I Been Drinkin' - Last Update 6/28

28 June 2007 - Summer Beers Make Me Feel Fine...

Hey all - this treat is no stranger to the PacNW crew, but if the Summer Brew is new to you, rejoice in your new-found glory. As with so much boozy miscellany, I was introduced to Summer Beer a few summers ago by good pals AJ and Nat. We have enjoyed many since then; I encourage y'all to play catch-up.

Summer Beer:

1-2 oz vodka
7-8oz light-ish lager/pilsener-ish beer ( I like Pacifico for this application, but whatever you like is just fine)
3 oz lemonade
Lemon slice to garnish
Ice - optional

1. To Pilsener glass add vodka, then beer, then lemonade
2. Add ice, if using, and garnish
3. Drink
4. Repeat

Good summer fun, especially if you're playing hooky from work, when all drinks taste at least 15% better...

Prost, THB


15 June 2007 - Limoncello / Rhubarbaro

Howdy fine folks! Today let's talk about homemade booze. Sadly, I'm not talking about moonshining (although if you are doing some home-distilling WHICH IS HIGHLY ILLEGAL, send me a story under an untraceable alias to thehuskyboy@gmail.com) but rather the infusion of pure grain spirits with some form of aromatic botanical to then be diluted to a more drinkable 80 or 90 proof. Editor AJ and myself have been doing a fair bit of this of recent with good results. In fact AJ will have a book out in the next while with quite a few classic and original liqueur recipes. (More on AJ and Publishing-empire Rathbun soon to come.)

Making the homemade booze is relatively easy, especially if you are going for only a single flavor profile in the booze. All one really needs is a ready supply of Everclear (190 proof neutral grain spirit), a supply of your desired botanical, e.g. lemon zest, a clean bottle, and a final diluent to bring down the proof, i.e water or simple syrup.

Limoncello is by far one of the best, most popular, and most commercially available of all Italian liqueurs, and with good reason. Throw it in the freezer and dole out the shots. Who doesn't like lemon anyhoo? Here's a nice little history on the story of limoncello:

http://tasteofsorrento.sorrentoinfo.com/articoli/sorrento_limoncello.asp

You will perhaps notice that they soak the zest for 3 months. I'm far too impatient for that, so I (and AJ) usually get the production over with in 4 weeks.

For Limoncello (750ml):

Zest of 5-6 large lemons - avoid white pith at all costs
Juice of 1-2 lemons
375ml Everclear
375ml Simple Syrup (water / sugar in a 1:1 ratio)
Cheesecloth for straining

1. Put zests and Everclear in clean glass bottle. Store in a cool, dark space for 2 weeks.
2. Juice zested lemons and retain juice by freezing in ice cube trays. A standard freezer tray ice cube is probably about 1 lemon's worth of juice.
3. After 2 weeks, add simple syrup and lemon juice. Let sit another 2 weeks.
4. Strain to your personal level of anal retention. A nice clear, sediment-free liqueur is a thing of beauty, though.
5. Freeze and enjoy.

Beware! This is still highly intoxicating booze, God bless it so. All you have done is taken something that a car could run on and diluted it down to scotch-proof - so when was the last time you were belting down scotch like so many little shots of lemony goodness? (I said you, not me...) There, you've been warned.

AJ's been doing a ton of experimenting for the book, which has inspired me to do a bit of my own. The best one I've come up with by far is a rhubarb liqueur. With the addition of lemon juice and simple syrup, it is a tart hooch treat, not to mention it is a gorgeous pink color. Hurry up and make some before the rhubarb is all gone for the year. Frozen rhubarb may be an option, but I'll probably not give it a whirl until this winter when my current supply is gone and the jones sets in.

Rhubarbaro (750ml):

5-6 large stalks of thoroughly cleaned and trimmed rhubarb
375ml Everclear
Juice of 1-2 lemons
375ml Simple Syrup
Cheesecloth for straining

1. Slice or chop rhubarb into pieces that will fit in to (and subsequently out of) your bottle. The larger the pieces, the less surface area there is for flavor extraction, but the use of larger pieces generally leads to a clearer product. Do whutcha like...
2. Add Everclear and steep for 2 weeks.
3. Add lemon juice and simple syrup. Sit on it for another 2 weeks.
4. Strain, chill and enjoy!

Cheers, Jeremy, The HuskyBoy