Why Whisky Sampling is so damn fun!

WHISKY SAMPLING &

THE BEAUTY OF IT

Glenfarclas 15yo (got a sample in exchange for another!)

Hey everyone! So in the last few days I got myself involved in some whisky sample switching. Holy moley has this been so much fun!! So the whole thing started ~a week ago when I had a discussion at a whisky-based forum. I had recently opened the Macallan Amber (first open) for Easter. Some were also talking about the Glenfarclas 15yo and how its quality wasn't "as good as expected". 

Then, a person recognized the picture wall panels (from my cocktail videos I assume) and asked whether I wanted to have a sample of the before-mentioned scotch. I happen to have about a dozen of sample bottles that fit a nice 3.5 - 4 cl of liquid inside them so of course I complied. I wanted to try out myself the big fuzz of this whisky. For the trade I decided to give one of my own single malts for the person to rate themselves. I wasn't going to tell them what it was so you could say it was a blind tasting for that matter.

A few days later the switch happened (at work). He got my sample, I got some Glenfarclas 15yo as seen above.

#singlemalt #surprisemotherfucker

Without going into too much detail of these single malts, he had some Dalmore 12yo in his glass, which I revealed to him after the review/guessing. I got to admit, he knew his shit; knew the ex-oloroso maturing and 40% ABV (not to mention his review, which was 5/5 altogether :D)

Anyhow, I told him to bring back the empty sample bottle whenever he's done (not that I was in a big hurry I have plenty of these at home still), but for my surprising he filled it up with another mystery scotch!! I actually first thought it was my colleague's doings, but then realized she gave her bottle back ages ago.

So the ball was now thrown back to me! There it is, I want to say it is cask strength. Has to be according to its taste. As I am not a whisky expert per se, I quote "uncertainty is the only certainty there is..." In my sincerest opinion, people should do more of this! What could go possibly wrong? :D

A mystery sample.

Hemingway Daiquiri

HEMINGWAY DAIQUIRI

"I drink to make other people interesting"

- Ernest Hemingway, 1899 - 1961 

Hello everyone! Today's cocktail is more or less of a classic. It's a daiquiri popularized (or coined) by Ernest Hemingway who spent a part of his life in Cuba. According to the internet (it never lies by the way), he used to have many of these in a bar called "El Floridita". Also, the internet states that since Hemingway was a diabetic, he preferred a different kind of daiquiri (a less sugary one); legend has it that he loved this version so much that he always ordered a double, lending the cocktail its nickname of Papa Doble.

In its essence, the Hemingway Daiquiri is a more robust, dry version of the regular cocktail. If feeling manly enough, give this one a go and see for yourself!

• 6 cl white rum (prefer Cuban, e.g. Havana 3 años)
• 2 cl lime juice
• 1.5 cl maraschino liqueur (the sweetness to this cocktail derives from this ingredient)
• 1.5 cl grapefruit juice
• lime wheel (or maraschino cherry) as a garnish

Shake all ingredients except for the garnish with ice, strain, garnish and serve.

US citizens can't really use Havana rums because of the trade embargo that prohibits the selling of Cuban rum, but luckily for the rest of us, there is still hope :D But any good quality white rum will suffice.

For me, it had that oompf. Since my experience of daiquiris have always been sweeter, it was nice to experience the "other side" of this classic cocktail group. Moreover, there are so many different variations of the daiquiris out there, having a few different recipes in your back pocket doesn't hurt you at all. I give this cocktail a 3.5/5. Those who like their daiquiris dry and strong, it's a solid 5/5.

A Glassful of BBQ

A GLASSFUL OF BBQ

Hardy's stand

Hello everyone! Last Wednesday I got to be part of something completely unique! Before explaining where I was and what I experienced, let's roll the tape a few weeks back. We don't want to make this story a short one. 

So ~two weeks ago, as I was in Istanbul with my family, I got an email (yeah who reads their emails during vacations?!) from a lady who asked if I was interested in this "Glassful goes BBQ" - event on the 16th (March). While I had no idea what it was all about, I inquired some more information of said event while asking my boss if I could get the day off.

Now what happened next was deeply touching. She replied that a mixologist called Kim Rantanen suggested that I could be interested in this thing. Now those who don't know who he is, this guy was the restaurant manager at Tampere's literally only cocktail bar and now works for Stolichnaya vodka. He knows his shit. So getting "a recommendation" from this guy, that's a Biggie, with a capital B. Moreover, I was invited to be there as a blogger, which totally blew my mind :D 

That moment was one of those...moments when I thought to myself "man isn't this nice! I'm getting somewhere :D" 

Bushmills and Kraken rum

So heck yeah did I go there! As for the event and its name "Glassful goes BBQ", as much as it was pointed to our national alcohol retailer's staff (new wines/products for the upcoming summer), I didn't mind that at all. It was nice having professional ambassadors for [insert wine/product here] to tell about their newest articles that hit the shops within the few months (or those which already are there).

Rosé wines

I was overly excited. I even brought the system camera with me just to realize it was going to be too bulky for taking pictures (and sipping wines while at it), so I ended up taking pictures with my phone. I'll let it slide this time.

So what was the concept of this event? As summer is knocking its way to Finland, the BBQ season starts as well. Testing different types of wines with different types of BBQ - foods and especially trying wines (be it red or white) that isn't necessarily thought to "match". A classy example, red meat pairs with red, so why not try a (matching) white instead? So-called "leaving our comfort zone" for that matter and trying new wild things.

More wine

The event lasted four hours, in which I got to sample a whole range of reds, whites, sparkling ones, dessert wines and of course different types of food that are the next big thing in the summer season.

A very asian-themed BBQ setting

Mix & match

Beef, sweet potato chips, chicken, halloumi cheese, coleslaw (with wasabi, was PRISTINE) and a few different dips/sauces with a combination of wines was indeed a truly good learning experience. Not to mention the dessert!

(salty) liquorice and white wine

Now this was a fun little combo right there! Pairing liquorice with a sweet-ish white wine, absolutely amazing and honestly, never would've thought of that.

As the evening went on, after a few hours they opened the "bar". A mixologist showed us the "new" trends for this summer; pitcher drinks and how to make good ones. Fresh flavors and a whole lot of it! E.g. Stoli Lemonade (stoli vodka, strawberry flavored syrup for the soda streamer, fresh lime juice and simple syrup), a Kraken Storm (A cocktail I've also made ~8 months ago :D), a Bushmills Sour (Bushmills, vanilla syrup, lime juice and topped with non-alcoholic wheat beer; reminded me slightly of the Vanilla Daisy I made awhile back!) and also sampling Stoli Vanilla and Stoli Elit (smoooooth as can be)

Working his magic

Pitcher drinks

I got to say, I loved the small milk glasses in which he made the Kraken Storms!

Pardon the poor picture quality, but the drink looks just like it should!

Around 22:00 the event came to an end. I personally thanked the lady who sent me the invitation (was also one of the wine presenters (Hardy's)) and explained how extremely glad I was to be there.

It was a satisfying evening altogether! And I'm not talking only about the food/drink but overall: the people, presenters, atmosphere and being there as a blogger and how I ended up in there in the first place. Just a wild story for me to gladly reminisce later on.

Kaukokaipuu (Wanderlust)

KAUKOKAIPUU (WANDERLUST)

reader request, awesomeness ensured!

A good Saturday to you all! Here's a cocktail I made based on a reader request! Its base ingredient is quite different that what you would expect and its name "Kaukokaipuu" (Wanderlust) derives from and I quote

"You can make this with rather cheap ingredients. While drinking this at cold winter nights watching Madventures one can ponder, what it be like to jump out of the rat race into far away lands."

Roughly so :D So what do you need to make this?

• 2 cl blanco rum
• 1 cl malibu
• 1 cl gin (prefer a floral, "light" gin)
• 1 bs almond syrup
• 6 cl Alpro coconut-rice milk
• some roasted almond chips on top (optional garnish)

Shake everything with ice and strain into a smaller, chilled cocktail glass. Garnish optional (an edible flower would be awesome I realized).

With a good coconut-aroma to it, it also has that surprisingly good combination of rum & gin. The slight sweet-bitter almond-y notes are also there easily to be found.

In my opinion, it was a very fun experiment and this cocktail is an all-around drink. I give it a solid 4 out of 5!

The Sazerac

THE SAZERAC

Evening everyone! Today...it finally happened. I made the Sazerac. This has been one of the cocktails on my forever "to-do" list because of one ingredient that is extremely hard to acquire. Oh yes...yes indeed, and I'm talking about the Peychaud's Bitters. Halleluja that one friend-colleague of mine managed to fetch me one bottle so the time had come to make this beauty.

This version is the IBA one. This drink's history is rather intriguing and to make a long story short, you could make this two ways by choosing your main ingredient; cognac or rye (whiskey). I tried it with cognac (it being the "original" one before rye came along):

The recipe is quite straightforward and follows the IBA instructions:

• 5 cl cognac (I used Meukow VSOP)
• 2 ds Peychaud's bitters
• 1 sugar cube (okay I used 1 tsp of simple syrup because I didn't have a single (!) cube at home)
• ~1 cl absinthe (quality-wise not a big difference, read further why)
• a lemon peel (just the oils)
• a frozen (small) OF glass

Start by having your glass extremely cold ie. in the freezer. Give the three first ingredients a good long stir. Before straining it though, rinse the inside of your now cold glass with a small amount of absinthe. Then, discard the liquid (absinthe). Now strain your drink into your OF glass. Press the lemon zest oils over the drink but don't garnish it. Serve.

With a fresh nose to it, the Sazerac is sophisticated, strong, herbal, sweet-ish and just damn delicious! Can't wait to try it with the rye and see which one reigns supreme!

I got to say, this drink doesn't look like much but you know how they say, less is more? My initial opinion of this drink is that it kicks ass, big time.

Merhaba Istanbul!

MERHABA ISTANBUL!

Drinking in Turkey in a nutshell

Merhaba everyone! I've come back from a one-week holiday in Istanbul, Turkey with my family! I'll start off by saying that this blog post is not really going to be about drinking or moreover, cocktails. Since such culture does not really exist in Turkey (with a few exceptions). Sure, you have your kiosks that have the culmination of western liquors ie. Jack Daniels, Chivas, J&B, Johnnie Walker (red), Jim Beam...the stuff you can get from everywhere. My safe assumption is that this stuff is for the tourists.

Then you have your raki. Like the link says, "it is an unsweetened, anise-flavored Turkish alcoholic drink that is popular in Turkey..." Since I was travelling with my wife & kid, I only had one raki (offered by our mutual friend who lives in Istanbul), a local beer Efes and a local Turkish wine Buzbaḡ with our everyday grape varieties öküzgözü and boğazkere. Gotta admit though, it was a good wine! I did buy the above-seen raki bottle; it's a small one + a bit more local than any of the commercially available/exported ones at the airport/retailers. Fair enough, I saw a 1L bottles of the same stuff at the duty free when we were leaving, but I just didn't want to get a big bottle.

Hard to pronounce, easy to drink.

But most importantly, there's çay. 

It's more than just "tea".

Çay for the Turkish people is not only tea, it is a social construction. It is drunk everywhere and anytime; part of bargaining when at a bazaar, after meals, at cafés, when socializing with people, while working...I don't think there is a situation when çay isn't appropriate! It seemed like a national pastime, sitting with people and enjoying a hot cup of strong tea from clear and small glasses with optional sugar added. This was one also one of the great things I admired in Istanbul (or Turkey in general). Not to mention the tea was good tasting!

Then there's Ayran, but I only had it a few times. I understand its meaning though, during the hot summer days it is refreshing indeed!

I didn't see nor even actively look for any cocktail place. Although alcohol is not banned per se, strick regulations (especially in the Asian side) makes is hard to find any proper bar. I've read articles about a mysterious / quite legendary cocktail bar in the Europe side, where the owner is titled as the alchemist (that's cool), but honestly speaking, I had no intention to go there during my family holiday.

Food was good, many street bars serve kebab is numerous ways with restaurants that have that western-twist to them, if any. Mostly local stuff nonetheless!

lamb kebab, ayran, ҫay

meze and aubergine with chicken inside.

cakes, cakes, cakes!!

Cakes or pasta, were incredibly cheap and delicious. These people know how to make their sweet stuff! Turkish delights, baklava and all those things just demand to be put in our pie holes! I did also have a cup of Turkish coffee, surprisingly only once. 

Less is more

We visited the Grand Bazaar once and after one hour I said "yup, that's pretty much it", although some say you could spend days strolling through the place some call a big maze. The concept of bargaining and shopkeepers trying to sell you literally anything...well, as an experience it was unique and you can't go around that. 

Traffic regulations...or their lack of. Just go with the flow, they said, it'll be fun they said! Just read here for more information about it. With the pram it sometimes lead to really...mildly put, interesting situations! 

I won't be bothering you with endless amount of pictures of what I saw and experienced there, but as a whole the experience was great. Sure, the kiddo made the whole trip different, but not in a bad way!

How the F%$k are you supposed to go through there?! Even my daughter is baffled.

So summa summarum, if I really try to squeeze in all of the information of our one-week trip to Istanbul, what could I say more? Don't except to find great cocktails in Istanbul from every corner bar (if you even find a bar :D). Istanbul is more about food, culture, the people, simits, çay, kebabs, shopping and a whole lot of traffic.

A single picture that could sum the whole thing up.

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”

- Augustine of Hippo