Sláinte! Uisce Beatha na Éireann

March 15, 2016March 15, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 35 Comments

Week 11 in the Year Of Drinking Adventurously! Irish Whiskey. (I hope I got my Irish translation right!)

That’s me waving to you from the cliffs of Dun Aengus on Innis More, one of The Aran Islands off the West Coast of Ireland. I’ve been to Ireland three times and I’m sure we’ll go again. I’m trying to figure out how to move there permanently, that’s how much I love it.

So Irish Whiskey… It’s a permanent fixture in my liquor cabinet. Most of the time I have a bottle of regular old Jameson’s in my stash.

Sometimes I splurge and buy the Red Breast, which is a “single pot still” style. A pot still is like a huge kettle where the batch is boiled, the vapors rise, are collected and cooled to produce the whiskey. Since the pot has to be cleaned after each use, only one batch of whiskey is produced from the single pot.

My imbibition of Irish whiskey generally involves a glass and some ice. Sometimes not even the ice. Occasionally not even the glass! (Just kidding!) However, I have a fun, terribly-named, politically incorrect cocktail for you to try. Actually, I’m not sure this qualifies as a cocktail. If you go to Ireland, do not ask for this drink. You will be deported. And for Paddy’s sake, don’t tell anyone you learned it from me or they’ll never let me back in.

~~The Irish Car Bomb~~: (Don’t say I didn’t warn you…)

Fill a shot glass with a half shot each, Jameson’s Irish whiskey and Bailey’s Irish Cream
Drop the shot glass into a pint glass of Guinness and watch it “explode”
Chug the whole thing in one fell swoop so you don’t lose a drop!
Enjoy responsibly! Oh wait, too late for that…

When we travel to Ireland, it’s primarily for my husband’s work. His company has a facility in Galway. I get to tag along, but that means that for most of the time, I’m off traipsing around by myself. That’s not a recipe for disaster, no. The girl who fancies herself a writer wandering around the gorgeous countryside, listening to fairy tales and visiting the pubs on her own? Not to mention the lovely ~~men~~ people and some of the best whiskey on the planet. What could possibly go wrong?

There are pubs that cater to the foreign visitors and there are those that are more for the locals. In Galway, I like to go to this place called Garavan’s – definitely more of a local hangout than a tourist place – where they pretend to want your business but they really don’t. And they haven’t forgiven England for… well, everything. Even stuff that’s not their fault.

So anyway, it’s dark inside, the tables are all close together with little stools crowded around. They still have a small room at the front where ladies used to have to sit separately from the main part of the pub. I think sometimes the bartender wants me to go have a seat in there. But then I can’t see the hurling match on TV. And ask him lots of questions while he tries to ignore me.

Garavan’s has a collection of 125 different whiskeys and a whiskey tasting menu. The last time I was there I tried the Irish writer’s collection – a sampler of 5 different whiskeys from a few of Ireland’s most famous writers like James Joyce, Oscar Wilde and William Butler Yeats. I forget what all I tried. But I definitely remember that the one I liked best was The Yellow Spot 12-year-old single pot still whiskey. And I remember something about the Women’s Rugby World Cup – Ireland versus England. And that they turned the TV off during “God Save the Queen.” Things got ugly when Ireland started to lose. And I made the mistake of asking for an ~~Irish Car Bomb~~…

Go visit Lula and see if she found the pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow!

“La fée verte” (The Green Fairy)

March 8, 2016March 8, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 69 Comments

Week ten in The Year of Drinking Adventurously. Absinthe!

So I know you all will find this hard to believe, (that’s me being sarcastic) but this is not my first time dancing with The Green Fairy. Because you know how cautious I am about trying new things. Try not to laugh out loud… It’s only a recent indulgence, however. That’s because absinthe had been banned in many countries around the world since the early 20th century. In fact, it wasn’t until 2007 that a French distiller was allowed to import absinthe into the USA — the first time since 1912.

So what’s the deal with absinthe? Its main ingredients are wormwood (which gives it its bad reputation), sweet fennel and anise. The rumor that absinthe is highly addictive and psychoactive is false. Nevertheless, that myth led to the aforementioned ban in the USA and much of Europe around 1915. The unintended consequence of this action was to give absinthe a dark, sexy, mysterious allure. Tell someone they can’t have something and it becomes even more desirable than before. Finally, the myths have been debunked and absinthe is once again available for your drinking pleasure!

I know I’ve complained about the difficult time I’ve had finding some of the more exotic beverages since I started this virtual booze cruise, but absinthe was not a problem. There happens to be a distillery right here in Philly that produces a lovely product. Voila:

Vieux Carré from Philadelphia Distilling Company, the first East Coast distiller to produce absinthe. At 120 proof, this Green Fairy packs a wallop. Traditionally, the spirit is prepared for consumption by placing a sugar cube on top of a specially designed slotted spoon, which is then placed on a glass filled with a dose of absinthe. Iced water is poured or dripped over the sugar cube to slowly and evenly distribute the water into the absinthe.

I did not do this, for two reasons…. First, I kept forgetting to buy sugar cubes when I went to the store, and more importantly, I like the taste of undiluted absinthe. The anise flavor is quite pleasant, actually. And no you won’t have hallucinations. Well, maybe if you drank a really, really lot of it… But that could happen with any strong spirit. Take my word for it.

Anyway…

Absinthe has long been associated with Bohemian culture and thus was a popular drink among artists and writers like Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Charles Baudelaire, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Amedeo Modigliani, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Oscar Wilde, and Marcel Proust. Its connection to such legendary artistes has only added to the fascination. Absinthe possesses a mystery, mythology, and seductive appeal. I recommend it without reservation.

So drape yourself in black, draw the curtains closed and pray for rain. And while you’re dripping your absinthe over sugar cubes, reading poetry by candlelight, listen to some music that will complete your experience: The Cure – Prayers For Rain. And don’t forget to see how Lula danced with the Green Fairy!

Yo, it’s Philly.

February 23, 2016February 23, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 28 Comments

Week 8 in The Year of Drinking Adventurously!

Rye beer is here. Before you get all up in my face about Thomas Jefferson being from Virginia, let me explain. Yards Brewing Company is a local Philadelphia microbrewery with a collection of beers called “Ales of the Revolution” which (supposedly) follow the tradtional recipes created by the Founding Fathers – Thomas Jefferson being one. The brewmaster at Yards worked with along Philadelphia’s famous City Tavern, which dates from pre-Revolutionary times, to come up with the recipe for Thomas Jefferson’s Tavern Ale. It’s a golden ale, crafted with rye as one of its malted grains.

51fffcpqPZL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_ According to Jeff’s book: “… it was fairly common for brewers to supplement barley malt and other grains with rye during colonial times. It was more about what was available to them at the time, than it was about a particular flavor profile they were pursuing.”

If old Tommy’s recipe has been authentically reproduced, then this is a really great ale. And at 8% alcohol, it’s a butt kicker! The brewmaster recommends pairing the tavern ale with a rich, fatty meat like roast duck. I drank mine with “locally sourced” potato chips. I found the pairing to be quite enchanting. The saltiness of the chips was subtly complimented by the liquidity of the ale. That tangy rye flavor added a little zing to the otherwise bland potato. And chips are fatty, right? It’s kind of like roast duck, in that sense.

I am disappointed that Yards doesn’t give John Adams some love. He is my favorite Founding Father. Mostly because of David McCullough’s book “John Adams” and the HBO miniseries it spawned. John Adams and his wife, Abigail, were the nation’s first power couple.

Abby was a force in her own right – my kind of lady! The letters they wrote to each other are eloquent, intelligent and absolutely beautiful. They called each other “my dearest friend” which I find oddly romantic. I cried at the end of the book when Abigail died. Oops – spoilers!

Oh well, perhaps Adams wasn’t the party animal Jefferson, Franklin and Washington were. But since he “paired” so well with Jefferson, perhaps we could at least name a roast duck dish for him.

Don’t forget to stop by and see what Lula drank this week!