Top 8 of '08 -- My 8 favorite drinks of 2008

kc dyer, good friend and author extraordinaire, asked me to come up with my "Top 8 of '08" list and, of course, I immediately thought of beverages! So, without any further ado, here are my top 8 beverages of 2008.

1. Veuve Cliquot Brut Yellow Label -- Perfection bottled. This is a blend of 50 - 60 Crus (growth places) and, therefore, is non-vintage. The grapes used in this Champagne are Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay. Its consistency over time is amazing. In the flute, it is a beautiful golden color with tiny, pearl-like bubbles and the scent is divine. Dizzying, almost. Taste? Intense white fruit flavors followed with notes of toast. Yep. Toast. No, not toasted Wonder Bread. Toast as in the very best toasted homemade bread. Mmmmmm. Each sip echoes the last. My favorite Champagne/Sparkling Wine. Ever.


2. Napeequa 05 Malbec Reserve -- My husband and I enjoyed this one with our Christmas dinner (Rib Roast, Yorkshire Pudding with gravy and vegetables). The beautiful deep garnet color, rich dark red fruit scent, and the sweet, soft tannins on the finish make this a joy to sip. This is one of my favorite wineries. Check them out here. I love visiting their tasting room (it's very close to my cabin). Winemaker David Morris is frequently there and is wonderful to chat with. (Plus, he's always got Beecher's Handmade cheeses on hand, which my kids LOVE.)

3. Hot Buttered Rum -- I have to give credit for this one to my friend Kreekie. She inspired me to try her mom's homemade HBR batter and it is the BEST! Great for snowy nights, which we've had enough of... It's made with vanilla ice cream, butter, brown sugar, super-fine sugar, and spices (I used cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves). Melt it all up and put a good couple of blobs in the bottom of a mug. Add a shot of white rum and some hot water. Top off with whipped cream. YUM. Freeze what you haven't used -- it keeps forever (not that it will be around that long).

4. Red Hook Longhammer IPA -- Oh, get yourself a growler (half-gallon to-go jug) of this stuff. Good, good. Nice and hoppy. Very drinkable. My favorite beer. Check it out here.

5. Widmer Hefeweizen -- Nectar of the Gods. Check out my July 30, 2008 entry on this one.

6. Kestrel Lady in Red 6th Edition -- This one's crafted from wines from the '04 and '05 vintages. The wines that make up this delicious blend are: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and Sangiovese. In the glass, it is a deep, rich red color and smells of dark red fruits -- even a little blueberry. It is velvety smooth and pairs well with many foods. It's also great on its own. Check out the Kestrel website here.

7. Old Fashioned Cocktail -- Delish. Check out the July 29th, 2008 entry.

8. Big Rock Brewery Grasshopper -- A wonderful wheat beer from Calgary, Alberta. I try to grab some of this every time I go to Canada. It pairs well with anything. I prefer bottles over cans. Great on a hot summer day!

I hope you're able to try a few of these bevs.

Cheers, and Happy New Year!

Cocktail or martini?

Ok. So I wrote earlier about the delicious Blueberry Martini. I know, I know. It's not really a martini. It's a cocktail. As is all the other wonderful concoctions you see on the happy hour menu. Frutti-Tutti Martini, Sour Apple Martini, etc. Those are cocktails. Mixed drinks.

A real martini (straight up) is as follows:

Fill shaker with ice.
Pour in some gin, or if you fancy yourself Bond, James Bond you can use vodka.
Take a bottle of Vermouth and show it to the gin. Put it away. Ok, really. If you must, you may put a wee bit in the shaker.
Shake it gently. You don't want a frothy martini.
Pour into a cocktail glass (i.e. a martini glass).
Garnish with a few nice, fat green olives. I like the classic ones stuffed with pimento.

But, as some of you know, I like it dirty. Follow the directions above but add a small glug of green olive juice. Yum. Serve it on the rocks or straight up.

Dirty and straight up. That's me. [har]

Summer memories: The Gobstopper Martini from the Yard House

Yummy. I really mean it.

I tried this cocktail at the Yard House Restaurant in Honolulu at the recommendation of our waitress (aka waitperson if you want to be all pc about it), and it was just about the most delicious thing I've put into my belly in a long while.

As you can see, I was in no mood to whip out my camera and take photos. Instead, I have artfully created a crayon and ball point pen rendering of the delectible libation. Yes, it really was that color and it packs a punch. Oh, and that is a little drawing of me saying "Yum!"

Here's what's in it:

Equal parts Ketel One Citroen vodka, Dekuyper Watermelon Pucker, Hpnotiq, and Sweet & Sour. Pour it all in a shaker full of ice and shake it up until your hands are frozen.

They go down very easy, so you'd better eat something. Or not. I'm not your mother, after all.

Widmer Hefeweizen: My liquid lunch.

Nectar of the Gods? Maybe.

If you ever find yourself in the Portland, OR area, definitely check out the Widmer Brothers Brewery. When I went, I had a delicious lunch in their pub (great fondue) and a nice tour afterwards. I barely paid attention though. I just kept thinking to myself, "this guy gets paid in beer!" Way cool.

Fortunately, it's easy to grab Widmer Hefeweizen at the grocery store and it's on tap in most places in the Seattle area. It's a delicious, light, unfiltered wheat beer and it goes with just about everything. Or nothing. It's great on its own.

The Old Fashioned

This is my new favorite old cocktail.

I had one at the Dewar's Clubhouse at the Honolulu airport and it was scrumdillyumptious. So much so that I embarked on a little research journey through cyberspace. Turns out, the one I enjoyed at Dewar's was made incorrectly. Sort of. It really depends on who you talk to and whether you're a purist or not. The one I had was garnished with a lime. Yep. A lime. It tasted good and fortified me for the journey ahead of me [koff]. But, as I found in my research, it was just wrong.

Here's how I like them.

In the bottom of an old fashioned glass (yep, it's named after the cocktail -- it is aka a lowball glass) add:

1 tsp. sugar or 1 sugar cube

a few dashes of bitters (enough to saturate the sugar)

1 orange slice

1 cherry

a glug of water (NOT club soda -- just plain water)

Muddle this all up and add:

3-4 ice cubes (or more)

about 2 oz. bourbon (or whisky)

Stir gently.

You can garnish with another slice of orange and a cherry if you want. You can even add a splash of water on top (I don't).

Some folks love to use Club Soda and that's okay. There's some debate as to whether that's the "real" way to make this cocktail. I say just try it a few different ways to see what you prefer. I think the orange tastes rather nice with the bourbon or whisky and I do prefer filtered water over club soda -- it has a more refreshing mouth feel and the flavor of the whisky isn't clouded by the "fizzy" soda.

Articles on the Old Fashioned:

at Epicurious and drinkboy.com

Sangria!

It's summer and what's better than a delicious, icy glass of sangria? Here's how I made my pitcher last night:

Several glugs of sparkling apple cider
A good 1/4 cup sugar
Several glugs of brandy
Orange slices, pear slices, key lime slices and nectarine slices

Add the above to a tall pitcher and stir to dissolve the sugar. Add to this one bottle of whatever red wine you have around (that you want to sacrifice). Refrigerate until cold.

To serve, fill glass with ice and add sangria -- leave room for a splash of club soda.

YUM.

Photo Credit: Public domain image obtained from http://www.sxc.hu (stock.xchng website)

What are you drinking?

Chateau Ste Michelle 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon (Indian Wells). That's what I'm drinking. Delicious. Very rich and lush with hints of really ripe red berries. Luxurious, actually. Not much spice and the tannins aren't overpowering the finish.

~~~~~

This weekend the family and I visited the Novelty Hill Januik Winery tasting room in Woodinville, WA. The facility is a contemporary design as opposed to the Chateau Ste Michelle Winery just around the bend. Jim and I tasted several and brought home a few. One of which we opened that night -- Novelty Hill 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (Stillwater Creek). All of the above regarding the Ste Michelle '05 Cab applies, but this Cab was waaay more complex. What I mean is it was more dense and spicy. The flavors were more concentrated in this cab, but the finish was like velvet.

I'll dig out my notes and write up what we tasted, but go see for yourself. The place is wonderful and such a contrast from the Columbia Winery and Ste Michelle.