Basil Vodka Gimlets

Ingredients:
4 cups packed fresh basil sprigs (top 4 inches; from a 1/2-pound bunch)
4 cups water
2 cups sugar
9 (4- by 1-inch) strips lemon zest
3/4 cup vodka
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup ice cubes

For garnish: Fresh basil sprigs; lemon zest strips

Directions:
1. Make the basil-lemon simple syrup: Bring basil, water, sugar, and lemon zest to a boil in a medium saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Let stand at room temperature, covered, 1 hour, then transfer to an airtight container and chill until cold, about 1 hour. Strain syrup through a sieve into a bowl, pressing hard on it and then discarding solids.
2. In a pitcher, stir together 1 cup of cold basil-lemon simple syrup, the vodka, the lemon juice, and the ice cubes. Strain into 8- to 10-ounce glasses half filled with ice. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs and strips of lemon zest.

Makes 6 drinks.

Via Al Dente

What the hell is a basil vodka gimlet? The name makes me cringe, as it simply tells me absolutely nothing informative about this drink except that it was concocted by someone linguistically challenged.

Generally, a gimlet is defined as gin and lime juice. Many recipes call specifically for Rose’s lime juice. In fact, a handy mnemonic for remembering the recipe is calling it a “gin-let”, silently to yourself of course. This recipe calls for neither gin nor lime juice! Instead, it calls for vodka and lemon juice. As a handy reference for future bartenders: vodka ≠ gin and lemon ≠ lime. For the love of tiki, don’t call it a gimlet! It’s not a gimlet! It’s something else! It’s so far from being a gimlet that I wouldn’t even call it a variation. Yeah, limes and lemons are pretty closely related and vodka is replacing gin in just about everything now, but come on! This is getting out of hand!

This phenomenon is of course not limited to presumably overpaid Amazon blog writers. There’s the ubiquitous martini, for example, that we cocktail lovers harp on about constantly. To beat a dead horse, let’s be clear: a martini is a drink made of gin and dry vermouth. It even says so in the dictionary. I may even forgive you for referring to a martini made of vodka and dry vermouth as simply a “martini” rather than a “vodka martini”, as this transgression has become so common and Bond is still a badass. However, a martini is absolutely not made with chocolate syrup, apple juice, or espresso beans. That’s why traditional variations have their own names, e.g., the Gibson, or specify that they’re not true martinis via the use of modifiers, e.g., the vodka martini or (blech) the tequila martini.

These misnomers aren’t even limited to the cocktail crowd. Take the word “imperial” for example. What does it mean? I’m not sure anyone really knows anymore. “Imperial” used to refer only to the Imperial Russian Stout, which was beer brewed specifically for the Tsar of Russia. Imperial stouts have high alcohol contents, which were originally used to preserve the beer on long trips to places like Russia. These days, “imperial” can refer to pretty much any beer style and has lost some meaning by gaining all sorts of other meanings. In fact, the BJCP’s style guidelines for the Imperial IPA actually state, “The adjective ‘Imperial’ is arbitrary and simply implies a stronger version of an IPA; “double,” “extra,” “extreme,” or any other variety of adjectives would be equally valid.” These days, you can even buy an Imperial Pilsner (that doesn’t even list an ABV) or an Imperial Saison.

While I’m no conservative when it comes to language and realize that language is alive and constantly evolving, I do appreciate it when words remain clear and meaningful. After all, what’s the point of describing something as a “gimlet”, as a “martini”, or as “imperial” if these words don’t actually mean anything? These misnomers simply serve to confuse and detract rather than to clarify and enhance. Just think of all those people who might never discover the wonders of a real martini just because they had some crappy pomegranate martini before. Besides, what were the creators of these concoctions thinking when they created these names? It seems like they were merely trying to siphon some success from already successful drinks rather than attempting to name the newborns properly.

Unfortunately, the future seems dismal for us uptight enunciators, but while we’re sober, we ought to at least try to to delay the inevitable corruption of drinking culture via careful diction. I for one would be ordering a basil vodka cocktail, chocolate fake martini, or double IPA. Well, maybe I wouldn’t order the first two anyway.

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If all goes as planned, you should find me blogging from various parts of Europe over the next month and from various locations on the eastern seaboard shortly thereafter. Later in the year, there may even be a cross-country trip, provided the cost of gas doesn’t kill the idea! If you have any suggestions for must-see sites like wineries, breweries, and bars for absolutely anywhere in the country, then let me know! I’m always excited to diversify the experience here outside of Boston. I know I oftentimes focus on local events a bit too much.

That said, I have a couple great posts that I hope you’ll enjoy coming up over the next week!

And speaking of Boston, I might as well mention a few upcoming local events that I think are worthwhile to attend, even if you’re not from the area. Unfortunately, I have to miss a number of them!

• Beer Summit: The Beer Summit is back April 18-19. There are sixty-six confirmed brewers in attendance who will be dishing out unlimited samples at three sessions!
• NERAX: NERAX (New England Real Ale Exhibition) throws its twelfth annual shindig this April 30-May 3 in Davis Square. I think of this as the American counterpart to CAMRA. Indeed, from what I understand, casks are filled up all across Europe and then flown to the USA by CAMRA for this event. Then, those same casks are filled up all across the USA and flown to the UK for their events. I’ve seriously never seen more casks in one room before. They also need volunteers, which was definitely a blast for me last year working security and clean-up.
• Harpoon 5-Miler: You can either run or volunteer at this charity event benefiting The Angel Fund on June 7. Scarily, dehydrated runners get two free beers immediately after running five miles, but it’s all in the name of fun and helping others. I volunteered a couple years ago and highly enjoyed it. I’ll be back again this year.
• American Craft Beer Fest: Beer Advocate returns with its usual awesome festival June 20-21, except this one will be ten times as large! I can’t wait, and I plan on volunteering yet again! I do know that they will need many more volunteers than usual, so if you’re able, help them out!
• The Return of the Belgian Beer Fest: It’s never too early to plan for a beer fest September 26-27! I think this one’s supposed to be smaller than the June fest, so it just might sell out that much faster than usual.

I’d also like to give you a sneak preview at something I’ve been working on: the Boston Beer Trail. A full guide is coming shortly.

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• Grassroots Wine Bag - Free eco-friendly wine gift bag with nifty designs. They were at the Boston Wine Expo, though I don’t actually remember seeing them. Note that a store name isn’t actually required to submit the form.
• Cheese, Wine, and Beer Tour Map: This free map of cheese, wine, and beer in Wisconsin is sure to make any trip to a flyover state much, much better.

And if you happen to be in the Richmond, CA area, then I’m totally jealous, as you have the opportunity to buy stuff from the Trader Vic’s warehouse today from 10 AM to 7 PM. Then again, I, too, have too much stuff, but just wandering around the warehouse of the inventors of the Mai Tai would be more than enough for me! (via Boing Boing)

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Anyway, if you’re in Boston, then you should be attending the Extreme Beer Fest today and tomorrow! The Alström Brothers of Beer Advocate fame put together incredible events. Unfortunately, this one has been sold out for weeks, but you may be able to find tickets on Craigslist. In the meantime, you should plan for the monstrous American Craft Beer Fest, which will be at the World Trade Center June 20-21 (happily coinciding with my birthday).

There’s also an event at Alibi at the Liberty Hotel on Sunday night 10 PM - 1 AM with Beija. You’ll have to RSVP at info@Beija.net.

In the meantime, I don’t want to leave you completely high and dry with absolutely no booze news. Here’s a couple beer-themed tidbits that I found interesting. The video demonstrates how to melt a beer bottle in a microwave. Is it safe? I dunno. Don’t try it at home? As for the picture, it’s pretty self-explanatory, but it’s a diagram for how to cook beer chicken! Mmm…chicken…I haven’t had lunch yet.

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• Largest Champagne Fountain: Seriously, whoa! I don’t think I’d ever climb that ladder. The likely outcome would be my ending up in a hospital with thousands of glass shards stuck in me.
• Liquor Bottles Made of Squid Skins: Um, ew? These Ika Tokkuri are cuttlefish dried and shaped into sake bottles. I’m sure they impart a delicate flavor of the sea.
• Booze Bra Gives Woman a Wine Rack: Forget the Wonderbra! This second base will squirt a tasty non-baby-friendly liquid.
• Beer Gets Seatbelt. Child Doesn’t.: You may be an alcoholic if…
• More SMS Help from Martini Groove: Rick has a very neat SMS service that gets you drink recipes. While I’m too cheap to text, I’m sure some of you have unlimited plans.
• The Martini Workout: It’s like danging a carrot in front of a donkey, except the carrot’s a martini glass and you’re the ass.
• BeerAdvocate to Host the East Coast’s Largest American Craft Beer Fest: Yes! Yes! Yes! Even better, it’s on my birthday! It’s a dream come true.
• Tomato Beer: The Echigo Beer Company in Japan has released Tomato Bibere. I’m intrigued, but I fear it likely just tastes nasty. If I really want tomato beer, I’ll just squirt some ketchup into a Bud Light.
• The 2008 Topps Drinking Game: I never really got into collecting baseball cards as a kid, though this may have helped.
• Diageo in $900m Dutch Deal: A behemoth grows bigger with the purchase of a 50% stake in Ketel One.
• Beer Used to Thwart Robbery: The next time someone tries to rob you, just swing a six-pack of beer at his head.
• Bukowski Tavern’s Annual ‘Pint and Pen’ Contest: Win $2500! I recall last year’s entries were rather sexual in nature, so insert some raunchy stuff if you want to win.

Anyway, that’s it for this week. In the meantime, if you’re in Boston, consider heading to the Wine Expo this weekend. Tickets should still be available. Yours truly will be there tomorrow.

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Martini & Rossi

Something interesting to note is this prosecco is frizzante rather than spumante. What’s the difference? Well, frizzante means semisparkling or “lightly bubbly”, so it’s not supposed to be as bubbly as a regular sparkling wine. There really isn’t all that much of a difference, though maybe I did burp a little less, which I’m sure the girlfriend appreciated. I actually do prefer drinks that are less gassy, as I find it uncomfortable to have a bunch of gas forcing its way down my throat. Plus, you can’t really belch at the sort of party where you’d be serving prosecco!

Anyway, the prosecco was light and dry and tasted lightly of apple to me. I think it’d make a great aperitif, and we decided to turn it into a Bellini for Sunday brunch using fresh white peach puree, which worked well, though you may need to add a touch of simple syrup. Then again, peaches aren’t exactly in season, so the ones we used weren’t all that great.

I actually prefer something drier, but my girlfriend said, “Oh! I could drink this!” And that is a huge endorsement from someone who doesn’t typically drink (or like) parkling wine. Also, for about $12/bottle, it’s not a bad price.

Just so you know, the bottle was provided free to me for review.

Photo courtesy of Martini & Rossi

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• Interboro Brewing Company
• Old Dutch Brewers, Inc.

Via Curbed

Thanks, Brian!

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However, I’m willing to discount most of these problems in exchange for fifty-five breweries all in one place pouring unlimited quantities of beer. I was also surprised at the speed at which I was able to get beer despite the large crowds. There were a number of great beers available, and most were good. There were a few really nasty ones that I ended up pouring out, though, in particular those from a small brewery on the North Shore. Here’s a tip for quickly assessing which beer to try: the hotter the chick pouring for you, the worse the beer. Ideally, you should be drinking beer poured by a fat old guy. I, of course, made the mistake of going to the two hottest women in the place and trying their beers. Not a good idea.

There were actually a few new beers that I hadn’t seen before, too, all of them imports. Unfortunately, I’m having trouble remembering what the heck they were because there was no beer list!!!

This time, we went to the second session, and I’m a bit torn as to whether going to the first or second is better. When in doubt, the answer is, of course, to go to both, but there are time, liver, and financial constraints. Anyway, I think the event was much improved from last year: they got rid of tickets and there’s now a cool mini mug. However, there’s still room for improvement. We’ll see how it goes next year.

In the meantime, the next two major events are the Wine Expo on Feb. 8-10 and the Extreme Beer Fest on Feb. 15-16. Unfortunately, the former is ridiculously expensive, and the latter is sold out. I will be at both.

Photo Credit: Michael Guo

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The lollipop itself is unique, and mine came wrapped in a red ribbon. It’s actually pretty tasty and has a good balance. I didn’t find it excessively sweet, and it wasn’t at all bitter as you might expect with absinthe. However, some might not like the flavor at all if they’re the type that don’t like eating black jelly beans. My tongue also did tire of the taste after about ten minutes. In general, I think it would make a great garnish for a drink. In fact, you could even try using it as a cocktail stirrer.

The bad news is I really hated that stick. It kind of fell apart after a while with little bits ending up on my tongue, and I eventually found myself trying to break it off. Lit may want to consider releasing this as small hard candy without the stick. This isn’t the sort of candy that you can bite into and cleave in half, though. It’s somewhat softer and tends to stick badly to your teeth, so chewing it is a really bad idea.

Overall, I’d buy it, though $10 is a bit much. There’s a sale that ends today, though: $8.50 for 4, $22 for 12.

Photo used with permission of Lit Absinthe

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