ultramagnetic's Profile
Looking for Kronan Swedish Punsch
South Bay Drugs?
I've read that it's been closed for a while and is in the process of reopening somewhere.
Looking for Kronan Swedish Punsch
Now that Kronan is available in the U.S., does anyone know where it's being sold in San Diego, preferably in North County?
I almost always make a stop at Holiday Wine Cellar for my beer purchases when I visit and while the liquor selection there is definitely above average, I can't remember if they carry other Haus Alpenz products. BevMos in my area carry some the Haus Alpenz products but not Kronan and I wouldn't count on other BevMos to do so. What are the specialty/cocktail geek type bottle shops in the county to check out?
Top Chef Texas - Ep. #5 - 11/30/11 (Spoilers)
Just another example of the level of sophistication that the hosts have.
moto mentioned earlier in the thread that some of the chefs seemed naive and inexperienced and didn't focus on plating and appearance of the dishes for these people. I remember one of the chefs saying something along the lines of being surrounded by so much elegance. I shouldn't be surprised that some of the chefs, like many people in society, confuse money and appearances for true style, grace and depth.
Santa Cruz County needs more high-end grocery stores......
Why don't we have stores like that? Because that is San Francisco and this is Santa Cruz. If there are so many foodies in this county, why aren't there more good restaurants? Why would you be surprised at New Leaf? I'm sure they have a better idea of what their goals are and who their customer base is than we do. Aside from the Westside location, where are they going to fit more expensive or niche products into their little stores?
surprise nice finds, and a weizenbock Q
Ayinger makes their Weizen-Bock in in the same vein as Vitus. A strong hef and not a wheat doppel. Not quite as good as Vitus as I recall, but still a very good beer.
Anyone want to help me name a drink?
The "Haphazard Combination of a Bunch of Booze and Lemonade that is Horribly Sweet and Strong"
Beer Wars
What are the pretty good specialty brews from A-B or MillerCoors you're referring to? Some of the Michelob products? Blue Moon?
Good inexpensive gin
Seagram's Distiller's Reserve. $15/750. Flavorful with a strong 102 proof backbone that makes it a versatile gin that works in Martinis and more complex cocktails.
Any good food near Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz?
Also, both Gabriella Cafe and 515 Kitchen and Cocktails are both a few blocks north on Cedar St. from Kuumbwa.
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515 Kitchen and Cocktails
santa cruz, CA, santa cruz, CA
Gabriella Cafe
910 Cedar Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Why won't bars stock good vermouth?
While I agree that it a it could done without too much of a hit, aside from an owner or manager's commitment to high quality ingredients and/or craft cocktails, what would be the incentive to use Vya?
Using Q or Stirrings or Fever Tree instead of gun tonic would be much worse for the bottom line than using high end vermouth. I don't know the cost of a box of tonic syrup, but I'd say it's a least 10x cheaper per drink than one of those three. Having them, or Schweppes at the least, as an option would be nice.
Why won't bars stock good vermouth?
It's vermouth, it's not premium vodka. The money's not going to be spent to market the hell out of it or educate the masses. It's more difficult than putting it in a frosted bottle and charging more. I wonder how many people have ever had regular Bombay gin to even compare it to Sapphire. All they know is that blue bottle.
And are they necessarily going to choose Vya dry over Noilly Prat? Are they going to be able to tell the difference in their Martinis? That is never going to be a make or break question for the average person when he is deciding where to spend his money.
Why won't bars stock good vermouth?
The simple answer is that the average bar or restaurant patron knows Grey Goose, Bombay Sapphire, and Macallan. Punt e Mes, Carpano Antica, and Vya are brands of which they've never heard. Furthermore, the average patron probably doesn't have a preference among the common brands of vermouth. Why bother to stock something that costs three times as much or more and will rarely, if ever, be ordered by your clientele?
And you're giving Cinzano, M&R, and Noilly Prat a bum rap. They are better quality products than Scoresby, Cossack, etc..
Brew Dog Punk IPA
Yep. A barely average IPA when I had it and the not worth the extra cost. It doesn't hold a candle to tons of American IPAs that are available all over the country. The Physics amber is a little better but not much. I'm wary of trying their other beers that my local shop has for "only" $5.99/bottle or $10 or so for the Paradox imperial stout.
Signature drink recommendations for wedding cocktail hour and reception
I've seen (as the bartender) signature cocktails go over like lead balloons at wedding receptions and other events. If you are going to do this, tray passing is necessary to ensure that guests at least try the drink you've chosen.
Aside from MC Slim JB, do any of you others know how well your cocktails moved during your receptions?
Good HOPPY Cheap Beer
In my neck of the woods, that's an $11 four-pack. Not exactly cheap.
Giving Up the Fridge to Be More Green
I'd much rather go with a chest freezer-to-refrigerator conversion:
http://mtbest.net/chest_fridge.html
I'm curious if it would be even more efficient than using a mini-fridge or constantly refreezing water bottles to keep a cooler chilled.
Or they could purchase a super efficient Sunfrost refrigerator.
But I'm sure these people consider their fridge-free status a badge of honor.
Best places to order booze online?
Have you checked here:
http://liquor.idaho.gov/Purchasing.htm
I did a search in the category price book and found Averna and Ramazzotti listed for amaros as well as Lucid and what looks like the new Pernod absinthe.
Living in California, I don't have personal experience with state-run liquor stores. Aren't the individual stores supposed to, if not carry, at least be able to order what is listed in the price book for people?
How much of a beer snob have you become?
I like to think that I've moved past beer snob a while ago and have matured into a beer geek. Snobs are often times the poseurs who are only drinking craft beer to be trendy, or criticize others for drinking what they themselves would have chosen to drink the previous month. Mostly a semantic difference that I use now that is definitely not cut and dry.
I don't really care what beers the average restaurant or bar offers. But I usually don't drink beer with dinner so a glass of wine or water is fine. I enjoy liquor as well, so a simple mixed drink, something neat or a (hopefully) well made cocktail are an option for me when at a bar. But I still can enjoy something as common as an Anchor Steam or Sam Adams as it's probably been quite some time since I've had one. I also try to separate my geek time from when I'm with people who I know aren't going to use tap and bottle lists as criteria for deciding where to go. I've found it awkward when I'm getting excited about multiple vintages of Cantillon or what's available on cask and the rest of the group is lost because they don't recognize any of the beer available.
Am I likely to dislike all whiskey?
What was the cocktail that you made?
Miniature bottles are your friend. Find a liquor store that has a decent selection and you should be able to find examples like Maker's Mark, Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, Johnnie Walker, Jameson, Crown Royal and even Macallan 12yr. in the 50ml size. You'll be able to try the basics without the expense of buying a full bottle. Rye, on the other hand, might be tough to find in miniature.
And Jim Beam Black is a not a bad bourbon at all.
Ararac?
I'm guessing you mean arak? The anise flavored liqueur?
Various Beverages and More locations carry it. Beverage Warehouse carries a brand. Check around at your better local liquor stores. It shouldn't be very difficult to find.
Tonic Water
Nothing I've had would I consider excellent. I haven't had the Whole Foods version and Schweppes and Canada Dry are what they are. Fever Tree is very good and more than satisfactory for me.
I don't drink gin and tonics that much anymore so I'm really not on the lookout for new tonic. And I can't really think of any other brands commercially available besides those six anyways.
Tonic Water
I've tried all three and prefer Fever Tree.
Stirrings is too sweet. Q is pretty good but not great. And at $2.50 a bottle when I ordered from Kegworks, it was horrendously overpriced. I do like Fever Tree more than Q but I still wouldn't call it "excellent".
Favorite Grocery Store in Santa Cruz and Why
Staff of Life for milk, yogurt, soy/almond milk, Glaum eggs, bulk bins, and non-farmer's market produce. Not a fan or their beef at all but the Fulton Valley chicken is good stuff.
Shopper's Corner, on occasion, for meat and other items I need at the time. A couple of their butchers seem to go through the motions at times when helping me while others have been great.
Since I live in Soquel, I'll go down to Deluxe Foods for meat and a few other things that I might need at the time. And for the selection of cheeses. Their butchers are always friendly and I know where to go if I ever decide to splurge for a dry-aged prime steak. Certainly not the best bargain in town but great quality.
I definitely am not someone who does the bulk of his shopping at Trader Joe's. I agree with Carb Lover that certain TJ's items aren't the greatest quaility. The milk always seems to have off flavors and spoils way too quickly. It is good for cereal, Martinis olive oil, Mediterranean/Greek yogurt, and some frozen fruit and frozen prepared food and few other things. Thanks to Brown Ranch Marketplace management, having to see the same charity workers asking for donations at the Capitola store week in and week out doesn't help matters either.
The Cabrillo and downtown farmer's markets are where most of the fruits and vegetables come from. New Leaf, Capitola Village Produce, Nob Hill and Safeway all see occasional trips.
Has anyone purchased the Harris Ranch-sourced Natural Choice "Never Ever" beef that New Leaf now carries?
Baltika Shout out
Baltika 9 is just horribly, horribly sweet and alcoholic. It belongs in a clear, 40 ounce bottle with the rest of its brethren. Unpleasant stuff, imo.
Baltika 6, on the other hand, is a nice Baltic porter.
Sierra Nevada Harvest Ales
I enjoyed it. More so than the fall release wet hop Harvest Ale.
$3.79-$4.19 here in central Caliornia.
Best Ice for Cocktails
It's not ridiculous at all.
Here's a whole thread over at egullet on the topic:
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=45176&pid=1349831&mode=threaded&show=&st=&
After reading that thread, I've done some experimenting with freezing filtered water that I've boiled, freezing blocks in rectangular storage containers, thawing and refreezing, all to try and get clearer ice. In the end, I couldn't get any of it very clear and it didn't seem to be worth the trouble for home use. I did get some Tovolo silicone ice cube trays for nicer looking real cubes instead of the various ice tray shapes. Hand chipped ice from a home frozen block is something I might try in the future.
There's always this little guy:
http://www.kold-draft.com/products/ice-butler/
Only $1700 at Sam's Club.
Drinks TV - Great site!
Sorry, but that site is the source of one of worst mint juleps you'll ever see made:
http://www.drinkstv.com/recipe5638.aspx?r=y&pl=main
Here's a bartender using her bare hand to scoop ice into the mixing glass:
http://www.drinkstv.com/recipe5604.aspx?r=y&pl=main
Ugh.
Bad drinks, lame club bartenders, lots of cleavage, and liquor ads all rolled into one!
