Author Archive
January 11th, 2008
I attended a party recently that Beija Cachaca hosted at Eastern Standard. Cachaca is Brazilian rum. It’s made from sugar cane juice instead of the more common base for rum, molasses. Kevin Beardsley and Steve Diforio, the two fresh-out-of-college guys who started the company that formulated and now imports and markets Beija, declare that “in 2007 the U.S. government officially designated Beija as the World’s First Virgin Cane Rum.”
I wondered how “virgin cane rum” differs from 10 Cane, another new rum made from virgin sugar cane, or rhum agricole, or other cachacas, for that matter. Apparently, the designation hinges on the fact that the distillation process begins a mere 10 hours after the sugar cane is harvested and pressed. “Other brands allow their sugarcane to wallow in the sun for days before distilling it.” Horrors!
OK, despite the tone of the marketing kit (and the annoyingly predictable packaging featuring “an alluring female figure in profile”), the product is pretty solid. For an 80 proof spirit, it has absolutely no burn, especially compared to the harshness that I’ve heard is the defining characteristic of most cachacas available in the U.S. To me, Beija smelled a lot like sake and had a very soft, somewhat sake-like, dryly fruity taste.
Like most people, I had only ever had cachaca in a Caipirinha (together now, that’s “ky-pir-EEN-ya”), a refreshing mixture of cachaca and muddled lime juice and sugar over ice that is competing with the Mojito for Most Popular Latin American Cocktail. The whole idea of the event (besides getting people like me to write about Beija) was to try cachaca in ways that break free from the Caipirinha. My favorite among the cocktails that Jackson Cannon and his bar crew mixed that night was a variation on the Red Hook: 2 oz Beija (instead of rye) and a 1/2 oz each of Punt e Mes and Luxardo Maraschino. Really nice and mellow. A few of us also tried a Negroni with Beija substituted for gin. We agreed that it didn’t quite work; the Campari overpowered the softer spirit.
Other Boston bars serving Beija are Om in Harvard Square, District and the Vintage Lounge.
Posted in Cocktails, Rum | 12 Comments »
January 6th, 2008
Drinkboston.com reader Adam Machanic emailed me recently with the results of some exhaustive mixological studies of apple-based spirits from Laird’s & Co., the oldest producer of America’s oldest native distilled spirit, applejack. In addition to applejack (a blend of 35 percent apple brandy and 65 percent grain neutral spirits that puts the “jack” in a Jack Rose), Laird’s produces Old Apple Brandy, aged in oak for 7 1/2 years, and 100-proof, bottled-in-bond apple brandy that’s also 7 1/2 years old. It takes about 20 pounds of apples to make just one of these bottles of pure apple spirits. Wow. Adam’s findings made me think, ‘Man, I’ve gotta get my hands on some of this stuff!’ and I wanted to share them:
“I ended up ‘experimenting’ my way through an entire bottle of the 7 1/2 year old brandy over the past several weeks, and I have to say, if science class experiments had been that fun I might have studied a bit more often. Seriously, though, it’s great stuff. Compared with the ‘smooth blend’ version, it hits you quite hard in the nose with apple essence the moment you remove the cap. Straight, it has a bit of sweetness, and is exceptionally drinkable neat or with an ice cube or two. Color-wise, it’s light, golden and exceptionally clear. Excellent in a Marconi Wireless with some good vermouth — but much better with Vya than with Punt e Mes; the latter overpowers it. I also thought it was wasted in a Jack Rose — the drink tasted no different to me than with the normal applejack. I really enjoyed it as an Old Fashioned, with 1/3 tsp of sugar, two dashes of Regan’s orange bitters, and a dash of Angostura.
“I enjoyed my experiments so much that I placed a follow-up order and got my hands on some of the 100 proof, bonded stuff. This is an entirely different beast — the liquid in the bottle has an almost rusty tone, and is slightly hazy compared with the brandy. And as an added bonus, there are a few floating specks of something in each bottle, visible if you shake it up a bit. Who knows what’s in there. The apple sensation is huge and overpowering both on the nose and the tongue, but thanks to the increased proof there is also quite a bit of heat — I don’t like this one neat at all. On the flip side, it stands up to the Punt e Mes just fine in a Marconi Wireless, and can even be a bit overpowering. I haven’t had a chance to do a Jack Rose yet, but that’s next on the list — I have high hopes for its success there.”
Many thanks to Adam for putting his liver to the test for the sake of experimentation. Unfortunately, he had to order the specialty Laird’s items online; I don’t know of any liquor stores in the Boston area that carry anything other than the blended applejack. Please, correct me if I’m mistaken.
Posted in Applejack, Cocktails | 11 Comments »
January 3rd, 2008
While the rebirth of quality classic cocktails features heavily on this site, attentive readers also know that drinkboston.com gives beer its props. “Micro,” “craft,” “artisanal” beers — whatever you want to call today’s non-megabrews — are thriving, and I have been known to compare their emergence a couple of decades ago to today’s developing taste for well made, sophisticated cocktails.
It’s dumb, then, that I have neglected to introduce drinkboston readers to my other identity, Ms. Mug. I have been writing a column by this name for the beer newspaper Ale Street News for about the past six years. Basically, I write about beer and other drinking matters from a woman’s point of view … or just my own point of view. The latest column, Beer Finally Gets Invited to Dinner, quotes personnel from some of Boston’s best restaurants/bars about how an interesting beer selection is finally becoming an essential part of any serious establishment’s overall beverage program.
Ale Street has been around for over 15 years. It’s published every other month and can be found at beer bars and brewpubs throughout Boston. The newspaper’s website is undergoing a redesign, and with any luck I’ll be able to provide a link to an archive of Ms. Mug columns in the near future.
Posted in Beer | 4 Comments »
December 31st, 2007
Where does a Boston-based drinks blogger go to celebrate New Year’s Eve? Montreal, of course. Assuming you’re a seasoned barfly like me, you probably have conflicted feelings about going out on the town for New Year’s only to drink overpriced drinks, eat overpriced food and fight for cabs with all the smashed club kids pouring out of the Alley at 2:00 a.m. One way to go out and enjoy the evening without experiencing this hometown malaise is simply to reach for a change of scenery. That’s what I did. Selfish of me, I know, because it means I have absolutely no advice for anyone looking for cool things to do in Boston for the big night. If you’re desperate, you might get a few ideas from last year’s NYE post.
Canada’s ultimate New Year’s celebration is happening in Quebec City, which is kicking off its 400th anniversary celebration. But we ended up in Montreal because it happens to be the home of one of North America’s best bars, Le Cheval Blanc (809 Rue Ontario). Cheval Blanc is a brewpub that has been around for 20 years. It is not like the brewpubs that most New Englanders know, with lots of gleaming tanks and sterile, un-bar-like decor. No, it’s a great bar that just happens to have a brewery downstairs. The stainless steel, reach-in coolers and faux marble wall panels appear to date from the 1950s. Spiky snake plants on the wall, red lanterns and a big neon clock complete a look and feel that’s retro and original all at once. The house music veers from punk to klezmer to soul. Probably the best brew in the place is a Belgian-style white beer simply called blanche. There’s also an amber (ambrée), IPA, porter and few specialty beers in bottles — including a nice barleywine (strong, British-style ale) that we shared last night with one of Cheval Blanc’s regulars, an ivy capped guy named Pat.
The clientele and the staff are laid-back and friendly in a cool, Quebecois way. We hear both the brewer and the bartender will appear on stage tonight as part of a special New Year’s band. Looks like we’re heading back to Rue Ontario. Cheers, Beantown.
Posted in Beer | 6 Comments »
December 28th, 2007
A recent email from a restaurant manager friend said, “We’re throwing an ’80s bash on New Year’s Eve in Sister Sorel and I’m trying to research what cocktails were popular at that time. I was thinking Sex on the Beach, Blow Job shots and White Russians, but that’s where I ran out. If anyone has any thoughts on this, please send them my way!”
Since, unlike my friend, I came of age in the decade that popularized blender drinks, wine coolers, DeKuyper Peach Schnapps and cocktails with sexual names, I readily responded to her first three stabs at drinks of the period. “Oh, yeah, those qualify. And don’t forget about Sombreros, Mudslides, Slippery Nipples, B-52s, Woo-Woos, Kamikazes, Alabama Slammers and California Root Beers.” Aaah, the sweet nectar of spring break — another ’80s phenomenon. (Yeah, I know, spring break has been around at least since Where the Boys Are, but it didn’t become a huge, regularly televised event until the MTV decade.)
In the ’80s, cocktails were climbing out of an era in which innovations in inebriation focused on drugs instead of booze. Courtesy of Ronald Reagan, it was “morning again in America,” and a new generation of young adults entered college with the intention of launching high-paying careers. They toasted to their bright future as yuppies with a new crop of appropriately cheerful (but naughty sounding!) drinks based on vodka, schnapps, Kahlua, Bailey’s Irish Cream and any other sweet liquor meant to be speed-poured into a glass a la Tom Cruise in Cocktail (“Where he pours, he reigns.”).
Those of you who remember the Decade of Dumb Drinks: What were your faves? Did the Sex on the Beach and its ilk pave the way for today’s candy-flavored martinis, or does every era simply have its own ridiculous cocktails?
Tags: 1980s, Cocktail movie
Posted in Cocktails | 7 Comments »
