Fermented Adventures

On Monday I had the pleasure to visit a new (to me, at least) bar in Tribeca called Ward III. I knew I was going to like the place when  I saw their house rules in the menu which generally help to protect the experience for their guests and weed out assholes. For example,

2. DON’T BE CREEPY

Gentlemen, if a lady does not appreciate your conversation, she will let you know. If she is not comfortable doing so, or if you do not receive the message, we will let you know. It is highly recommended that you respect our say in this matter.

Their menu also includes a build-your-own-cocktail list, bespoke cocktails, where you can pick out various qualities you’d like for your own special drink, and not just flavors. Textures. Spices. And of course alcohol. After a nice little whiskey tasting from the Tullamore Dew brand ambassador (the 12 year was my favorite), I opted for something on the menu, a fiery little drink called Hell Bent for Leather, made with Maker’s 46 and muddled cardamom seeds. Though not nearly as fiery as the bespoke cocktails two of my companions had. Next time I’m definitely going spicy. Or maybe, like N’s drink, cucumber. I’m clearly going to have to keep going back and trying different combinations. I’ve been told that the weekends get crowded there, but Monday night it was nice and chill, not empty, but just the right amount of people. But don’t all go at once. We don’t want to ruin it. But it’s a classy place that knows their cocktails and it’s worth a visit (or several). I’ll definitely be returning.

As part of my birthday present this year, N took me out for wine and cheese at the recently opened Auberge Laurent in Harlem. The space was originally intended to be another location for The Pink Tea Cup, but instead was turned into a loungey wine bar (with a touch of hunting lodge).

In addition to the three cheeses (nicely presented with some mustard, honey, apple slices and grapes), we each had two wines. Because it was a celebration (of sorts), I started out with the Louis Roederer Brut Premiere Champagne. It was wonderfully crisp with flavors of apple and citrus. A nice start to the experience. After that, I moved on to the Chateau Campuget ’1753′ ’09 Syrah.It had a nice round feel in the mouth, with fruit flavors and a nice, silky finish.

I only tasted a sip of N’s two drinks, but noted that the Viognier wasn’t as floral as I’m used to. The Cab/Merlot blend that she had second was more to my taste – more oaky and spicy with a long finish.

Auberge Laurent is a great addition to the neighborhood (and just down the street from Red Rooster). I hope to return soon.

First up is an article from Matthew Latkiewicz about bitters and what they add to a drink. I’ve often wondered this myself as I’ve shaken a dash of Angostura into a cocktail. Does it add something to the drink? Is it part of the ritual? Honestly, I don’t know enough about bitters to really say much about them. I only recently discovered how they were made. But I’m tempted to give this kind of experiment a try myself. As soon as I can gather up a few different kinds. But, to be honest, I’m skeptical that such a small amount of bitters really would change the flavor of a drink, especially one with intense flavors to begin with. Does that make me a cocktail heathen?

Also, I wanted to mention that I tried a new beer the other day – Ballast Point’s Sextant Stout. I’m not usually a fan of oatmeal stouts, but Sextant is smooth and creamy. It goes down easy, and doesn’t feel heavy or even the 6.40% ABV that it is. The coffee comes through in the taste quite nicely. A decent beer, but one I’m unlikely to seek out again.

This article from Scientific American (via io9) talks about the resurrection of yeast that was used in ancient alcoholic beverages. I find myself wondering what chicha tastes like. Though I have to admit I’d like mine without the starter of human feces. But I am amazed by yeast that can survive hundreds of years only to be revived later. I only hope this doesn’t lead to a super form of thrush…

Eater lists five cocktails to try this month (if you happen to live in the NYC area). Of the list I’m dying to try the Minetta Tavern’s Green Mary (I’ve had their traditional Bloody Mary) and the Fourty Four (I love single malt cocktails). Anyone out there try any of these (or anything similar)?

I’ve talked about beer cocktails here before, but this week’s post at Time Out New York brings up something I had never before considered – hopped cocktails. The Gin and Chronic mentioned in the article, for example, bypasses beer entirely and just uses the hops as a flavoring. As a fan of hops – the more fragrant and fruity, the better – I find this idea fascinating and can’t wait to try one (or more) of these. I love that cocktail makers are pushing these kinds of boundaries.

It makes me wonder, though, if anyone has (or is) experimenting with hops and spirits and what that might taste like. Anyone know?

It’s funny how life works. One day something is working for you, it feels good, you have a sense of adventure. The next day, that’s gone and there are other things competing for your time and interest.

Well, I’m here to say that Fermented Adventures is back. That sense of adventure and exploration is back. My interest in wine and beer is back. The passion for writing about them is back.

So, long story short, the site is back. Expect the usual – posts about beer, wine and cocktails – but also maybe the unusual. There may be posts about food. There may be posts about culture. There may be posts that are fiction. I hope you’ll stick around and see what happens.

I raise a glass to you, oh reader. Cheers.

If you’re reading this, and I’d be surprised if you were, you’ll see there’s been a dearth of content of late. no updates, nothing new. Truth is that o have a bunch of posts queued up, only I seem to have lost the motivation to post them.

This site never really became what I wanted it to, probably because I never gave it the time and effort it needed. It would always compete, and lose, with my writing career. and honestly, I’m tired of feeling guilty about not posting. So I’m going to stop. it’s not like I was doing anything you can’t get elsewhere and I think I’ll only come back if I can figure out a way to do something unique.

I started this mostly because I was just dipping my toe into the world of craft beer and continuing to explore the world of wine. It was a way to chronicle that and ruminate on it. Only in the course of my adventures I met other people with similar interests and that real world interaction has nicely taken the place of this little experiment.

If you are reading this, and especially if you’ve read previous posts, thank you. I appreciate that. I wish you all happiness.

Until next time,

Rajan

I know it’s been a while, but the good news is I’m in Melbourne. Why this is good is that Melbourne, Australia, despite being an amazing cosmopolitan city is a mecca of wonderful alcoholic beverages. Just about an hour away is the amazing Yarra Valley which produces wonderful wines. And it’s also a popular area (the greater Melbourne area) for craft beer, which I’m also sampling.

So, the next few entries (at least) should be some information about local fermented adventures.

Stay tuned…

Stone 14th Anniversary Imperial IPA

Last night I popped in at Barcade for their Rare West Coast Beers night. I had been eyeing the Stone 14th Anniversary ever since seeing the list, remembering how much I liked the 13th anniversary last year.

Thing is, I think I might be needing a break from massive hop blasts. The Stone double IPA starts out bitter, but it’s a lingering bitter that builds the more you drink it. Which, for me, was a shame as there were a lot of fruit flavors present in the beer. It pours apricot coloured and smells of candied fruit (I actually got a dried apricot flavor in the nose). The citrus and tropical flavors swirl underneath the hoppy bitterness, but it’s the bitterness that drives everything, lasting long after you swallow. Still, it had nice rounded flavors and hopheads out there should like it. I preferred the 13th Anniversary which had more malt to balance out the hops.

Not content to stick with one taste, I went on to the Nitro Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, thinking that something darker might be a good contrast. And the stout was good – nice chocolatey malts and roasted flavors, and very, very smooth. But perhaps a little too smooth. After the 14th Anniversary, I wanted something with a bit more kick, I think, and the Old Rasputin didn’t have much of that at the time.  A good beer, just probably not what I was looking for at the moment.

I think that my palate seems to be going through another change. The big DIPAs and other Imperial styles aren’t seeming to do it for me anymore. And heavily spiced Belgians are also putting me off. Maybe it’s the summer, or just drinking a little less.

Saturday is another Beer Club meeting – maybe I’ll find something great there.