How About Some? · 9 July 2007
Content?
I have spent the last 4 days doing homework (and driving). My poor bookshelf has been woefully neglected, as has my pantry. But even overworked blogging college students need to eat and drink, and the last few weeks I've stumbled upon some truly wonderful examples of one of college life's staple foods, beer.
A few years ago I visited Belgium, and in it found the country that thinks beer should taste the way I think beer should taste, full of flavor with fruity influences.
I visited one of the last existing traditional lambic breweries, Cantillon and fell in love with their brews.
Not only does Cantillon produce very tasty beverages, they have that unique charm that attracts me to small specialty crafters of any trade. The produce large bottles of traditional beer with winsome illustrated labels (the images I’ve included are examples). Their entire brewery fits into a space I’d estimate as no larger than 4000 square feet. When I took the “tour,” I showed up at the door and was greeted by one of the brewing family, then told to look around at my leisure. The tour started and ended at the front of the brewery, which houses the tasting room. After poking around the vats, barrels, and various brewing mechanisms, I was served a glass of lambic and the rest, as they say, is history.
Unfortunately, it’s not easy to find most varieties of Cantillon in the United States. Beverages and More usually stocks the Vigneronne and the Rose de Gambrinus but they don’t have the magnificent traditional Kriek cherry beer or 100% lambic that I’ve been craving.
So, when I went to pick up a bottle of wine for a friend’s birthday party, and saw another Belgian beer that is supposed to be difficult to obtain, Rochefort, I had to buy a few bottles. I selected a Rochefort 6 and a Rochefort 8. The Rochefort beers are brewed by the monks of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance and they too have captured the excellent Belgian character of beer.A good beer deserves a good meal. A good beer deserves to be savored while sitting on a sunny patio and lazing the afternoon away. Unfortunately my Rochefort got neither of these things. What it got was a hurried meal of Round Table Pizza squeezed in between homework and scholarship essay writing, but this in no way lessened my enjoyment of the beers.
My boyfriend poured the 8 first. It filled the glass with a huge frothy head which took up all but the lowest half inch of the 10 oz glass. We had opened the 6 at the same time as the 8 and while the 8 was pouring, the 6 threatened to erupt over the top of the bottle. Like the 8, the 6 had a generous full-bodied head, but it wasn’t quite as extreme; it only took up ¾ of the glass. After letting the beers settle for a few minutes, the tasting began.
Both beers were excellent, but the 6 was more my style. While not a “lite beer,” it didn’t have the woody flavor and slightly bitter aftertaste that the 8 did. The 8 is a serious beer, full of complex flavors and reminiscent of the smell of a heady day outdoors in the woods. The 6 is the 8’s more sprightly cousin, with a slightly fruity taste and less loamy tones. It had the lightest of aftertastes and was very refreshing.
After adoring my Belgian beers for a sadly short-lived time, it was back to the grind, where (with a few exceptions) I’ve been ever since. I hope to return to my normal 3 posts per week schedule next week. I've got a ton of amazing looking books that that I can't wait to read and share.
Beer,
Belgium,
Cantillon,
Lambic,
Rochefort
-
Share this article
Science Fiction Party Food – Part 2 · 27 June 2007
This is the second installment of my entry for Stephanie’s Sci-Fi Blog Party. After snacking on the Oozing Flying Saucers and Tentacle Creatures made in the first installment, you’ll need something nice and refreshing to wash them down (or something nice and mind numbing to help you forget that you just ate something with “tentacle” in the title).
I took the alien concepts I outlined in my first post and incorporated them into a mocktail and a cocktail. After my experiences in making both, I’m going to add “surprising” to my list of definitive characteristics of alien food.
I decided that I wanted tapioca pearls for one of my cocktail drinks. I thought they would add a nice squishy and slimy texture to the mocktail. Now, I’ve never made tapioca pudding, much less attempted to boil the sort of gummy pearly gobs you’d find in “bubble tea,” so I looked around for some recommendations on how to prepare the pearls.
It seemed pretty straightforward. Combine tapioca and water, boil, let sit, drain. What the good people over at Bubble Tea Supply forgot to mention is that you need to stir the tapioca constantly, and boil on the gentlest of settings.
I was never more surprised than when my previously well behaved tapioca changed from a polite boil to a roiling volcanic explosion of clumpy pearls in less than 10 seconds. Even more outstanding was that the boiling didn’t stop when I turned off the burner, nor when I removed the pan from the burner entirely and and put it in the sink. It wasn’t until I watched it spit and hiss at me for about 20 seconds, and finally doused it with cold water, did the tapioca finally calm down.
Alien food indeed! It seemed to violate the very laws of food thermodynamics.
My second surprise in experimental food was with (yet another bowl of) Jell-O®. Did you know that Jell-O® will form a beautiful crystalline crust when frozen? Me neither. I attempted to save this beauty and float it on top of the Swamp Monster Cocktail, but it ended up cracking during my attempt. I did discover that frozen Jell-O® floats, but it looked so ugly, all mashed and mangled from my unwieldy cutting, that I ended up just using the normal refrigerated Jell-O® as sort of a marshy bottom for the cocktail.
The alien results are pictured above. The Earthly goods are pictured below.
The aliens must not have taken my good natured tribute to their possibly culinary activities in stride. After years of virus free operation, I picked up a particularly hard to remove bug on my computer. I believe it may have been planted in the tapioca and spread to my computer via shrapnel from the earlier volcanic explosion in my kitchen.
Also, after a run of supremely enjoyable books, I started one that may not pass the 50 page test. Again, I blame aliens, somehow they infiltrated the random used book store that I visited in Hillcrest and convinced me that out of all the possible gems on the shelves, I needed this one. (Yes, I’ve already ordered my tinfoil-lined lead helmet to prevent future such instructions being transmitted directly to my brain).
Honeyed Words returns to more “serious” endeavors with the next installment. In the meantime, those pining for a bit of the normal routine can check out my latest posted review on, A Clash of Kings.
Alien Egg Mocktail
- 1/4 cup small tapioca pearls
- Grenadine
- Chilled cranberry lemonade
Bring tapioca pearls and 2 cups water to a gentle boil, stirring constantly.
Boil approximately 10 minutes, being careful to keep stirring so that tapioca does not clump or burn.
The tapioca pearls should absorb the water and the end product should be a gelatinous mass with small tapioca pebbles encased in the mass.
Let cool.
Once cool, spoon a quarter cup into the bottom of glasses.
Pour ½ oz Grenadine gently down the sides of each, attempting to penetrate the gelatin in artful veiny ways.
Carefully fill with cranberry lemonade.
Serve immediately.
Swamp Monster Cocktail
- 2 oz rum
- ½ oz blue curacao
- 1 ½ oz chilled cranberry lemonade
- Jell-O® as garnish
Add rum, curacao, and lemonade, and ice to a martini shaker.
Shake well.
Pour into chilled glass.
Top with Jell-O®. Watch Jell-O® sink to the bottom, resembling the mucky stuff found on the bottom of marshes on water logged worlds.
Alien Food,
Blobs From Outer Space,
Blogging Event,
Blue Curacao,
Cocktail,
Cranberry Lemonade,
Jell-O®,
Mocktail,
Rum,
Tapioca
Posted by fortrix
-
Share this article
Champagne Tasting · 29 December 2006
This week has been stomach recovery time. Between recouping from Christmas and dutifully plowing through leftovers, I haven’t had the inclination or necessity to cook much.
But with New Year’s and its attendant parties right around the corner, food planning is once again kicking into gear. Here’s some information that may be handy for anyone celebrating the upcoming weekend.
Everyone in our family chips in at playing Santa to stuff the stockings. This year Sister-Santa bought 187ml bottles of champagne as part of her contribution. When she suggested we chill the bubbly and serve it with the afternoon snacks, I in turn suggested that we turn it into a tasting event.
The Bottles
The bottles were summarily placed in the fridge, the presents were opened, and eventually the unwrapping carnage was cleared. The fruit and cheese plate were then duly prepared and the tasting began. Though I set up the test, I’ll call myself a blind participant anyway. I used Christmas stickers to tag each glass then wrote down the brand each tag corresponded to in a notebook. I poured the champagne, put away the key, and then promptly forgot which brand was in which glass. During the taste test, the champagnes were referred to as “Santa”, “Santa Head”, “Penguin”, and “Wreath” in honor of their sticker logos.
If you’re planning a tasting event of your own, I’d recommend setting up an ice bucket to keep the champagne chilled between tastes, otherwise it warms too quickly and changes character. Being family, we shared glasses and passed each champagne around but if you don’t, then make sure to rinse each glass between champagnes so you don’t mingle the flavors. Also, have a nice array of fruit, cheese, and salty snacks to bring out the different textures in the champagne. Our plate, which you can slightly make out in the background of the picture, included: Red Bartlett pears, Fuji apples, navel oranges, Gouda cheese, Brie cheese, white Stilton cheese with cranberries, pate, a selection of crackers, green olives with pimientos, and miniature sweet pickles.
The taste test started with 4 champagnes, and 4 participants. My grandmother felt a bit flustered trying to describe exactly how everything tasted and didn’t have much to add to the commenting process. My sister is probably the best connoisseur among us. She’s the one who suggested that we try each champagne with a variety of flavors. She also has a love of champagne that exceeds the rest of the family. My mom and I are middling champagne drinkers. I enjoy a good champagne over the holidays, but I don’t seek it out during the rest of the year. I’m not willing to splurge on champagne, so I usually just skip it in favor of other food products. My mom is a red wine lover, and her palate is more suited to that but we all did our best in pursuit of the cause, drinkable and affordable champagne for New Year’s.
Ready, Set, Drink!
Comments are arranged in the order they were presented, so the first comment is the first person who tasted. As you will see below, we all had differing opinions which we later attributed mostly to warming, despite our best efforts to keep the champagne iced between rounds. Due to the wide variety of opinions on the first taste, after the official tasting, we poured the rest of each bottle from the fridge and re-tasted the champagnes while they were still cold. Our second impression, as a group, is featured in the “wrap up comments” and offers a better idea of the consensus on each champagne.
Freixenet Cordon Negro Brut
Kim – Slightly dry, not too sweet, crisp with a nice fruity overtone. This was excellent with the white Stilton with cranberries.
Sister – Smokey flavor with a strong alcoholic smell, apple brings out the citrus and subdues the smokiness, also good with the orange
Mom – Sweet yet subtle, not a very intense flavor through fruit intensified it
Wrap up comments: This was my favorite from the beginning, but neither my sister nor mom were very impressed. Once we refilled the glasses and they were able to taste it fresh out of the fridge, they changed their minds, and this quickly became the favorite of all. Serve this one cold as it loses a lot of its character even with a slight temperature increase.
Segura Viudas Brut Reserva
Grandmother – Different
Kim – Dry and subtle, the sweet dried cherries are a bit overpowering but the salty foods brought out the flavor and a bit of floral touches
Sister – Dry and delicate, tasting with apple makes it stronger and adds citrus overtones, not good with strong flavors like the Gouda cheese which makes it sharp and drier
Mom – Surprisingly flavorful considering the faint smell, good with the Gouda cheese but not the white Stilton
Wrap up comments: Pleasant and light. We ranked this offering as number 3 out of the 4.
Cristalino Sparkling Wine Brut
Mom – Dry and spicy, goes well with apple
Kim – No discernible odor, not very flavorful, takes on the flavor of whatever it is paired with, though cheese brings out a bitter aftertaste
Sister – Slight jasmine smell, light with delicate floral and pear notes, but any food pairing overpowers the smell and taste of the champagne
Wrap up comments: This is another that was much improved with better chilling, but still the group’s least favorite of the bunch.
Martini & Rossi Asti
Sister – Light and sweet finish, orange brings out additional fruit flavors, excellent with the white Stilton
Mom – Sweat, heavy, and fruity, reminiscent of a Sauternes wine
Kim – Orange and honey smell and taste, very sweet but not overly heavy, a touch of vanilla, jasmine, and honeysuckle in the aroma, citrus brings out a nice zing and balances the sweetness, cheese is overpowering, the sweet cherry brought depth to the vanilla tones but overpowers the citrus tones, reminiscent of a Riesling
Grandmother – Very nice
Wrap up comments: This was the only sweet champagne in the group so we judged it separately, and gave it a tie for first place with the Freixenet. This one held its flavor best during the tasting process but we agreed it’s really only appropriate as a pairing with desert and too sweet for general consumption.
Searchable Keywords: Alcohol, Brut, Champagne, Desserts, Drinks, Holidays, Tasting Event
Posted by fortrix
-
Share this article
