Minttufernet

MINTTUFERNET

(Peppermintfernet)

A Finnish bar classic

Hey everyone! Today's cocktail is a short, powerful, robust drink, the Minttufernet. It literally translates to "Peppermintfernet" due to its two ingredients you'll need:

• 2 - 2.5 cl Fernet-Branca (an Italian bitter liqueur)
• 2 - 2.5 cl Cremé de menthe, green
• (1:1 ratio nonetheless)

In a tumbler filled half way with ice, add both ingredients in the glass. Gently stir and serve.

It's quite the cocktail! With a powerful peppermint aroma to it, the sweetness from the menthe goes along nicely with the aromatic and bitterness of Fernet-Branca creating a balanced drink. Moreover, as the ice melts, it mellows the drink even further. One could argue that you could use even 4-4 cl both, but with this one, less is more.

The Minttufernet also warmths one's body quite well :D

A promise made is a promise kept

A promise made is a promise kept

A 365 days' work between the covers

This year's last season greeting to you all! It is the last day of 2014 and I have something big to discuss.

As this year has come to a wonderful end, you might remember me talk about my New Year's Resolution for the year 2014. A quick recap to those who can't be bothered with the link;

"In the year 2014 I will/have taste/d every alcohol product (most importantly the whiskies) we sell at our bar."

"The commandments with twists and turns"

A great way to combine work and pleasure:

1. Work: I want to learn how different whiskies taste like so I know what I am selling our customers
2. Pleasure. I want to learn to taste different whiskies to become better at it. 

Now 365 days to sample what, ~100 products in total? (I counted them, 133 is the correct amount) What looked like an easy job actually ended up being one of the closest thing to be unfinished!

Okay, let's break this "task" down. What did really happen during this year?

1. The whiskies

This included each and every whisky our bar holds. Naturally, in the course of one full year, some whiskies were drunk before I got to them and subsequently some new products were available for me to assess. As long as I had each currently available sampled at the end of this year, I considered it a success. Every time I sample a product, write down the date as well.

Example page. Name, "type" and date when tasted.

2. The liquors

This meant the rest. From the mild ABVs (e.g. port/sherry) to the hard stuff (gins, rums, vodkas and other).

3. No (tap) beers, wines or mixer liqueurs!

I deliberately wanted to limit this section not to be included in the resolution. The reason is quite simple. Sampling low ABV mixer liqueurs doesn't make much sense (no-one ever orders them separately) and with the bottled products we had so many seasonal changes (cidre weeks, summer beers, winter ales and so forth). The same goes for the wines. Although we have a more or less "steady" list, our wines changed throughout the year quite a few times.

4. What if a product was drunk before I got to it?!

Well that sucked! For instance, I was really sad that the Nikka 10yo was drunk before I was able to taste it. Okay, I got to taste its older 20yo brother but still, evaluating them together would have been so much better. Later on I will let you know about the ones "missing in action" and "new incomers".

5. Which one did you like the best? Which one was not good?

Each product, be it a whisky or a liquor, I rated with a 1-5 star system. When evaluating an article, I tried to write down a few notes regarding said product and finally putting a "rating" to it. Coarsely, the rating as follows and keep in mind, this is according to my opinion. What I say only reflects my personal preferences:

* : Did not taste good at all!
** : Meh. Lacked potential and taste.
*** : Palatable. Missed that little "oompf" to receive another star.
**** : Very good! Wouldn't mind having another one!
***** : Exceptional in taste, texture and finish. A diamond.

Strictly speaking, only the greatest whiskies got in my personal Hall of Fame. They needn't be a five-star whisky to achieve this but if they managed to knock my socks right off my feet, they made it to the list. In addition, the ones (whiskies) I liked the least had the "honor" of becoming products in my Hall of Shame. As for the rest liquors, I did rate them as well but did not include them in the HoF, for obvious reasons.

Finally, every time I had a sample at our bar, I kept the receipt. I wanted to know how much I spent over the year to accomplish this task.

MISSING IN ACTION(never got to sample these)

• Benriach 12yo non-chill filtered
• Benriach 16yo
• Nikka 10yo
• Highland Park Loki 15yo
• Laphroaig 10yo cask strength
• Laphroaig 18yo
• Ardbeg non-chill filtered
• Minttu (black mint)
• Koskenkorva Nordic Berries
• Koskenkorva Blueberry
• Koskenkorva Lingonberry
• Ardbeg Auriverdes

NEW PRODUCTS(available to sample)

• Nikka 20yo
• Ardbeg Corryveckan
• Plantation XO Rum
• Nikka from the Barrel
• Macallan Ruby

THE FINAL WHISKY
MISSION COMPLETED :D

Laphroaig Quarter Cask

So up to this day, I had finished everything else except for three whiskies! The Laphroaig series; Triple Wood, Cairdeas 2011 and Quarter Cask. After my work I sample the two former and as I got home I popped open the QC. Thus my New Year's Resolution was completed! And not a day too early :D

So what ended up being totally awesomesauce in flavor and which did not quite make it to the top (or even past the start line)?

The Hall of Fame and Shame, respectively

Eventually, according to my taste and preferences, some whiskies proved their right to become awesome, great and fabulous. "Sadly", for two whiskies this was not the case but quite the opposite. Glenlivet 18yo, Macallan 12yo sherry oak and Nikka 20yo were exceptional in taste and I had no problem adding this trio to the list! On the other hand, Bowmore 10yo (Devil's cask) and Johnny Walker Red Label were something quite horrid. Okay, for Red Label's defence, it is not a single malt but a blend. But even mixed with cola it didn't taste good! For ratings' sake I had to give it a "parenthesis" one star.

So what did this all cost me? Of course I didn't pay for the stuff I could drink at home. I counted the sums in the receipts and ended up in a sum of 343.8€! I actually had to recount twice because I got a bigger sum before! :D So this cost me less than 1€/day!

I have to admit that this New Year's Resolution was worth every cent. Not only did I experience a wide range of flavors but also (hopefully! :D) became more proficient in spirits of different styles. Now, could I explain you thoroughly about a whisky I tasted in February? Probably not. Sampling half a measure of whisky does not make me a pro, no sir! This is not just one year's job. It's a life-long process that follows one to their grave. It's a passion. If nothing else, at least I had quite a few different whiskies and other liquors to drink!


Sláinte!

SHOTS TIME!

SHOTS, SHOTS EVERYWHERE

Good evening ladies and gents! It's time to have some fun with shots! I've had a day off due to Ascension Thursday so instead of making grand cocktails (fine, I barely had any mixers at home) I pursued the art of shots!

I created five different and instead of making one blog for each separately I thought it would be the wisest just to compile them all under one sheet. Most of them were created purely out of visual outlooks, meaning they look better than they taste. But of those individual shots later on. Here we go!

ÄSSÄMIX

This shot is really something you can barely make outside Finland. The reason being one ingredient only (do correct me on this one?) available where I live now. Ässämix, named after the candy Fazer (a Finnish company) makes. As if "you're eating that dark and fruity candy at the same time". I agree. This shot was actually quite enjoyable! Sure, you can't really layer these ingredients but damn, tasty!

• 2 cl Salmiakkilikööri (explore the Finnish folklore *tshish*)
• 2 cl Passoã liqueur

In a shot glass, combine both ingredients and SHOOT!

SAMBUCA CON LA MOSCA

Simply put, Sambuca con la Mosca ("Sambuca with the fly") is Sambuca with three coffee beans and lit on fire. but more complicated put, it represents health, happiness and prosperity or the Holy Trinity. Either way,

• 4 cl Sambuca
• 3 coffee beans
• fire

Pour the sambuca in a shot glass, drop the coffee beans on it and light the thing on fire. Let it burn for a while, extinguish the fire and shoot! Taste-wise, as expected, very aniseed-like but the aftertaste is smooth and sweet. A great after dinner shot!

BANANA BOMBER

One layer drink I tried was the Banana Bomber. Given, there are multiple different recipes how one makes this but one thing is certain and that is the use of banana liqueur. The other half could be anything from tequila to vodka, whiskey, cointreau, you name it! This recipe included:

• 2 cl banana liqueur (not that green pisang stuff)
• 2 cl brandy

Merely a 2/5, this shooter wasn't really a good one. Like the saying garbage in, garbage out, I used a Spanish brandy and De Kuyper's banana liqueur. The liqueur had a strong essence taste to it and the brandy being young tasted coarse. Combined they didn't make a good combo. A hint of banana was in the background but in its essence, not a particularly great shot. Visually okay.

V8

Another curious one, the V8. I had to cut corners here and use a more potent ingredient that was actually called for since I didn't have the "softer" version at all :D

• 2 cl white peppermint schnapps (clear)
• 2 cl Stroh (54)

Layer the shot, the peppermint liqueur goes in first. As said, I only had a bottle of 80% (160 proof) Stroh in hand so I used that one. Well it layered just nicely (as almost pure alcohol does :D) but taste-wise. Ugh. A cruel shot. Like meth, not even once.

KÄNNIANKKA

(DRUNK DUCK)

Finally, the Känniankka (translated "Drunk Duck"). I have no history of who or where this was invented but some of my customers have asked for this. Basically it goes down to:

• 2 cl peppermint schnapps
• 2 cl jägermeister

Both ingredients should be properly frozen, as well as the glass. Layer the shot so the peppermint schnapps goes in first.

I made an exception to the rule and didn't shoot this as I did with the rest. No, I enjoyed this after eating pizza and while watching a Netflix series. Actually, around the time the Jäger's done and the pepper kicks into action, the combo works surprisingly well. A nice mix of herbal-pepperminty-sweetness I say. Hence, a solid 4/5 I give this shooter.

Tomorrow I'll be heading back to work. A few days more and then I'm off to to my well-deserved summer holiday! Yay!

SHOOT AWAY!

The Forgotten Pearl

THE FORGOTTEN PEARL

"These pearls make you forget the troubles of yesterday."

A cheesy-ass quote I just made up starts my newest post! Welcome aboard gents and hold fast, it's going to be a long ride to the unknown...

...just kidding. The story behind this cocktail goes somewhat like this: I go to the grocery store with my wife and her sister I see some passion fruits and I decide I want to make a cocktail using them. In addition, the coaster you see (has a bit of an "earthy" feel to it and fits absolutely perfectly with the kitchen table) was given to me by a good friend of mine. "It has to have rum in it" I thought. Also some exotic fruit of some kind (besides the passion fruit). The Forgotten Pearl was born:

• 2 cl aged rum
• 2 cl gran marnier
• 2 cl martini bianco (sweet clear vermouth)
• 4 cl pineapple juice
• 4 cl orange juice (I used freshly squeezed)
• 1-2 dashes angostura bitters
• 2 passion fruits (for the actual cocktail only 1½ is used, the rest ½ is used for garnish)
• 1 bar spoon D.O.M benedictine "float"

First spoon pearls from the 1½ passion fruit in the shaker. Add the juices and alcohols except for the benedictine. Add ice and shake vigorously. Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish by scooping the ½ passion fruit left over. Finally add a bar spoon of your herbal liqueur onto the drink. Enjoy.

Quite the drink I say! It has a velvety smooth texture, it is plenty of notes of citrus, the "roundness" from the rum and the complexity from the vermouth/gran marnier. Especially towards the end I could experience an ocean of herbal-like tastes, which made this cocktail...just wonderful.

The herbal-liqueur blind tasting

THE BLIND TASTING

And now for something completely different.

I decided to make a herbal-liqueur blind tasting and have five of my friends attend to it. To see whether they make similar notes of a tasted liqueurs...and for fun, most of all. Unfortunately I had to recuse myself from this event for reasons explained later on so I worked out the paper work. Nonetheless, I had three different herbal liqueurs at my disposal:

1. Unicum Zwack, from Hungary
2. Jägermeister, from Germany
3. Killepitsch, also from Germany (a local product from Düsseldorf)

I later realized that this tasting could've-should've had Underberg and Fernet Branca as well. Excluding the Killepitsch, the rest are well-known across the globe. But this sufficed well. 

I figured out how to maximize the most "realistic" results:

1. The subjects tasted these liqueurs by themselves (to minimize the influence of others' opinions) whereas I wrote down whatever they said
2. The subjects never saw any of the bottles used (to minimize the influence and associations of the bottle/label)
3. Only 1-2 cl (roughly ½ fl. oz.) / liqueur
4. The order for each subject was random (this probably had less/no meaning after all)
5. The subjects were to review smell and taste
6. The subjects gave points to each liqueur from 0-100

Before each tasting, I told my friend(s), that this was no competition, they didn't need to guess which was what and that they try to be as open as possible. I would write down everything and later compile a spreadsheet of the results. There are no right or wrongs nor any winners here. This blind tasting is for purely entertaining purposes and heck, maybe we discover something extraordinary from these samples!

Oh and I mentioned earlier I couldn't take part in this. The reason: Because I should have done this experiment first. I only realized after my first friend did the tasting that his opinions subconsciously (would) affect mine as well. Next time I do something like this I have to remember to first do it myself before letting my friends taste anything, this way the results are not affected by others.

So after I had my five sheets of results, I started compiling them together...and here are the results! 

(sorry about the picture stretching so far right, but otherwise you can't read sh*t! :) )

Killepitsch won and one thing that was actually pretty astonishing is that Jägermeister was reviewed the worst! To think of it, in the end were we really that surprised? Jägermeister to herbal-liqueurs is like Smirnoff to vodkas, Jack Daniels to whiskeys, Bacardi to rums or J.P. Chenet to wines; they're well branded and better known but when it comes down to "quality", they just might not cut it in the big boys' league. Don't get me wrong, I, for instance like Jäger but Killepitsch is better. Bacardi rum is great for mixing and Jack Daniels does work good with cola, but yeah, there are many better bourbons or wines than JD or Chenet. Personal preference, people...personal preference. If you enjoy your JD on the rocks, who am I to judge?

The psychology behind this experiment (or blind tasting in general) is very interesting. Although I only had three products and five tasters, reading the sheet gives us valuable information. But one point I have to highlight to you. Two of my friends noticed cardamom from Unicum Zwack. I found this extremely satisfying. Also, Killepitsch was clearly the sweetest of them all (4 out of 5 tasters) and Jägermeister was considered very alcoholic-like.

All in all, this blind tasting experiment was a great success and I would like to do it again, with different products of course.