My brother-in-law only gets back to our little state about once a year, but when he comes up for vacation, it’s like a little vacation for us too.
This time it was even more of a nightly “time out” from the stresses of everyday life than usual, because he showed up with a bottle of moonshine.
And a lot of fresh ginger. Continue reading
We have a wonderful lime tree in our front yard. Recently we trimmed some large oak trees and all of a sudden the little lime tree has been getting a lot more sun and being very generous with its fruit production. We have limes coming out of our ears! Trying to find uses for the limes, I decided to make homemade limoncello, but using limes instead of lemons. If you’ve never had limoncello, it is a crisp and refreshing liqueur made with lemons and grain alcohol. After doing some research, I decided to try this Gizmodo/Franny’s in Brooklyn method because I like the idea of letting the limes infuse the vodka over several weeks. Continue reading
Summer is officially here, and one of the most important decisions you will make is choosing the right summer cocktail: crisp, refreshing, and fruity without being too sweet. My new obsession is St. Germain, the french elderberry liqueur that seems to be all the rage lately. After trying out a few different recipes, I settled on this concoction. The gin helps balance out some sweetness and the sparkling water gives it just a bit of fizz. Continue reading
I admit it, I’m a vodka snob. Not because I have such discerning tastes, but because I hate a hangover, and I like to drink a lot of vodka. Nothing better to me than a (or some) nice, crisp, straight up, vodka martini just a little dry. Must have three olives, an even amount is bad luck, you know. (Learned that one from an old time bartender friend, who served them when it was still okay to have martini working lunches.)
To me, the vodka cannot taste too starchy or sting like rubbing alcohol when it touches my lips. Obviously, as a martini drinker, I like a vodka that I can drink straight. I find the starchier and less smooth the vodka, the greater the hangover. Continue reading
