Literate drinking: Drink.Think heads to San Fran on Feb 5!

Drink.Think is going on the road…to San Francisco!

If you’ll be in the Bay area on Tuesday, Feb 5, I hope you’ll come out to Cantina to enjoy a drink and hear an amazing group of writers read from their work about beverages.

In addition, Karlsson’s Vodka and Santa Teresa Rum will be pouring samples of their products.  (The regular bar also will be available.)

Date & Time:  Tuesday, February 5, 2013.  The bar will be open starting at 6pm – the reading starts at 7pm.

Location:  Cantina, 580 Sutter St at Mason St, San Francisco, CA

Admission: FREE admission and samples of Karlsson’s Vodka and Santa Teresa. Drinks will be available for purchase.

Featured Readers:  Curated by wine and spirits writer Kara Newman, participants include:

• Camper English, cocktail/spirits writer for San Francisco Chronicle, Details.com andFine Cooking
• Courtney Humiston, columnist, 7×7 Magazine and founding editor, TableToGrave.com
• Duggan McDonnell, writer, bartender and boozy entrepreneur
• Gayle Keck, food and travel writer
• Virginia Miller, food and drink correspondent, San Francisco Bay Guardian and blogger, ThePerfectSpotSF.com
• Jill Robinson, travel writer, San Francisco Chronicle, American Way and more
• Michael Shapiro, freelance travel writer, National Geographic Traveler and Islands magazine
• Stevie Stacionis, wine writer and Director of Communication at Corkbuzz Wine Studio
• Liza B. Zimmerman, editor-at-large Cheers and contributing editor to Wine Business Monthly

I hope to see you at Cantina on Feb 5 – come thirsty!

Would you put vodka in your Negroni?

So, this writer walks into a bar….

No, it’s not the beginning of a joke. It’s what I did Tuesday night. Not a craft cocktail bar, not a fancy hotel bar, just an ordinary neighborhood bar on my way home. And I ordered what’s become my go-to recently:  “A Negroni, please.”

“Certainly,” the bartender responded. “Would you like that with vodka or gin?”

That gave me a moment’s pause — no one has ever asked me that before!– and I stuttered out my response: “Gin, please.” As the bartender finished another order and then began mine — Campari, sweet vermouth, and gin –I thumbed out a quick post on Twitter:

Hmmm…first time a bartender has asked if I’d like my Negroni “with vodka or gin.” Should I run?

— Kara Newman (@karanewman) February 22, 2012

The responses flew in before I’d even finished my drink. “RUN!” urged @inukena. “YES, RUN!” echoed @feeedme. Emboldened by alcohol, I finally asked the bartender:  “So…do people really order Negronis with vodka?” He nodded solemnly. “Oh, yes. It’s the vodka generation. But personally, I prefer gin.” I polished off the rest of my drink and posted again:

Ok, final result on that Negroni: false alarm. Guy knows what he’s doing; good Negroni. He’s just extra accommodating.

— Kara Newman (@karanewman) February 22, 2012

But clearly I had touched a nerve. The responses continued to roll in over the next 24 hours:

@inukena:  (Collective sigh of relief)

@RobertOSimonson:  He still should never ask that question. With a Martini, I’d grudgingly accept it. A Negroni? No.

@LegendofMyself:   you can choose between the Negroni which is with gin, the Negroski with dry vodka and the “wrong” Negroni with brut champagne

@orpheum:  People order Negronis with vodka? Shame on them. Shame!

@raelinn_wine:  VILE! pffff vodka in a negroni.

@nikki_d:  Vodka in a negroni? Yikes!

@SpiritManager:  But if you make it with Vodka, is it still a Negroni? Shouldn’t it have a different name?

All this anti-vodka vitriol! OK. So cranky contrarian that I am, I couldn’t help it. Last night, I returned the same bar, and asked the same bartender:  “Negroni, please. But this time….I’ll try it with vodka.”

He did a double-take, but quickly recovered, and made my drink. As he stirred, I explained my reasoning:  My preferred gin for a Negroni is Plymouth, because it’s soft and neutral, and not overly juniper-y. But isn’t that just a step removed from vodka anyway? And wouldn’t bitter Campari overwhelm the nuances in gin, anyhow?

 He nodded, clearly placating the babbling guest, and set my drink down.

So how was it? The gin-based Negroni was much, much better than the vodka version.  I can’t explain why. Frankly, it’s not logical, and the best I can offer is some lame excuse about the alchemy between the three ingredients that make up the cocktail.

But the bartender understood when he saw me push away the barely-touched drink, and repeated his line from the night before.

“Personally, I prefer gin.”

Me too, barkeep. Me too.

Why I won’t be drinking “the world’s hottest chilli vodka”

Supposedly, I know a thing or two about spicy spirits and cocktails.  But even I have my limits.

A press release just landed on my desk, announcing the launch of “the world’s hottest chilli vodka” (this is a UK brand; U.S. folks use ”chile” to refer to hot peppers): “100,000 Scovilles – Naga Chilli Vodka, made by infusing vodka with the world’s hottest chilli – the Naga Jolokia. ” In other words, Ghost Pepper-infused vodka.

Fine. Those ghost peppers are mighty hot stuff.  But I’ve had ghost pepper-infused spirits. That’s not the problem. Nor is the following warning on the label/web site (actually, I think this is funny):

By purchasing this bottle, you agree that:

1) I have been warned and fully understand that this product contains extreme heat and should be used and handled responsibly.

2) I use this product entirely at my own risk and I understand the potential danger if used or handled irresponsibly. If I give this product as a gift I will make the recipient aware of the potential danger if used or handled irresponsibly.

3) I accept that the retailer and manufacturer of this product will, under no circumstances, be responsible for, or liable for, any claims of injury or damage arising from the use or misuse of this product and by purchasing this product, whether for myself or as a gift, I acknowledge and agree to this fact without question.

4) I am not inebriated or of unsound mind and am fully able to make a rational decision to purchase this product.

No, what bothers me is THIS:  drinkers are urged not to drink it neat, and “definitely do not have it as a shot.”

Simply put: If you can’t drink it straight, you shouldn’t buy it.

What? You’re going to buy it anyway? Masochist. Might as well buy a copy of my book while you’re at it to get some cocktail suggestions, since you’re so severely discouraged from drinking that vodka straight up.

“Whiskey doesn’t care. That’s what makes it cool.”

Ever anthropomorphize spirits? You know, assign an animal or object (like liquor) human traits?  Here’s an excellent, and hilarious example, from Dan Dunn’s recent rant on Food Republic, “Finally A Whiskey For Horrible People.”

It doesn’t matter what whiskey he’s referring to in the headline – THIS is the whiskey you want to know better:

Whiskey doesn’t care. That’s what makes it cool. The only other liquor that’s anywhere near as cool is Tequila. But Tequila’s always been too crazy to really be cool. Tequila will cut you for looking at its woman, then laugh while the cops drag it off to jail, and spit at you during the trial. And trust me you don’t want to pick on Vodka either. Dude doesn’t have much of a personality, but I swear he goes to the gym twice a day. You want the nerd of the liquor crew? Try Gin. You can give Gin an atomic wedgie and the worst it’ll do is scream that his daddy will have you banned from the yacht club.

Where else do we see anthropomorphizing? That’s right, fairy tales, where the wolf is Big and Bad, and the piglets are helpless but chatty. I want to read a fairy tale – or at least watch a cartoon - featuring these spirits as characters.

5 Things I’ve Learned About…Cherry/Berry Flavored Vodkas

The November 2011 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine is out, and it includes (among other things) my review column on Cherry and Berry Flavored Vodkas.  You can pick up a copy at the newsstand, or view it in digital format on Zinio (if it’s not there now, it will be soon).  Here’s what I learned:

1. Flavored vodka gets no respect. Cocktail geek buddies groaned when I told them I was doing this category. They were mostly but not entirely right. Yes, there was lots of mediocrity in the cherry/berry category (unlike citrus-flavored vodkas, which overall were quite good), and on average, the scores were relatively low. But – as I suspected –  there were gems worth finding.

2. A wide range of good berry/cherry vodkas exist; they’re not necessarily uniform.  The best of the bunch included a full-bodied, deep red, nearly cordial-like vodka; a blush-pink, floral-berry vodka; and a clear-as-a-bell spirit with an engagingly juicy raspberry character.

3. There are more bad than good vodkas in this flavor category. A surplus of crummy vodkas surely arrived, such as the Windex-blue contender that arrived in a jug-sized plastic container and tasted like mouthwash. Another memorable specimen was a vodka whose main claim to fame was that it turns your tongue black.

4. It must be difficult to accurately replicate cherry and berry vodka flavors, since so few get it right.

5. The aroma is often the best part of flavored vodkas. Bartenders already know this.

If you have a favorite cherry/berry flavored vodka to share, I’d love to hear about it. Usually I’d rather showcase what’s awesome vs. bashing the not-so-good, but I’ll make an exception this time:  vodka horror stories are welcome too!

Playing with pepper (and vodka)

 You might already know (or suspect) my fondness for peppercorn cocktails. So it was a pleasant surprise to receive a box containing a bottle of Karlsson’s Vodka, along with a Karlsson’s-branded bottle of black peppercorns.

I had to ask, what was the connection between vodka and pepper?

“The inspiration came from the founder, Peter Ekelund, who was accustomed to eating the potatoes with black pepper,” the PR rep explained. “After developing the vodka, he was inspired to try it on the rocks with some black pepper, thus creating their signature drink, the Black Gold.” More specifically, vodka with a grind of black pepper.

Frankly, I’m not a fan of ground black pepper in drinks — it makes for an unpleasantly gritty texture. But I tried my own variation (above) — vodka shaken with ice and whole peppercorns. It livened up the sweet vodka with a bit of peppery zing, but made it easy to leave the pepper at the bottom of the glass.

5 Things I’ve Learned About…American Vodka

The July 2011 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine is out, and it includes (among other things) my review column on American Vodka— just in time for Independence Day.  You can pick up a copy at the newsstand, or view it in digital format on Zinio.  Here’s what I learned:

1. To be perfectly honest, I’d been dreading this category. Unflavored vodkas with no scent, color, or flavor? What the heck was I going to say?  As it turns out….plenty. However, in the end, reviewing vodka (at least, this particular batch) was a little like evaluating shades of gray. I didn’t realize until I saw the print column, side by side with the wide-ranging wine reviews, how unusually homogeneous the scores were.

2. All those states produce vodka?  It was exciting to see the broad cross-section of states represented in the samples, spanning up the Northwest coastline, across the Midwest, and over the Eastern seaboard.   I think I sampled from NY, IL, CA, WA, VA, OR, MN, NJ, VT, AR, ID, PA, WI, OH, CO. It’s like armchair travel.

3. All the different stuff from which vodka is made. Of course, grain was expected, and came in the form of wheat, rye, and corn. We don’t see many potato-based vodkas outside of eastern Europe, but at least one arrived. However, enticing vodkas made from grapes, honey, maple sap, and milk sugar were particularly pleasant surprises.  A pricey Napa Valley vodka made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes was especially memorable.

4. I need to learn more about the distillation process. Since it seems to be a particular bragging point among vodka makers, I’d like to understand better how (and frankly, if) it truly matters how many times a spirit is distilled. Or whether it’s filtered through charcoal, volcanic matter, diamond dust, etc.

Maybe vodka distillation is subject to the rule of diminishing returns:  Frankly, from my semi-layman’s view, extreme distillation seemed to yield minimal impact. (I’m going to get hate mail over that last statement. So be it.)

5. It’s surprisingly hard to think of distinctive vodka cocktails to illustrate how specific vodkas might be used. “Vodka soda” and “vodka martini” seem pale, don’t you think?

Unlike whiskey or tequila, vodka never seems to be the centerpiece of cocktails these days. In fact, vodka gets so much disrespect in the cocktailian community, one mixology chat room I know has set up a gleeful macro: every time a member types the word “vodka,” it’s auto-replaced with the word “poserfluid.” Now there’s a word that might generate some fireworks among vodka distillers.

Do you have a favorite vodka or vodka cocktail? I’d love to hear about it.

Spicy Spirits: Yazi ginger flavored vodka

I hate spirits targeted to women. I just don’t understand why I’m expected to want to drink something just because it’s pink, or just because a chick is printed somewhere on the label.

So sorry to say, Yazi Vodka (isn’t that the name of a contraceptive?) had a strike against it from the minute I saw the marketing material. The funny thing is, it’s not a particularly “feminine” bottle. It has a dragon on one side, and a red-and-and-white label on the other. Although it’s being marketed as “perfume-inspired,” in fact, the bottle has some serious heft to it. Perhaps it could be marketed to women looking for a weapon to fend off attackers.

Okay, that’s enough sniping about the packaging. What about what’s inside?

The ginger-infused vodka has a good punch to it, “sweet and spicy,” as advertised. Supposedly it’s made from four different species of ginger (which ones are not specified anywhere I can find), and cayenne, as well as lemon and orange.  I didn’t quite pick up the fruity notes. The cayenne zing sneaks up on you and lingers a good long time, though it probably would be tempered in a drink with some sweetness to it, like the “Yazitini” recipe listed on the bottle neck tag — essentially, a ginger Cosmopolitan. At 35% abv, it’s a little less potent than most of the 80 proof vodkas out there, which is not a bad thing.

The final verdict: Although the pseudo “Sex and the City” positioning makes me cranky, the spirit is just fine.  Chileheads will enjoy the lingering cayenne prickle.

A spiced spirit I can only dream about

This a curious coincidence.  Last week, I filed a Spirited Traveller post about spice-infused spirits in Mumbai, informed by insight from the high-spirited Rushina Munshaw Ghildiyal, a blogger, writer, and culinary expert based in Mumbai.

Most of the article is about the growing trend for Mumbai bartenders to infuse spirits — particularly vodka — with Indian and Southeast Asian flavours such as roasted cumin, kaffir lime leaves, or bird’s-eye chiles.

The day the article ran, I recieved an email from Rushina:  “I thought u might want to have a look see,” she wrote.

Indeed – it was a press release for Masala Mar Ke, a new product from U.S. vodka maker Smirnoff, “with the added zing of tangy lemonade and fiery chaat masala.“

It’s not sold in the U.S., and probably never will be. And I’m drooling over the prospect of getting my hands on a bottle, made more attractive by its sheer elusiveness.

Why do we always want what we can’t have?  If you’ve had a great bottle (or cocktail) overseas that you can’t get at home, please feel free to commiserate here. Misery loves company!

Spicy spirits: DragonBleu flavored vodkas

I’m always on the lookout for new spicy spirits, and these appeared on my doorstep one day, French vodkas made by a Cognac distiller, each one infused with agave nectar and a little something extra.  (There’s an unflavored version too, but we’re all about the bold flavors here.)  At first, I thought they might be made from grapes, but nope, it’s a grain-based vodka.  Here’s the assessment:

DragonBleu White Ginger Vodka:  It’s slightly cloudy in the glass, and has a true but relatively mild ginger scent. The spirit has a good ginger zing on top of the agave sweetness, and finishes surprisingly smooth. It had a slight bitter aftertaste, but overall I like it and I think others would too. I want to mix it with pineapple juice & make tiki-style drinks.

Final verdict:  Very nice. Get some. Make tiki drinks.

DragonBleu Penja Pepper Vodka:  Okay, so my first question was, what the heck is a Penja pepper? The label doesn’t really tell you, so I looked it up:  peppercorns from the Penja Valley of Cameroon – black, white, or green. 

The vodka had an earthy flavor, with a mild black pepper/pink pepper burn in the back of the throat, which lingers there. (I may have just interpreted white peppercorn as pink because the sweetness from the agave).  It takes a couple of sips for the peppery heat to build, but it’s not a harsh heat, it’s about medium heat.

Final verdict:  Medium heat. Could be interesting in fruity drinks, like a Cosmo variation.  I appreciated it more than I enjoyed it.

DragonBleu Rose Blossom Vodka:  Floral flavors are tough to do. Too much, and you imagine you’re drinking perfume or soap – bleech!  So this one is a pleasant surprise. Just a faint rosewater fragrance, and an equally delicate floral taste manned up by peppery notes on the finish. There’s that now-familiar agave sweetness. Mixed with say, grapefruit and cranberry juice to cut some of the perfuminess, this would go down easy. I wanted to add a splash of rye whiskey too, to rough up the edges a bit.

Final verdict:  Chileheads will hate this, unless they muddle a few slices of Serrano in there first. But a good choice for those who appreciate floral flavors.