Round two! Second verse, same as the first. But hot.
Merry Christmas! (I’m not around to look at the news today.)
Tag: sugar
81. Egg Nogg
Merry Christmas Eve and/or Happy Hanukkah! This is a more classic eggnog than the others this month, and was pretty tasty. I actually messed up the proportions slightly on this one (recovered in the hot version tomorrow) but it still went down easy. Then again, I’m someone who likes eggnog, which I know isn’t always the case.
I’m skipping news today, in lieu of general holiday greetings. Sort of news, though: it won’t be the first night of Hanukkah on Christmas Eve again until 2027! Cool!
86. Sherry Egg Nogg
My dorm in college used to have Sherry Hour every week, or maybe every month… I forget which. Anyways, I was never really a fan, but I had this bottle on hand so this drink worked out fairly well. It also is a little closer to what I think of as actual eggnog, at least compared to the others so far.
All of my interactions with Beefeaters have been very friendly. Granted, I think I only had one, as a tour guide at the Tower of London, but still. Apparently, they drink sherry! Also whiskey. However, I am confused as to why they do not drink gin. You’d think that would be a thing… Otherwise what is Beefeater gin? This is all barely news. I apologize.
85. General Harrison’s Egg Nogg
I’m a little confused. I think the “General Harrison” in the title is referring to William Henry Harrison, who was a relatively famous General in the period prior to the writing of this cocktail book. However, he was also President of the United States, also prior to the writing of this book. So… shouldn’t this be “President Harrison’s Egg Nogg?” Or is there someone else? (I also found a general in the English Civil War but I doubt it was him.)
To be an useful purveyor of news, I’m going to focus on the General in this title, not Harrison (though I did find this entertaining and useless article). The biggest news is, of course, the revelation that Russia probably did act to influence the general election, and that Trump doesn’t really care and thinks it’s stupid (at the time of writing). Both things are, unfortunately, not hugely surprising. You may need a drink.
132. Apple Toddy
First off, baked apples are good on their own. So, when this recipe called for dunking one into alcohol, I expected it to be delicious. Correctly. I used the Joy of Cooking recipe for a baked apple. Because the Joy of Cooking is my everything.
In the latest Apple news, the company has branched out from computers and technology into the new field of books about computers and technology. Namely, themselves. Super nice photography in here, but I feel like the price tag is pretty unjustified. Sort of how I feel about their new products, too, but that’s another blog. It is pretty though.
20. Curaçoa Punch
Well, I did a whole bunch of these last weekend, and then, as a side effect, totally forgot to write any posts. Perhaps we should do fewer than five at a time. Hrm.
I was excited about this one! I’ve been digging the use of the curaçao in all of the cocktails recently. Was my excitement justified? Eh, kinda. Though it will certainly be good to move away from this liquor only from a spelling perspective — the fact that he spells it differently confuses my brain every time. Or maybe that’s the alcohol.
As news stories about punching are generally never good, I was happy to come across this one. Though it’s really a stretch. Nicole Scherzinger wanted to punch someone on X Factor because their performance was so good. I guess. Confusingly, the clip on the site doesn’t actually have that part in it. But he did sing very well.
110. Champagne Cocktail
Another variation on the Old Fashioned theme, this one a little more out there than the others. Why? Well, it’s exactly the same but with champagne instead of a hard liquor. So it adds bubbles and sweetness, among other things. A very different experience.
Apparently this year’s Champagne harvest was very bad, so we could see increased prices and limited supply in the coming years! Horror of horrors! Luckily, the wineries tend to have a big reserve, so it shouldn’t hopefully have a gigantic impact. But we’ll see…
9. Whiskey Punch
The less annoying follow up to 8. Scotch Whiskey Punch. Since it’s pretty much the same thing, I’m forgoing the news element – nothing super new since yesterday.
8. Scotch Whiskey Punch
Sometimes, Jerry Thomas is kind of a douche. This is one of those times. You’ll see why in the description for this drink, of which there are minimal details. Of course, he then turns around and gives specific details in the very next recipe, so he really waffles a bit. I used the rough proportions from the next drink (out tomorrow) to make this one.
Not a huge amount of related news, but in an effort to be informative, a few stories about Latin America. Donald Trump met with the Mexican president, in a meeting I wish I had been there to see. Meanwhile, Dilma Rousseff of Brazil was (finally) impeached. It’s a one-two punch of leadership stories!
222. Lemonade
Who says a cocktail has to be alcoholic? Certainly not Jerry Thomas. He has a whole section of “Temperance Drinks” (oddly, the section itself is numbered 221, so I’m not entirely sure what his system is). We’ve actually seen one of these before, the Soda Nectar (228), but this one is a little more involved. He is definitely playing fast and loose not just the definition of lemonade, but also the more common definition of “temperance,” as this actually does have alcohol in it, if only a small amount. It’s also nice to be able to make this on a per glass basis, instead of a big pitcher all at once.
Interesting to note that there’s a footnote after the title of this drink which directs people to some other lemonade recipes in “The Manual for the Manufacture of Cordials, etc,” in the “latter part of this work.” I don’t actually have this part, but I think it’s okay — I saw it online, and it’s more about the ingredients than the actual cocktails. Which is cool, but not the goal here.
In the news-I-know-little-about vein, apparently Beyonce’s lawyers are trying to dismiss a filmmaker’s claim that she stole elements of his short film in her video album, Lemonade, that was released recently. Presented mostly without comment, as I feel like rights are such a messed up issue that it’s really hard to come down on one side or the other.
The Boozy Newsie 