After my lengthy Eggnog recipe, I realized I needed a shorter but still tasty version of Eggnog. There are just some nights when you either don't have the time or it's just you and a couple of guests and you don't need 10,000 calories in a bowl.
Now, I will admit, I have always been a fan of those Eggnog's in a carton that you can get at every grocery store and Stewart's this time of year. They remind me of my childhood. So, I figured I'd start with that. However, alcohol would need to be added to round out the flavors and the spirit of the holiday season, so here is what I have found to be a great super-easy recipe for Eggnog.
Super-Easy Eggnog Recipe
Pour one ounce of a good bourbon and one ounce of Irish Cream Liqueur into a rocks glass.
Add one ice cube and stir.
Add six ounces of your favorite store bought non-alcoholic Eggnog and stir.
This recipe will come out much better than one of those with alcohol in them already and it's pretty much just as easy.
Enjoy.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Killepitsch - Better than Jagermeister
For those of you that think there is no substitute for Jagermeister, you have not yet been introduced to Killepitsch. I recently tried this product and was fascinated by it.Killepitsch and Jagermeister are both Krauter Liqueurs, which basically means it's an herb liqueur from Germany. However, while Jager has had the much more successful business model, Killepitsch has managed to produce a far superior product. Bottled at 84 proof(compared to Jagermeisters 70), Killepitsch is a combination of 90 fruits, berries, herbs and spices(Jager is a blend of 56.) The great number of ingredients leads to a deep, dark blood red liqueur which has a deeper, richer, more complex bittersweet flavor.
There is almost no flavor you cannot find in Killepitsch if you are willing to search for it, but the predominant flavors are clove, molasses, cinnamon, anise, menthol and citrus. It is medium/full bodied with excellent balance and a smooth finish.
According to history, Killepitsch was concocted sometime during WWII and introduced in the early 1950's as produced by Busch Distillery out of Duesseldorf. They have apparently been producing drink specialties since 1858.
The above picture is from the Killepitsch website: www.killepitsch.de
I think it is simply an awesome picture.
This was found at my local store for $23.99 for a 750mL, just $2 more than Jager and believe me, it is money well spent.
Enjoy.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Wine Tournament Has Begun
The Wine Tournament has begun. We are starting with the "Others" division which includes desserts, sparklers and other sweet wines. Please vote for your favorites to the left.
Thank you and Enjoy.
Thank you and Enjoy.
In Search of Perfect Eggnog
There are alot of eggnog recipes. Everyone has at least one; some people have many. So, I decided to research different recipes and try to perfect my version of Eggnog.
First I decided to find the common ingredients in most Eggnog. Obviously tops on the list were eggs. I wanted to make the genuine article so none of those liquid egg products would do. I decided to go for actual eggs but pasteurized to reduce peoples fear of raw eggs. I will say, however, I don't think it should be as big a concern in an alcohol laced eggnog.(Side note: A friend just told me that dipping an egg in boiling water will also help with any salmonella on the outside of the egg) Separating the eggs and starting the recipe with just the yolks was fairly common so I decided I would do it that way as well.
Next on my list was some sort of milk or cream or combination of milks products. This would be the first part where experimentation would be necessary.
Sugar came next, with the amounts and type varying from recipe to recipe. One cup of regular old sugar seemed most common so that is what I decided I would start out and perhaps adjust from there.
Alcohol was necessary and this is where variations really came into play. I saw recipes with bourbon, rum, brandy, cognac, light rum, dark rum, spiced rum, rye whiskey, blended whiskey, even scotch. There were combinations of all there aforementioned. I saw different recipes that used Kahlua or Frangelico or chocolate liqueur, which I could understand. But apricot brandy? Peach schnapps? There would be none of that in my recipe.
I decided Bourbon would comprise the majority, if not all, of the two cups of liquor that would go into my 12 egg recipe. My choice is Old Weller Antique. And at 107 proof, it provides a little extra kick.
In addition to those ingredients, finishing with nutmeg seemed to be in majority agreement. There were other ingredients that were used in different peoples recipes. Turns out, everyone's grandmother has their own special secret ingredient. Salt was in some, vanilla in others. I decided a good bourbon would take care of the vanilla flavor so I wouldn't need to worry about that. Salt was interesting though; I would keep that in mind. Lemon? No.
I was setting out for the recipe to be as simple as possible. It was a good thought but simple was unfortunately leading to a rather bland Eggnog. I wanted it to be thick but not pudding. Guess milk and cream were going to be used. I wanted to use Bourbon but decided more flavor was needed. Well; multiple liquors were now needed. I decided upon some Myers dark rum and some Bitter Truth Pimento Dram(which is an Allspice Liqueur) to add extra flavor.
The following is the recipe I decided upon after some amount of experimentation. Not as simple as I wanted but it did end up with nice texture and flavor and in the end that was more important to me. Hey; I did want people to drink the stuff after all.
Eggnog Recipe
Ingredients:
12 eggs
4 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups bourbon
2 ounces dark rum
2 ounces allspice liqueur
1/4 teaspoon salt
nutmeg
Process:
Separate the 12 eggs setting aside the whites.
In a nonreactive bowl:
Beat yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until combined.
Beat in the alcohol, milk and 3 cups of the heavy cream.
Chill thoroughly.
Beat whites in separate bowl with salt and remaining sugar and cream.
Fold into previous mixture.
Garnish with nutmeg and serve.
Depending on the liquors you use and if you touch it up with anything extra, I have found the alcohol content to end up between 8 and 14%
Enjoy.
First I decided to find the common ingredients in most Eggnog. Obviously tops on the list were eggs. I wanted to make the genuine article so none of those liquid egg products would do. I decided to go for actual eggs but pasteurized to reduce peoples fear of raw eggs. I will say, however, I don't think it should be as big a concern in an alcohol laced eggnog.(Side note: A friend just told me that dipping an egg in boiling water will also help with any salmonella on the outside of the egg) Separating the eggs and starting the recipe with just the yolks was fairly common so I decided I would do it that way as well.
Next on my list was some sort of milk or cream or combination of milks products. This would be the first part where experimentation would be necessary.
Sugar came next, with the amounts and type varying from recipe to recipe. One cup of regular old sugar seemed most common so that is what I decided I would start out and perhaps adjust from there.
Alcohol was necessary and this is where variations really came into play. I saw recipes with bourbon, rum, brandy, cognac, light rum, dark rum, spiced rum, rye whiskey, blended whiskey, even scotch. There were combinations of all there aforementioned. I saw different recipes that used Kahlua or Frangelico or chocolate liqueur, which I could understand. But apricot brandy? Peach schnapps? There would be none of that in my recipe.
I decided Bourbon would comprise the majority, if not all, of the two cups of liquor that would go into my 12 egg recipe. My choice is Old Weller Antique. And at 107 proof, it provides a little extra kick.
In addition to those ingredients, finishing with nutmeg seemed to be in majority agreement. There were other ingredients that were used in different peoples recipes. Turns out, everyone's grandmother has their own special secret ingredient. Salt was in some, vanilla in others. I decided a good bourbon would take care of the vanilla flavor so I wouldn't need to worry about that. Salt was interesting though; I would keep that in mind. Lemon? No.
I was setting out for the recipe to be as simple as possible. It was a good thought but simple was unfortunately leading to a rather bland Eggnog. I wanted it to be thick but not pudding. Guess milk and cream were going to be used. I wanted to use Bourbon but decided more flavor was needed. Well; multiple liquors were now needed. I decided upon some Myers dark rum and some Bitter Truth Pimento Dram(which is an Allspice Liqueur) to add extra flavor.
The following is the recipe I decided upon after some amount of experimentation. Not as simple as I wanted but it did end up with nice texture and flavor and in the end that was more important to me. Hey; I did want people to drink the stuff after all.
Eggnog Recipe
Ingredients:
12 eggs
4 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups bourbon
2 ounces dark rum
2 ounces allspice liqueur
1/4 teaspoon salt
nutmeg
Process:
Separate the 12 eggs setting aside the whites.
In a nonreactive bowl:
Beat yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until combined.
Beat in the alcohol, milk and 3 cups of the heavy cream.
Chill thoroughly.
Beat whites in separate bowl with salt and remaining sugar and cream.
Fold into previous mixture.
Garnish with nutmeg and serve.
Depending on the liquors you use and if you touch it up with anything extra, I have found the alcohol content to end up between 8 and 14%
Enjoy.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Bourbon Battle
I will be hosting a "Bourbon Battle" in which the most popular Bourbons and Small Batch Bourbons will go head to head against each other. The competitors will include:
Bakers
Basil Hayden's
Berkshire Mountain
Blanton
Booker's
Buffalo Trace
Bulleit
Eagle Rare 10 year
Eagle Rare 17 year
Elijah Craig 12 and 18
Ezra Brooks
Hirsch
Hirsch 28 year
Jefferson
Jim Beam products
Knob Creek - both products
Makers Mark - both products
Noah's Mill
Old Crow
Old Fitzgerald's 1849
Old Weller Antique
Old Forester
Old Rip Van Winkle Products
Old Whiskey River
Pappy Van Winkle Products
Parker's Heritage products
Rebel Yell
Rock Hills Farms
Rowans Creek
Tuthilltown
Wild Turkey products
Woodford Reserve products
If you are interested in participating, please contact me.
Thank you and enjoy.
Bakers
Basil Hayden's
Berkshire Mountain
Blanton
Booker's
Buffalo Trace
Bulleit
Eagle Rare 10 year
Eagle Rare 17 year
Elijah Craig 12 and 18
Ezra Brooks
Hirsch
Hirsch 28 year
Jefferson
Jim Beam products
Knob Creek - both products
Makers Mark - both products
Noah's Mill
Old Crow
Old Fitzgerald's 1849
Old Weller Antique
Old Forester
Old Rip Van Winkle Products
Old Whiskey River
Pappy Van Winkle Products
Parker's Heritage products
Rebel Yell
Rock Hills Farms
Rowans Creek
Tuthilltown
Wild Turkey products
Woodford Reserve products
If you are interested in participating, please contact me.
Thank you and enjoy.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Upcoming Wine Tournament
Here are the seeds for the upcoming Wine Tournament.
WEST
1. Napa Cabernet Sauvignon
2. Red Zinfandel/Blend
3. Australian Shiraz
4. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
5. Oregon Pinot Noir
6. California Chardonnay
7. Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon
8. Austrian Gruner Veltliner
EAST
1. Italian Pinot Grigio
2. Chianti
3. German Riesling
4. Argentinian Malbec
5. Brunello
6. Albarino
7. Barolo
8. South African Pinotage
NORTH
1. Red Bordeaux
2. Rhone Reds
3. Rioja
4. Red Burgundy
5. Beaujolais Villages
6. White Burgundy
7. Loire Whites
8. French Rose
SOUTH
1. White Zinfandel
2. Champagne
3. Port
4. Sauterne
5. Italian Prosecco
6. Sherry
7. Moscato
8. Hungarian Tokaji
I realize that many(maybe even most) people are going to be upset with the rankings or regions the wines have been placed into. However, a great amount of research went into each wines placement. It was not just a ranking of popularity or average price, although those factors played a part. We wanted and needed to represent different wine regions. We also knew we needed to weigh the historical importance of each varietal and style while trying to feature up-and-coming wines from new regions. Some wines were very difficult to leave out; while others I admit I hated having to put in(White Zin, I'm looking at you).
While I know this will lead to many arguments and debates, as wine drinkers are a passionate group, hopefully it will all be in good fun. After all, while wine is a complex and fascinating living and breathing part of our meals and our lives, it is also supposed to be fun.
WEST
1. Napa Cabernet Sauvignon
2. Red Zinfandel/Blend
3. Australian Shiraz
4. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
5. Oregon Pinot Noir
6. California Chardonnay
7. Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon
8. Austrian Gruner Veltliner
EAST
1. Italian Pinot Grigio
2. Chianti
3. German Riesling
4. Argentinian Malbec
5. Brunello
6. Albarino
7. Barolo
8. South African Pinotage
NORTH
1. Red Bordeaux
2. Rhone Reds
3. Rioja
4. Red Burgundy
5. Beaujolais Villages
6. White Burgundy
7. Loire Whites
8. French Rose
SOUTH
1. White Zinfandel
2. Champagne
3. Port
4. Sauterne
5. Italian Prosecco
6. Sherry
7. Moscato
8. Hungarian Tokaji
I realize that many(maybe even most) people are going to be upset with the rankings or regions the wines have been placed into. However, a great amount of research went into each wines placement. It was not just a ranking of popularity or average price, although those factors played a part. We wanted and needed to represent different wine regions. We also knew we needed to weigh the historical importance of each varietal and style while trying to feature up-and-coming wines from new regions. Some wines were very difficult to leave out; while others I admit I hated having to put in(White Zin, I'm looking at you).
While I know this will lead to many arguments and debates, as wine drinkers are a passionate group, hopefully it will all be in good fun. After all, while wine is a complex and fascinating living and breathing part of our meals and our lives, it is also supposed to be fun.
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