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NOW AVAILABLE! “Simple Cocktails at Home” by me. Can be purchased as a spiral bound glossy-cover booklet or a digital file. Click the link below.
INTRODUCTORY SPECIAL: order by Monday January 17 and use code “TREASURE” during checkout for 20% off your order!
This is a perfect opportunity to introduce you to the book’s companion site, too: Simple Cocktails.
In my continued exploration of the pseudo-finer-things, the time has arrived to try Sherry and Port. Luckily, my entry fee has been minor: Trader Joe’s offers Pastora Fino Pale Dry Sherry for $4.99 a bottle, and Porto Morgado Ruby Port for $6.99.
I’ve always been interested in these fortified wines, but never tried either drink, all I knew is that Sherry is a “before dinner” aperitif and Port an “after dinner” digestif, the the first should be dry and the second sweet. I then made a choice based primarily on price, but also asked my local TJ’s Wine Dude if I should pick Ruby or Tawny Port, and he said Ruby is sweeter and richer, Tawny is more mellow and subtle. After he gave me 2 Glencairn glasses
The Sherry is crisp with a quick finish. It has a more pronounced grape flavor than most wines, and after 2 sips I recognized the flavor of my least-favorite liquor: grappa (pomace brandy). We served it very cold – right out of the fridge – but initially served it with turkey cabbage rolls, and we really couldn’t taste it. I had it a few days later as an aperitif and didn’t like it. It has a trashy-grapey finish that grappa has, just a little more muted than straight grappa.
The Port got tasted on Christmas day at room temperature and it’s great. It’s rich, warm-finishing, and sweet, but it doesn’t leave sugariness on the tongue and teeth. It’s perfect as dessert, while talking after a meal, and about 3 oz seems to be just the right amount.
Both the Port and Sherry have the scent of brandy as you lift the glass to your mouth. Once the Porto Morgado is sipped, you cannot taste brandy, though, only the sweet rich frutiness of the drink. The Pastora Fino Sherry has a bit more of the lingering alcohol (grappa) taste, finishes strong and tangy.
Ultimately, I’ll buy the Port again, but may need to look into cream or sweeter Sherries to find something I like.
I do not have a wine fridge or cellar. That means I have to make-do with my Maytag refrigerator for beverage cooling needs. While there are some sites that have very specific numbers for temperature, here’s some basic advice for the lazy or otherwise ill-planned:
Reds: store out of the fridge, put in the fridge 45 minutes before serving.
Whites: store in the fridge and remove from the fridge 45 minutes before serving.
I’ve found that these basic guidelines are “good enough” for now.
As I write my first wine review, it is essential that I point out that I am a novice. I love wine, but have tried comparatively few because of the limitations of poverty on a connoisseur’s tongue. I generally drink sub-five-dollar wine. Now that I’ve said that, I do appreciate wine very much and love the flavors I’ve encountered, which means I’m not an expert, but so what?
Toasted Head Chardonnay is a $13 bottle of wine which I got on sale for $4. I had my first drink after smoking a mild cigar and before sitting down to eat ground-turkey tacos.
It has an amazingly rich flavor. “Buttery” is the top of the list in descriptive words, along with woody, rich, and smooth. I would not characterize it as sweet, but it is certainly not dry. As I ate, and afterward, the wine’s richness was eventually overpowering. I found it was quite a stomachful once I got the the end of the second glass, and while I still liked the flavor, it was too rich at that point.
My wife initially did not like the flavor at all, and though she got used to it, it was too rich to go with the meal we had. It’s a very good wine, but because of its richness, it may be difficult to pair with foods. Sipped on it’s own or with a cigar may be the best way to enjoy this wine, and I plan on chilling a bottle next time it’s warm enough to go outside for a stogie.
With Deathly Halllows coming out, and my good friend Greg Qualls (of the Beerean) having a birthday, I made him some Ogden’s Old Firewhiskey to imbibe.
You’ll discover lots of recipes online which involve a glass of whiskey and some Tabasco sauce, but that sounded a bit gross to me and I always imagined Ogden’s being cinnamon flavored.
So here’s what I developed to make a whole bottle:
200 ml of Hot Damn! Cinnamon Schnapps
300 ml of blended Scotch
slosh it a bit to mix.
Let me know variations that you come up with.
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