healthier than non-organic wines.  What the term organic does focus on is the process of which the grapes are harvested.  These grapes are grown without chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides.

Melkon Khosrovian, co-founder of distiller Modern Spirits, told WSJ, “It’s about sustainable farming,” in advocacy for organic practices as opposed to traditional methods that are deemed harmful to farmers.  “We would like to support farmers to move away from those processes.”

So back to the organic martini, which won’t guarantee the benefit milder hangovers or more socially acceptable drunkenness, but may save a piece of green-mind.

Looking at the organic spirits WSJ covered and a few others, retail prices are comparable to non-organic distillations.   

Organics:

Square One Organic Vodka, 31.99 for 750ml

Distilled from organically grown rye, it is recognized as the first certified organic rye vodka.

Juniper Green Organic London Dry Gin, 24.99 for 750ml

Produced with organic juniper, grain, and angelica root.

Rain Vodka, 17.99 for one-liter

Produced from organic corn, and with sleek marketing is geared to the feminine consumer.

 

Non-Organics:

Chopin Vodka, 29.99 for 750ml

Polish crafted vodka distilled from organic potatoes, although not marketed as organic.

Plymouth Gin, 17.99 for 750ml

A growingly popular gin, noted for its sweeter notes and stronger character, it has been produced in Plymouth, England since 1793. 

The Short Buzz will be a regular post here at the Daily Blender highlighting spirits.  

The Short Buzz: The Spirit of Ipanema

As the warming season brings cravings for margaritas, sangrias and mojitos, there is one cocktail that is finding greater appreciation with American imbibers—the caipirinhia.

Often misunderstood, this Brazilian concoction tends to be grouped with and outplayed by the heavily promoted mojito.  Yet the comparison is misguided, considering the most similar items between the drinks are the muddle of lime and sugar, the caipirinhia offers quite a different scale of flavors, predominantly identified by the use of cachaca.  

Cachaca (ka-SHA-sa), produced in Brazil since about 1530, is distilled from sugarcane juice and has only begun to experience a rise in its export potential.  Last year 647,000 liters were imported into the United States compared to the fewer than 100,000 shipped in 1998. 

Earlier this month the New York Times shed some light onto the growing Brazilian industry that has confidently pressed across its borders.  Antonio Rocha, owner of Rochinha brand cachaca, produces aged cachaca that is a “smoother, sippable version” lending itself to American tastes.

“Until 1990, cachaca didn’t have any value,” Mr. Rocha told the Times, “The ones that sold were the ones that advertised; the quality ones didn’t advertise.  It was only by word of mouth.”

Brazil produces 1.3 billion liters of its national “aguardente” (fire water) annually and ships about 1 percent.  The unique and often acquired flavors of mass produced cachaca (earthy and musky, with adherent sugar cane qualities) has slowly become a trend outside of Latin America, notably in Germany and the U.S., and has given way to the higher end productions of cachaca with nuanced qualities contributed to aging.

 

Popular mass-produced brands:

Pitu, from Pernambuco, is the most recognized brand of cachaca.

Cachaca 51, boasts itself as the bestselling brand in Brazil, has been around since 1951.

Leblon, perhaps the best-marketed brand, was conceived in 2005.

Important: These brands of cachacas are noted for the mixing qualities and are not for sipping flavor. 

 

To avoid the margarita and mojito rut this season try a taste of Rio de Janeiro.

Caipirinha:

Ingredients: 

1.5 oz Cachaca

Lime (quartered)

0.3 oz Lime Juice

Tbsp. Raw Sugar

Splash of Soda Water

Into a rocks glass combine sugar, lime (three chunks) and lime juice then muddle.  Add ice (crushed if desired).  Pour in cachaca, seal the glass with a tin and shake.  Remove the tin and splash with soda.

The cousin to this cocktail is the Caprioska, done with vodka in place of cachaca.

The Short Buzz is a regular post here at the Daily Blender highlighting spirits.   

The Short Buzz: A Cognac Resurgence on the Horizon?

In attempts to broaden its consumer base—the way rum did several years ago with the Mojito trend—the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac, or BNIC, flew in bartenders from both sides of the Atlantic earlier this year to piece together a cocktail.

The mad-scientists emerged with a ginger and lemon based concoction: The Summit. 

The trade group hopes the drink can emulate the success V&S Vin & Sprit AB had with the Cosmopolitan when launching Absolut Citron twenty years ago.  Time will only tell of it’s a success or a dud.  As Dale De Groff, president of the Museum of the American Cocktail, put it to the Wall Street Journal last month, “Brand promotional pamphlets and in-house recipe books are cemeteries of forgotten drinks.”

But that is not to disparage the prestigious brandy, which has found equal popularity within Brooks Brothers circles as Adidas.  Since the early 90’s Cognac has become iconic within the hip-hop culture, contrasting the older, stodgier image usually associated with the spirit. 

Nevertheless, there is a hope that The Summit will warrant new drinkers and offer accessibility to patrons who usually dismiss the particular brandy.

Notes on Cognac:

- Named after the town Cognac in France.

- Only produced in the designated region.

- It is twice distilled in copper pot stills and aged the minimum of two years in French oak.

- Distilled primarily from Ugni Blanc, which it must contain 90%.

- The Sidecar, a brandy cocktail that often calls for Cognac, made its introduction in the early 1920s.  

The Short Buzz is a regular post here at the Daily Blender highlighting spirits.