Day 18: National Gourmet Coffee Day

A family member recently visited the Philippines, and all I got was coffee. Not that I mind.

Day 17: Hot Buttered Rum Day

Let me start of with this - this isn't bad.

Mixed drinks can be tricky. Especially when they are warm, and call for ingredients like... butter.

Alcoholic butter coffee anyone? 

I'm not sure how true to the recipe this drink was, but when I saw you could use either water OR cider I was all in. This drink was hot cider, spiced rum, butter and spices. And guess what... tasted like a hot apple cider. So very drinkable.

Compared to the hot apple cider in made weeks before with Fireball and vanilla vodka, I'd go with the fireball version.

Day 13: National Gluten-Free Day

How cruel Mother Nature can be. From 60 degree temps to snow and temps closer to zero. Evil! Mean! Thankfully I was off today, so I could sleep in. After a couple of cups of coffee I headed to the apartment where I primed a wall or two and tried my best to scrape crap off the floors. 

Exciting, that's me.

After a few hours I gave up on fixer upping and dragged M to Nine Pin to start on our 26er Challenge. The first cider was Blueberry Pancakes, made with New York State blueberries and maple syrup. Not bad. Followed that up with a flight of all of their ciders, and my gluten free item of the day was complete.

Day 1: National Bloody Mary Day

And a very happy new year to you all! I said last year would be the year I would start blogging again. But you know how that turned out.

Let's try again, shall we?

I read an article recently, where the writer complained about too much fluff before a recipe. And I get it and admit I am guilty of doing the same thing. Like what I'm doing now.

Perhaps if I drop that, I will overcome my writer's block and post more often. 

FYI, there is no recipe to jump to here. Today is National Bloody Mary Day. So I'm celebrating this fact, and perhaps you will be inclined as well.

Vodka - I used one from Detroit City Distillery

Tomato juice - say no to Clamato

Sriracha - I know tabasco is traditional, but I'm out of it

Horseradish - I keep two bottles in my fridge at all times

Maggi - Worcestershire is not M friendly

Old Bay - much better than celery salt

No ice. And the olives were kinda bleh. Thank goodness the snacks made up for it.

RS Taylor & Sons Brewery (Salem, NY)

Did you know there's a new brewery in town?

Well, not town. But in the region. Middle of nowhere... but still close by.

RS Taylor & Sons opened up in early September and has already made its way onto the Adirondack Craft Beverage Trail. I left most of the beer talk to M, but managed to listen in from time to time while drinking my flight. The person at the bar was the owner/brewer himself, Richard Taylor. The background info you can find on their website, so it's not necessary to re-write it here. But I do like hearing about people who have been home brewing for years and make the leap to opening a brewery. 

  

Flights are $8 for four samples. Naturally we tried them all. The board on the left from back to front - Willie's Nut Brown Ale; Legends of the Fall IPA; English Ale; Belcher Town Ale. The board on the right - Amber Ale; (not in the pic, but in my hand) Oatmeal Stout; Mr. Crane's Pumpkin Ale; and the lone cider/guest tap Hidden Star from Slyboro. Of the seven beers, Legends and Belcher were my favorite. M enjoyed Legends as well so we bought a growler to take home. Lasted a day. Barely.

There is also a kitchen in the tap room, which I believe is run by Mr. Taylor's wife. The menu is limited and changes often. Most, if not all of the ingredients are locally sourced. If we had not just ate, I would have tried their cheese plate or chili. 

If you need a place to check out this weekend, definitely stop on by.

R.S. Taylor & Sons Brewery 

3602 County Route 30

Salem, NY 

Open W-F 4:00 - 9:00

          S-Su 12:00 - 6:00

Coffee Run

Yeah, so I took a screenshot of my Instagram feed. But I hit up Fairway Market, my go-to coffee shop. They must have roasted recently because man oh man... ever so fragrant. I have been living on Trader Joe's coffee, which is fine. It just isn't the same. Look at their layout. All those beans!

The guy who ground my coffee thought I bought too much, but he doesn't know just how important coffee is to me. Tell me what you think, was this too much?

All were ground at setting 13 (percolator/urn/French press)

1 pound Mocha Java (M's favorite, medium body)

1 pound Brooklyn (my favorite, low acidity)

0.5 pound French Roast (because why not)

There were a few others I wanted to try, but I am supposed to be back next weekend. So I can wait. I didn't even buy cheese... what is wrong with me?!?

How I Make Bloody Mary's (For Now)

What's there not to love about a good Bloody Mary? Unlike a Cosmopolitan, they will never go out of style. It's what I expect to see as a drink option when I go to brunch. And I have been trying them at bars in the area to see who makes the tastiest one. Right now, I'm really liking the Bloody Mary's from O'Briens - nice and spicy. Here is my version of it:

Vodka

Horseradish

Siracha

Old Bay Seasoning

Spanish Olives

Tomato juice or vegetable juice

I have to admit, I don't really like V8's Spicy Hot style. It is spicy as advertised, but the taste is off. And the Ninja Squirrel siracha is from Whole Foods and is better than I thought it would be. I am using it on everything nowadays.

Keeping With the Trends

The warmer temps have everyone going iced coffee crazy. Well, include me in that bunch as I am enjoying an extra large helping. I've written about it before, so I won't say too much other than I am putting my percolator aside for the French press. I've used the other method, mixing the coffee grounds and water in a pot and setting aside, but that is more mess than my small, mid-renovation kitchen can handle at the moment. 

Because of the finer grind, I only let this sit for about eight hours. To ensure the brew would be grit free,  I poured it through a small cone filter I bought earlier this year (I can't recall why I purchased it, but it was most likely for this reason!)

Sure, I could have used my Fairway coffee, but this Seattle's best has been taking up space for too long... I would rather use it up this way. It's slightly bitter, but has nice chocolate notes. Or I may still be tasting the chocolate I ate earlier.

Either way, this won't last long in the house. Guess I'll have to make more!

How I Got Through a Birthday Tour

Well, another birthday has come and gone and I have lived to tell the tale. It was plenty of fun, and only ended up with just a slight headache the following morning. Here are some tips if you’re thinking about doing this for your birthday.

The Olde English

• Make reservations, especially if you’re planning on celebrating on a Friday. The place was PACKED! I’m sure there were people that I invited that took one look at the crowd and left. M and I managed to get a spot at the end of the bar.
• $40.00 deposit for the teacup, your choice of Magner’s Cider or a lager (this visit it was Heineken). If you get the cider, they will add ice to it.
• Ask for another glass (or glasses). You may get a funny look, but if you’re sharing this is nicer… and no group back wash!

Wolff’s Beirgarden

• $40.00 deposit plus you have to spend an additional $20.
• Don’t forget to ask for more glasses!

• Get a big mug of water. You may get teased, but you’ll thank yourself the next day.
• Fried anything at Wolff’s is a winner. We got twenty bucks worth of food, well worth it considering that was probably my first real meal all day (cake at work is not filling… no matter what they tell you).

Sciorino’s

• Your birthday slice is really two slices… plenty for sharing.

Nine Pin

Okay, so it’s not technically on the birthday tour, but it’s in the area. And I really like their cider.

Bombers

• If you ask for your margarita to be frozen, it’s an $8.00 charge.
• The Troy Bombers ran out of shirts, so make sure the manager makes a note on your card so you can get one from another location.
• And thank you to whichever table that bought us shots.

And that’s how I celebrated my birthday. I think next year I’ll take it easy and just stay at one place for the night.

Off Hue

If you’re curious what this is, it’s a Mango lassi. And it’s orange. Definitely not what I expected it to be, but it tasted good nonetheless. It could be a carrot smoothie for all I know and I got tricked into drinking my vegetables.

Not that they need to trick me. I’m just saying.

I Tried. Really.

I've been spending my time at various libraries, mostly reading. Gotta keep that brain working you know. And focusing on the task at hand is just easier when I'm out of the house. Unfortunately, the library closes at 8, so I had to find another place to do my work. While a local coffee shop would be ideal, they aren't really any around. Starbucks, are. And they are open late.

I normally stick to teas there, because I think their coffee is crap. But I figured I was just not knowledged in all that is coffee and I know there are a few local bloggers who would chastise me on my choices (DD4lyfe!) I had about a hundred pages to knock out, so I gave it a go. I ordered a Cafe Misto, which is supposedly like a cafe au lait... a drink I happen to like. I also got a cookie. It was a snowman. Couldn't resist.

"Red or blue?"

Hahaha... can I get purple? No, didn't say that... but I thought it. Got the red one if you really wanted to know. (Obviously you can see which one I picked)

Thirty pages into my reading and I figured the coffee would be cool enough not to burn my mouth.

I'm sorry, but no. I do not like that Pike coffee. I do not like any of their coffees. Four sugar packets and it was barely drinkable. Barely. And the cookie, while cute, wasn't all that impressive. I was hoping it was royal icing but it was some chocolate derivative of some sort. But hey! I got a whopping ten cents off my coffee because I used my own mug!

I am sticking to the non-coffee things from there from now on.

99 Cent Coffee

I've seen the ads for their 99 cent coffee around, and finally got the chance to try some yesterday. Things to know:

1. The coffee isn't cold. It was lukewarm when I poured it into my cup. It was only after I filled it that I saw the sign about getting ice from the "Chill Zone" to add to my drink for the cool effect. So scope the scene out... know where the location of the ice dispenser is and add ice to your liking.

2. The flavor machine is pretty cool. You can add up to three different flavors, pick the appropriate drink size, and it will dispense the proper amount. Only problem with it that is that you can't pick the same flavor more than once in a shot dispenserary frame. You'd have to go through the process three times. A little too much work if you're grabbing a drink to go.

A Consequence of Global Warming?

Isn’t it too early for the Shamrock shake? Not that I’m complaining… but still. I love me liquid thin mints. Love. Love. Love.

Magnolia Orange Mango Fruit Drink

Saw this at the Asian Food Market and had to buy it. It’s like Filipino Tang! Smells and tastes like dried mangoes.

Drinks With Co-Workers

Happy Friday

posted from Bloggeroid

They Do Exist!

I am pretty sure my sister picked this up in Jersey, but where oh where in the Capital Region can I get my hands on Zima?

Olivers? All Star? The corner store?

I may have to make a stop by one of these places and enjoy in its clear malt beveraged splendor.

posted from Bloggeroid

Cream and Sugar

Ruby Tuesday’s Veev Acai Cocktails

On Sunday, M and I headed over to Albany to find out what all this drink fresh talk was all about. And we weren’t disappointed.

Coffee

And pancakes.

*Droid post*

What A Classy Lady Says

"Put that Boone's in the fridge!"