Classical education, Part II

After the Campari fête, I headed straight to bed since I knew I had to wake up relatively early the next day.  As I mentioned before, I had volunteered at the event, and so I was instructed to show up at 10:30 to help set up and get organized.  When I arrived, I was assigned to man the front desk for check-in and greeting duties.  Since it was a Monday morning, however, it was very quiet.  If it weren't for the guy running a blender to make liquored smoothies with Ben & Jerry's, you could hear a pin drop.  Having settled in and with little traffic, I helped myself to a coffee "corrected" with a bit of fair-traded Fair Café liqueur.  One nice benefit of it being very quiet was the chance to chat with my fellow volunteers, including Justin and Ali, and bar fellows.

 Very, very quiet.

A lot of free time on my hands

After having worked the morning shift, I was free to attend any of the afternoon seminars.  I was drawn to a couple seminars in particular: Gin is In! (sponsored by Tanqueray) and Age: The Final Frontier - Barreling Spirits and Cocktails.

In the first, the seminar really became about Tanqueray and little else.  While I cannot say that I was surprised, I do wish that the presentation had a bit more breadth given the title.  However, it was quite interesting to hear how Tanqueray is made, especially since Tom Nichol, the master distiller of Tanqueray was there in person.  My overall impression from Mr. Nichol is that gin distillation is very much an art, perhaps more so than the distillation of other spirits because of the careful balance of botanicals to which one must attend.  Sourcing the botanicals can become a rather ponderous endeavor given variations between harvests.  For instance, the crop of angelica root from Saxony this year was of inadequate quality, so instead the remainder of last year's harvest is still used to produce this year.

Additionally, I was interested to hear that different batches of Tanqueray No. 10 have very slight differences in taste that Mr. Nichol can recognize.  Differences arise since the whole citrus fruits that go into the basket of a given distillation run are purchased individually the morning of.  Another nice tidbit that I learned was that the citrus notes in gin can often come predominantly from coriander.  Although citrus peels often do find their way into the list of botanicals added to gin, coriander itself brings a very noticeable citrus note to stand up to the juniper.  While we were treated to a number of cocktails as well as tasting the standard Tanqueray and Tanqueray No. 10, the most special part of the seminar was tasting the undiluted, unadulterated distillate from the "Old Tom" still, which was rather powerfully botanical.

Tanqueray seminar with Angus Winchester, Tom Nichol and Steve Olson (from L to R)

In the second seminar on barrel-aging, I heard about the effect of wood and atmospheric conditions on the aging of spirits and cocktails.  I must briefly digress here to say that from a pedagogical point of view, the presentation could have been more appropriately arranged since I felt like there were long periods of speaking followed by short, rapid periods of tastings.  If tastings were more evenly spaced through the course of the spoken presentation, I feel that I would have gotten more out of it.  Anyhow, that minor point aside, it was certainly a very interesting experience.

We first heard about the history of barrels and how they are made, as well as how climate can affect the aging process.  Then, we had a chance to sample a number of aged tequilas (Excellia) to compare and contrast.  I must admit that I had not heard of the Excellia brand prior to the tasting (the same parent company as G'Vine gin, with which I am familiar), so the experience was entirely novel.  The tequilas we had to taste included the unaged spirit, one aged in Sauternes casks, one aged in Cognac barrels, one reposado blend and one añejo blend.  I found it truly remarkable how different all of these were, owing their differences almost entirely to aging conditions.  Unfortunately, I had regrettably consumed so much liquor by that point that I was forced to spit for most of the spirit tastings in order to maintain a sensible palate.

After tasting the spirits alone, we then moved on to the aging of whole cocktails.  Ted Kilgore had initially introduced me to this fashionable process through an aged Negroni variant, so I was already somewhat familiar with the idea.  What was nice about this seminar though, was the side by side comparisons between aged and unaged cocktails.  We first tried the Hanky Panky cocktail in unaged, Cognac cask aged, and new oak barrel aged forms.  Although oxidation and evaporation will tend to improve many cocktails, I had my doubts in this case as I felt like the unaged version was the most balanced.  The aged versions were dominated by wood and menthol, the latter from the Fernet Branca that seemed to become overpowering.  Second, we were served a pair of aged and unaged White Lady cocktails.  Since the White Lady calls for lemon juice, which oxidizes to an unpalatable form, the aged version was made with lactart (lactic acid) instead of lemon juice.  The resulting aged cocktail was one in which I could not get past the disconcerting texture that was simultaneously both watery and powdery.  Delicious or not, however, the seminar was certainly an interesting exercise that allowed for a rather effective exploration of the effects of aging.

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Aged spirits and cocktails

While I had planned on swinging by the Indy Spirits Expo afterwards, my liver protested.  Thus, I grabbed a delicious dinner at my friend's establishment, Xi'an Famous Foods, before hightailing it home to rest before the final day of the Classic.


Final drink tally for that Monday:

Astor Center main bar
-Caffé corretto
-Suffering Bastard
-Something with ice cream, tequila, goji liqueur, fernet...
-Xibalba*
-J'Adore

Tanqueray seminar
-Punch with Tanqueray No. 10, mezcal, oleo saccharum and tea
-Bronx
-Tom Nichol

Aging seminar
-Hanky Panky
-White Lady

*Unfortunately, as I write this over a month later, I have completely forgotten what goes into the Xibalba and sadly have no notes for it.

Classical education, Part I

Back in mid-May, I went down to New York for a few days for the Manhattan Cocktail Classic.  I had gone to the previous year's Classic and rather enjoyed it, so I had been looking forward to this year's for a long while.  Unlike last year, I decided to volunteer at the Classic this year as a chance to get more involved and meet more people.  Additionally, the trip can be quite a drain on the pocketbook, with the cost of seminar tickets added on top of the usual transportation and boarding expenses, and volunteering can at least offset the ticket costs.  I am also quite thankful for my dear friend in New York who was kind enough to host me while I was there.

There was a slight snag in the original plan when I learned that the BGSO formal was on the Saturday during the same weekend of the Classic.  Given my obligations to BGSO, I had to skip the Gala, Saturday's events, as well as the majority of Sunday.  Rousing myself out of bed in time to catch a morning bus down, though, did give me the chance to catch the tail end of Sunday's festivities.

When I arrived Sunday afternoon, my first stop after dropping my things off was to stop by the Astor Center, headquarters of the Classic, to check in.  Besides, I was a bit too early to go straight to Angel's Share, but more on that in a bit.  Unfortunately, my timing did not work out well enough for me to sit in on a seminar that afternoon, but I did have a chance to indulge in a couple cocktails and say a quick hello to friends Ted and Jamie Kilgore from St. Louis, who were quite busy as Bar Fellows.

However, I did not linger long because I definitely wanted to stop by Angel's Share.  No trip to New York is truly complete without at least a few hours spent enjoying the absolutely fantastic experience that is a seat at the Angel's Share bar.  I had arrived just as they had opened, so I immediately snagged a seat at the bar right in front of Shingo.  As I had not been since January, there were quite a few cocktails on his menu that were new to me.  Shingo was also working on his new summer seasonal menu and let me take a peek at his draft.

As I had started with gin over at the Classic's main bar, I decided to try the Velvet Scene off his new menu.  Described as a concoction of Tanqueray, kiwi, lavender, grapefruit juice and honey inspired by the pâtissière over at ChikaLicious, this cocktail did not fail to charm.  The use of fresh fruit and herbs is a hallmark of Angel's Share's signature menu, and undoubtedly grounds the seasonality of the menu.  Although I was not able to confirm with Shingo, I would hazard a guess that this cocktail is named after a Coltrane piece, which really would fit the vibe of Angel's Share quite appropriately.

Next, I asked what Shingo was excited about making these days, and he directed me to the Speak Low, made with Pampero Aniversario, Osborne Pedro Ximénez and matcha.  He apparently had some chadō experience, which he demonstrates with a touch of theatrical flair while preparing this delicious cocktail.  The rum donated caramel and vanilla notes, while the sherry brought raisins and a luscious mouthfeel.  What astonished me about this drink was how the matcha grew and evolved in the glass with time.  The last few sips were more balanced and rounded by the tea's tannins than the initial introduction that was dominated by the sweetness of the rum and sherry.  Given Shingo's penchant for naming cocktails after song titles, I would not be surprised if this was named for yet another jazz standard.

Speak Low

After a lovely time at Angel's Share, I had to run off to meet a friend for a Campari fête at the Box.  Before I went there, however, I made a quick stop by Cocoron, a tiny soba shop on Delancey that had recently received a good write-up in the New York Times.  As the evening had gotten cool, I had a tsukemen-style soba, and it was indeed both quite delicious and fortifying.  The broth was richly flavored, and the soba noodles had a great bite that Taiwanese would call Q.

Filling up on soba turned out to be brilliant given my next stop at Campari's "Spirited Fête for the Senses Inspired by Padma Lakshmi."  Hosted by Padma Lakshmi and a cadre of excellent bartenders, Campari was the center of attention with a handful of cocktails that featured it.  After being ushered in by a pair of flappers, I was handed a dainty cup of Campari Punch by Jacques Bezuidenhout.  At this point, my memory began to get fuzzy, and I can't say I remember the details of the punch aside from the thought that I have lodged in my mind that it wasn't quite as balanced as I thought it should be.  By this point, the crowd around the main bar was four deep, and having waited some time to get one of Jim Meehan's East Indian Negronis, my friend and I made our way upstairs.  Apparently there was passed hors d'oeuvres that were paired with each cocktail, but I somehow managed to avoid all of these.

 From Metromix

We were also told that a show was about to start and that balcony seating would offer a good vantage point.  Although the show did not actually begin for another hour, the upstairs bar tended by Francesco Lafranconi was not quite as packed.  The specialty there was the Taj Milan, which I do remember as being strongly flavored with curry and coconut, the Campari getting somewhat lost in the mix.  When the show finally did start, it consisted of a few short burlesque and acrobatic acts that certainly had the audience quick enraptured.  Perhaps the best part of the evening though was perching near Tony Abou-Ganim's section of the bar after the show had ended.  With the crowd beginning to dwindle, Tony kept supplying me with a steady stream of expertly made Negronis until the house lights were turned on to signal the end of the night.  While I had been informed of what the Box experience entailed, I was still somewhat thrown off by everything from the stirrups in the bathroom stalls to the barely clothed contortionist on a trapeze suspended above the bar.  At least the Negronis were damned good.


Final drink tally for that Sunday:

Astor Center main bar
-Gin fizz of some kind
-Corpse reviver #2

Angel's Share
-Velvet Scene
-Speak Low

Campari Fête at the Box
-Campari Punch
-East Indian Negroni
-Taj Milan (2x)
-Negroni (at least 4x)

Summer classics

While I have a couple of lovely things from back in May that I have yet to share, the past few days have given me a chance to dive into a few classic cocktails that I have the impulse to post.

Gimlet

2.5 oz gin

1 oz lime juice

1 oz simple syrup

Shaken.

Pegu Club

1.5 oz gin

0.5 oz Cointreau

0.5 oz lime juice

2 dashes Angostura

Shaken.

I love when I shake so much that the outside of the tin frosts over. Nice, cool and delicious.

Leftovers

As I have previously mentioned, one real benefit of buying a whole duck is how much more you get out of it.  Even a couple months after having eaten the majority of the duck, the bits that I had preserved were still tasty.  The cured duck breast was still tasty on its own, but I ran into trouble at the ends where my admittedly mediocre knife skills prevented me from safely slicing thinly.  Not wanting to let any go to waste, I tried to think of ways to utilize these bits.  While I initially thought it best to think of dishes that traditionally involve prosciutto, I quickly decided that it was not too inappropriate to consider what I had to be approximate to guanciale.

With guanciale in mind, I thought to use my leftover cured duck in a sauce over pasta to make the most of it.  Lacking good tomatoes, canned or fresh, I ruled out amatriciana, which left me with carbonara.  I have had rather mixed results with carbonara in the past, often failing to capture the right texture to the sauce that I want.  Nevertheless, I forged ahead, dicing the cured duck, as well as a quarter of an onion, which I know is not traditionally correct for carbonara, forgive me.  I crisped the duck in a bit of oil and duck fat, saved from the confit, and then browned the onion.  After, the fettuccine reached al dente, I drained, then added a bit of the water to the browned onions.  I tossed the pasta in a mixture of whisked eggs and finely grated parmesan to coat before pouring it into the slightly simmering onions, stirring briskly.  Seasoned with fresh black pepper, topped with the crisped duck and served alongside roasted asparagus. Happily, the consistency of the sauce was quite creamy and without lumps.  Moreover, the duck, despite being little in quantity, was quite present in the dish, a delicious success if I may say.

Pasta alla carbonara con asparagi arrosto

In addition to the cured duck breasts, I had also preserved some of the duck by way of making confit of the legs.  When refrigerated in the fat used to confit, the duck stays quite well preserved for months.  I had been saving the confit legs for cassoulet, but that failed to materialize despite the ridiculously long winter.  Instead, I decided to pan fry the confit legs for dinner one day in some of the duck fat to heat it through and to give it a wonderful crispy skin, frying up some sliced potatoes in the same skillet as well.  Served alongside is some quickly blanched shaved asparagus.

 

Confit de canard poêlé, pommes de terre à la sarladaise, rubans d'asperges

 As you may have also noticed, I have been eating a lot of asparagus.  It is definitely one of my favorite spring vegetables after months of eating a lot of winter greens.  This is especially true this year since I have been so depressingly unable to get my hands on any fiddleheads or ramps.  At least the asparagus is still delicious!

A quick rant

I've been seeing more and more "nitrate-free" cured meats being sold around town, even at the local farmers' market last week.  This is nonsense.

First, a lot of products claiming to be "nitrate-free" cured meats do actually contain nitrate.  If a product contains celery powder, then that is the delivery vehicle for the nitrate instead of the sodium nitrate seen in conventional cured products.  That's just misleading marketing since chemically, a nitrate ion is a nitrate ion no matter where it comes from, and using celery powder is just a way of masking since the word "nitrate" no longer appears amongst the ingredients.

Second, every article I see railing against nitrates as carcinogens with such vim and vigor always targets cured meats as the sole source of nitrate.  Why does no one say to stop eating vegetable sources of nitrate?  Many vegetables, from lovely leafy greens, like spinach and cabbage, to roots and tubers, like beets and radishes.  Nitrates are a fundamental part of nature; its everywhere.  If people are afraid of the nitrates in bacon, then why are the perfectly fine to eat vegetables.

Last, "nitrate-free" cured meat will not taste like their conventional counterparts.  Just as I've mentioned before with the "nitrate-free" corned beef from Whole Foods being neither as tasty or as visually appealing as my home-cured corned beef made with a touch of pink salt.  One could make salt pork without nitrites to cure, but if you've ever had real salt pork, its quite a bit saltier than bacon.  My understanding is that a greater amount of salt is needed to cure meat in the absence of nitrites, primarily as a safety precaution against botulism.

Anyhow, I just think that this whole "nitrate-free" marketing of late is just another example of marketers taking advantage of consumer ignorance.  Its like herding sheep when it comes to eating habits. Trans-fats, omega 3/6, antioxidants, etc. Its all a bunch of fear mongering to direct consumer spending. Brings to mind the idea of "nutritionism" that Michael Pollan has brought to the fore.

All things in moderation.

Derby Day

Ahh, the summer social season begins.

Last year's Derby Day happened to coincide with the BGSO formal, and consequently, I was not able to celebrate appropriately.  I didn't even have the chance to watch Super Saver and Calvin Borel take the trophy after slogging through all that mud.  However, for this year's 137th running of the Kentucky Derby, I was fortunate to have a pretty decent turnout in the evening after Animal Kingdom stole the show.

After flying back to Boston that afternoon from a quick trip to see my parents and grandmother, I rushed to set up and have everything arranged in time for the party.  Thankfully, a friend picked me up from the airport, and bottles of bourbon had already been scheduled to be delivered.  After printing menus, picking up supplies at the grocery and arranging the bouquet of roses (red, of course), the stage was set.

Not wanting to cut corners, I began the evening by making each mint julep "à la minute", a mistake given the volume I later faced.  Its certainly quite the dilemma for next year: traditionalism or convenience.  Fortunately, the other drinks on the short menu, the Seelbach, the Jockey Club, Tom Collins and the Aqueduct, were more straightforward, relatively.

One quite pleasant surprise was how fashionably dressed everyone was: ladies in lovely hats and gentlemen sporting blazers.  While I was the only one in white linen yet again, this year's result at least lets me think that there's hope yet for these yanks.  Everyone even indulged me as we collectively serenaded the neighborhood with a rousing rendition of "My Old Kentucky Home".

Last, allow me a quick mention of a drink I was tinkering around with throughout the evening as inspired by the Derby.  The week prior, I had been playing around with rhubarb, and after making a lovely compote, a spiced rhubarb 'vermouth' struck my fancy as a good use for the remaining stalks.  Not a true vermouth perhaps, but a delicious concoction nonetheless, made by simmering rhubarb and spices in chardonnay, straining out the solids to further steep in gin and combining the syrup and infusion with a touch of orange liqueur.  Reminded of the classic strawberry rhubarb pie, as well as my previous success combining rhubarb and rose, I came up with something very similar to a drink Bob McCoy at ICOB had made.

Run for the Roses
1.5oz gin
0.75oz rhubarb 'vermouth'
0.5oz lemon juice
1 large strawberry muddled
Dash of rose water
Dash of orange bitters
Shake, strain, top with a bit of champagne and garnish with a slice of strawberry

A light and refreshing drink that went over well with the few ladies that tried it, and something that would certainly be altogether too easy to drink on the porch on a hot summer's day.

Among vernal joys

Now that the weather is warm enough, I can finally dust off my grill.  Oh wait, Boston fire code is prohibitive and prevents me from grilling on my balcony.  With such great sorrow, I was deprived of the succulence of meat grilled over charcoal flames.  Nevertheless, I was determined to exploit a loophole to enjoy outdoor cooking.  The Boston fire code says nothing of portable butane stoves.  Aha!  Just the opening I needed to fix myself a nice burger.

Perhaps you're wondering why I couldn't just griddle the burgers on my stove indoors, why the need to move the cooking outdoors.  If you have ever cooked burgers stove-top, you would know that burger-smell will permeate the walls and saturate the air.  Thus, the outdoor aspect was not for heightened deliciousness, but rather for aesthetic reasons that I would rather my apartment not smell like a burger joint for the next few weeks.

Having my mind set on burgers, I went straightaway to the grocery store, picking up some brisket, short rib and chuck, which went into the freezer as soon as I got home.  A couple hours later, I cut about 6 oz of short rib and brisket and about 8 oz of chuck into half inch cubes and put these back into the freezer.  After another 15 minutes or so, I finely chopped the meat with my trusty cleaver (also, thank goodness for large wood cutting boards).  I loosely gathered the chopped beef without packing it and seasoned it with just salt and pepper on both sides.

 
Meanwhile, some oil was heated in a cast iron skillet on my portable stove outside.  When the oil reached a slight smoke, I slid the burgers in and cooked them for 2 minutes before flipping.  Immediately after flipping, the burgers were topped with a slice of American cheese each (blasphemy I know, but the meltiness of American was sought) and cooked for another 2 minutes before being served on Martin's potato rolls.

There is simply no way that the picture does the burger any justice, its humble appearance belying the joys to be had.  This was my first attempt at a thin style of burger since I usually prefer thicker, meatier patties.  Despite being thin, these burgers were still pretty succulent with cheese oozing throughout, yet with a great crust of browned Maillard deliciousness. I don't know if I'll ever be a convert, but I can certainly see the merits of both. If I weren't so late already, I would make myself a couple more..