The Mixoloseum » absinthe

Cognac!

tiare — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:41:43 +0000

Day three of the series leads me to do two things – come up with a drink with none other than our own iStevi, hostess of “Two at the Most”, a fellow LiveJournal refugee who found her way out onto a hosted site, but also to write up my article that I promised to the Mixoloseum on cognac.

Cognac, I feel, is often a misunderstood liquor. People have an impression of it that it’s only for the rich, while that’s not true; on the other hand, when introducing people to the subtypes of brandy that are available, or even for other drinks, cognac is often easily used as an example because people are familiar with it. All cognacs are brandy; not all brandies are cognac, it depends on where they come from. (There are other requirements, too, but that’s the big one, at least, in my humble opinion.)

And where cognacs come from is the French area known as, well – Cognac.

I won’t get into Wikipedia-esque detail on VS versus VSOP versus XO, or the other different types. The important thing to remember when using cognac in drinks, in my opinion, is to remember that while cognacs vary, you can use a cognac to replace a brandy but not vice versa. Cognacs, in my experience, tend to be richer, and often sweeter – in my opinion – than other brandies from similar areas. Armagnacs might be able to replace a cognac, but really, if a drink is so specific to request a cognac you should use it.

Not that many do. You might see a “special” version of a drink using cognac that has it instead of brandy, but only a rare few use cognac as an ingredient, and there’s one in particular that I know catches more than a few eyes.

I know this because on the last, admittedly hazily remembered, night at Hummingbird to Mars I was offered one – and the bartender (I want to say it was Owen) I seem to remember was surprised that I knew what it was (and drank it anyways). If you’ve got the Regan’s The Joy of Mixology you might already know where I’m going…

Tremblement De Terre (Earthquake)
2 1/2 ounces cognac
1/4 ounce absinthe
1 lemon twist, garnish
Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add the garnish.

Now, I’ve had that drink, and it’s a killer. Not bad whatsoever, in my opinion, but oof!

My favorite cognac right now is Chalfonte VSOP. I just got word that it’s back at my favorite liquor store, Ace in DC, and that makes me very happy. It’s not expensive but it’s quote luscious in its taste. My goal is to make sure I have a bottle of two to enjoy in the snow, around a big bonfire, with family and friends next winter. It was that goal last winter but never happened.

Still, I need a drink for a blogger or mixologist for tonight, and I thought of that drink and Stevi’s blog name. Hmmm. It seems to insinuate that you can only have two of her drinks in a night, and what’s a good drink to base that off of, in addition to her love of Peruvian horses, I thought – oh. I know.

Two At The Most
1 1/2 ounces cognac (Chalfonte VSOP)
1 ounce pisco brandy (Macchu Pisco)
1/4 ounce + 1 dash absinthe (Kubler)
1/4 ounce simple syrup
1-2 dashes Peruvian bitters
Stir and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a brandy soaked cherry, which sinks to the bottom, and a lemon twist.

Yummy! But that’s quite a bit of booze there, so be warned – you won’t want to have more than two at the most!

[Third in a series of drinks named after bloggers, mixologists, and random others who'll hopefully be at Tales. The first post in the series is here.]

Member Profile: cocktailnerd.com

SeanMike — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:19:30 +0000

“Gabriel is amongst the few cocktail bloggers that led me to what a cocktail blog could be. He then was the linchpin in showing us what a cocktail blogging community should be.”

- Craig Hermann, Tiki Drinks and Indigo Firmaments

Gabriel Szaszko, creator and author of cocktailnerd.com, refers to his creation as “a child of equal parts anger, hubris, and self-regard.“ For the past two years Gabe has used his small corner of the Internet to explore the world of cocktails, to preach good drinks and good ingredients, and to needle and ridicule the saccharine and the mundane often found coming from behind the bar. During that time, this unrepentant and self-proclaimed nerd has covered topics ranging from absinthe to ginger beer, general mixology to why the appletini is evil incarnate. The resident of Tulsa, OK also managed to earn himself a monthly column in Oklahoma Magazine, covering spirits and cocktails.

The site exudes an air of snarky superiority, simultaneously taking its topics very seriously while refusing to do the same for itself. An article on cocktailnerd.com is generally full of interesting history and mixological detail, and also swimming in references to general geekdom. Monty Python, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and other hallowed geek topics appear in Gabe’s writing quite frequently, along with a sharp and somewhat venomous wit that has often been unleashed on those topics that he considers absurd, annoying, or offensive.

In regard to the light-hearted and often snarky feel to the site, Gabriel says,

The tone of cocktailnerd comes primarily from two sources: having an older and mean-spirited brother, and a deep disdain of over-wrought, precious writing about something as enjoyable, simple, and universally human as drinking. I don’t suffer fools gladly – except myself…and it has come across in my writing at times.

Of course, Gabriel didn’t start out as a cocktail nerd. As is the case with most cocktailians, Gabe’s eyes had to be opened to the wide world of cocktails. At one point, Gabe found himself drinking little other than champagne for over two years. Eventually he decided that there had to be a better, more enjoyable way to have a drink, and bought his first bartending guide: The Bartender’s Black Book. When his wife gave him a bottle of Green Chartreuse for Christmas shortly thereafter, Gabe turned to his new book to find a great recipe and was introduced to the Green Dragon cocktail – a mix of 2 oz of vodka and 1 oz of chartreuse. “I happily and proudly shook my way to horror. I knew something was wrong, and it wasn’t the chartreuse.”

His geekish curiosity piqued, Gabe set out on a quest to learn how to make quality cocktails with quality ingredients. He armed himself with a copy of Gary Regan’s Joy of Mixology and set about improving his knowledge and mixological skills.

I put myself on cocktail-making hiatus until I understood the principles and families of drinks and ingredients described in the book. And then, intrigue [with the discovery of] maraschino liqueur. I was completely fascinated by its [limited availability] and how frequently it was used in vintage cocktails. I finally acquired a bottle, made my first Aviation, and was lost. [F]inally I had a subject that all-at-once inspired, provided endless rabbit holes of exploration, and satisfied my need to collect esoteric and challenging ingredients. In other words, I could geek out on something cooler than cards for building my Buffy the Vampire Slayer collectible card game deck.

Gabriel now had a new passion in life about which he could obsess, but he wanted more. He took it upon himself to “change the world of drinking one blog post at a time.” Keyboard in-hand, Gabriel introduced the world to cocktailnerd.com, where he was free to hop from rabbit hole to rabbit hole, to create new drinks and explore classic recipes, and to provide a place that was hopefully more interesting and informative to cocktailians than blogs about “what [someone] had for breakfast, or the last pointlessly cryptic, uneven, and inconsistent episode of LOST.”

It has been two years since Gabriel drank that magic potion and plunged down the rabbit hole of Mixology. Says Gabriel of his blog’s tenure and success, “250+ bottles, 50+ cocktail books…and 15 pounds later, I blame Gary Regan. The bastard.”

The Prodigal (created by Gabriel Szaszko of cocktailnerd.com)

2 oz Carpano Antica
.5 oz Absinthe
.5 oz Cinnamon Syrup

Build in an Old Fashioned glass with ice and stir. Garnish with a lemon twist.

What’s your favorite thing about cocktailnerd.com?

___________________________________________________
Matt Robold is a rum connoisseur and writer for RumDood.com.

In Absinthe Veritas

Sylvan — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 22:29:43 +0000

With the reintroduction of absinthe to the American market, there has been a veritable torrent of articles about absinthe. They pretty much all say the same thing, invariably mentioning Van Gogh’s ear and rattling on about the mystique and history. But it’s a rare article that actually talks about what absinthe is or what it tastes like.

As far as taste goes, you either like black jelly beans or you don’t. If you are one of those people that shudder at the thought of anise flavoring, you can stop right here. Absinthe is kind of a cross between the modern anise spirits of the Mediterranean like anisette, pastis, sambuca, ouzo, arak^[1] and the more complex herbal formulas like Chartreuse and Benedictine.

While anise is a dominant flavor in absinthe, it is so much more than a black jelly bean. Above all, absinthe is a blend. Anise seed, fennel seed and wormwood flowers and leaves are the ‘holy trinity’ of absinthe flavoring ingredients. Leaving out or under representing any of these three calls in to question whether the result is still absinthe. Wormwood brings the fresh wide open aroma of sagebrush and prairie. Fennel is slightly earthier than anise and adds depth to the blend. But after these three, there is a fair amount of variety.

St George Spirits (Alameda, CA) uses meadowsweet, lemon balm, hyssop, basil, tarragon, mint, stinging nettles, and other herbs in their St George Absinthe. Trillium^[2], from Integrity Spirits (Portland, OR) branches out with eleuthero root, valerian, damiana. An inexpensive substitute for the green anise seed is star anise, which lends a somewhat sweeter black licorice candy flavor to some commercial absinthes. Some more traditional herbs are angelica, sweet flag, dittany, coriander, veronica, juniper, and nutmeg. As with other complex herbal blends like gin and vermouth, there are no limits to the expression of the blender’s art.

How It’s Made

The first step in making absinthe is to soak the botanicals in very high proof alcohol to dissolve the various flavor and volatile essences of the plant matter. Grape spirit, i.e. brandy, is the traditional base for this maceration. The predistillation product is intensely bitter and muddy to the taste. This tincture was sometimes called ’steepsinthe’ and drank by those without stills during the ban. But re-distillation is a critical step to achieving a true absinthe. Distillation separates the more volatile floral, citrus and, to a lesser degree, spicy flavor elements from the original bitter and earthy brew. It is especially important to remove absinthin, the substance that makes wormwood so bitter. Gin distillations achieve a similar separation of desirable from undesirable flavors, though with a quite different selection of botanicals.

Proper louching is the precipitation of anise oils (anethol) caused by the addition of water. These oils are completely soluble in the high proof absinthe but are forced out of solution when the alcoholic strength is reduced.

After distillation, the absinthe is clear in color and can be left that way as a blanche, but for a verte, another step is needed. Traditionally coloration is done by steeping lemon balm, petite wormwood, hyssop and/or other mild herbs in the distillate. Petite wormwood (Artemisia pontica or Roman wormwood) does not contain absinthins in any appreciable quantities and so can be used post-distillation. Since the color results from chlorophyll, it is not as stable as artificial color and can vary or break down over time. The bright peridot green of the fresh product fades to a yellow and then to brown, but there is little deterioration of flavor.

This only scratches the surface of the complex art of how a pure absinthe is traditionally made, and of course, not all absinthes are made this way. Some producers use artificial colors, flavors and other shortcuts. Sometimes the results are different enough tasting to be hard to even call absinthe. There are enough variables in the process, equipment and ingredients that it is another case where the proof is really in the glass, and my experience has been that the traditional methods are worth the extra effort and expense.

For a review of some of the current absinthes on the market, please see Absinthe Roundup Pt 1 over at Cocktail Nerd. Part one includes La Fee Parisienne, Lucid, and Apsinthion.

Footnotes

[1] http://www.foodreference.com/html/artaraketc.html