Woozy Wednesday: The Lisa Fremont

Last week I managed to catch one of the last days of the Grace Kelly exhibition at the TIFF Lightbox in Toronto.  They had some amazing gowns on display, but my favorite was probably this lace Oleg Cassini.  In person, it’s a delicate peachy-pink.

Image from merriegirl.blogspot.com

Coincidentally, this weekend I mixed up a delicious cocktail that was almost exactly the same color as Kelly’s Oleg Cassini dress, a delicious combination of Hendrick’s gin, elderflower syrup, and grapefruit juice.  After Googling to verify that there wasn’t already a cocktail with this name, I decided to name my new little gin drink after Kelly’s character in “Rear Window,” one of my all-time favorite movies.

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The Lisa Fremont
1 ounce fresh grapefruit juice
1 ounce gin
0.25 ounces (1/2 T) elderflower syrup (IKEA Saft Fläder or other)

Combine ingredients in ice-filled cocktail shaker; shake gently until cold.  Strain into a martini glass or (even better!) a champagne coupe.*
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This is a light, refreshing cocktail that I think is elegant and feminine enough to please its fictional namesake.  I don’t have elderflower liqueur in my Toronto bar, but I’ll bet substituting a half ounce of St. Germain for the quarter ounce of Saft Fläder would also yield a lovely cocktail.

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*  Does anyone know where I can buy old-fashioned champagne coupes?**  I love them for cocktails because they are so elegant and sensibly-sized.
**  That groan you just heard was my husband bemoaning the fact that I’ve found a new glassware fixation.

Wine Wednesday: 2010 Perrin Côtes du Rhône Reserve

Between indulging in great holiday wines and being in Canada, I’ve been quite behind in my Trader Joe’s wine recommendations.  Fortunately I can direct you to a far superior replacement: Jason’s Wine Blog, where every year Jason publishes a very popular list of his top 10 Trader Joe’s wines.  Jason’s affection for the 2009 Perrin Côtes du Rhône Reserve caught my eye and last week at Trader Joe’s I picked up a bottle of the 2010 for $9.99.

My verdict: This is another solid bargain from the Côtes du Rhône region and I would recommend it unreservedly to Trader Joe’s fans.  This is slightly rounder and more fruit-forward than my TJ’s standby Valréas Côtes du Rhône and will appeal to those who find the Valréas too dry.  At the slightly higher price, Perrin won’t replace Valréas as our favorite everyday “pizza wine,” but I will definitely grab a bottle when I’m in the mood for something with a bit more fruit on the palate.

Woozy Wednesday: Would you send back a wine?

I have never been able to send back a bottle of wine at a restaurant, even when I really, really want to.  A couple of years ago, Econo Man and I were out to dinner with my in-laws.  I ordered a bottle of Cabernet for the table from the usually reliable Columbia Crest.  The waitress poured the sample taste into my glass and it tasted like a melted Hershey bar mixed with artificial oak flavoring.  When she asked (very nicely) how it was, I froze. “It’s OK if you don’t like it!” she assured me, correctly interpreting my expression.

I turned bright red.  ”I mean, it’s not bad … I don’t want to be difficult,” I blurted.  We kept the bottle.  I couldn’t bring myself to ask the restaurant to take a loss on an open bottle when there was nothing actually wrong with it.

Last week I had another uh-oh moment when we were out to dinner with friends.  I chose a Sangiovese from their wine list, the waitress poured a taste for me, and the wine tasted … a bit odd.  It bubbled slightly in the glass (although that could have been the result of a vigorous pour) and had an acidic hint bordering on sourness.  This could have been a sign that the wine has been stored at a high temperature and has undergone some bad chemical reactions in the bottle.  I’ve opened bottles before that were so markedly fizzy and sour that I knew they’d gone to vinegar, but with this wine I wasn’t sure.  Maybe it just wasn’t to my taste?  I said nothing and spent the rest of the evening wondering if our friends also noticed that it might be slightly off.

I don’t want to turn into an insufferable jerk who demands to see the manager when she doesn’t like the temperature the Bordeaux is served at, but I hate paying restaurant markups on a bottle of wine that I don’t really care for — or, worse, a bottle that might have been stored improperly.  On the other hand, I am also deeply conflict-phobic, which means I’m terrified that the waiter or waitress will argue with me if I try to send the bottle back.

Have you ever sent back a bottle of wine?  Would you send back a bottle because it’s not a style of wine you enjoy, or only if it’s corked or otherwise “off”?  Any advice for a chicken like me who hates to make a scene and dreads arguing with people in public?

Nice things that happened in 2011

To be perfectly frank, 2011 has not been good to me.  Long-distance stress, an unsuccessful year on the job market, difficult situations at work, and severe research project burnout all took their turns keeping me awake at night.  And, judging from chats I’ve had with various people, I’m not the only one 2011 treated with less than complete generosity.

But last week during a bitchfest, Liz put her foot down and ordered us to all say something nice about 2011.  So instead of listing all of the ways this year has wronged me, here are the things I’ve been proud of or grateful for in 2011.

• I finished a paper I’m really proud of and it was accepted for publication in a great journal.
• We found the perfect apartment in Toronto and I no longer live in a basement.
• I have a great relationship with my dissertation advisor — which is not always true for grad students and newly-minted PhDs.  I can trust him to both encourage me and tell me the truth during this insane, awful job market.
• Econo Man and I booked tickets to Mexico for a February getaway.
• Sis and Captain Awesome tied the knot.
• Two more dear friends got married.
• One of my best friends had an absolutely adorable baby boy (whom she selfishly refuses to let me steal and raise for her).
• I started experimenting with cocktails, thus giving my inner chemist a venue in which she can mix things in exact ratios, and also introducing me to Hendrick’s gin and the Whiskey Smash.
• I spent all of 2011 happily married to a wonderful, supportive man.

Now it’s your turn!  Anyone want to celebrate the end of 2011 by sharing the nice things that happened?

Woozy Wednesday: Pomegranate Martini

So Christmas is over, we’ve (theoretically) put away the wrapping paper, and it’s time to turn our attention to New Year’s! As I’ve said before, I love sparkling wine year-round and I would never dream of skipping it on New Year’s Eve. But if you’re not a fan of sparkling wine, or simply looking for a festive, pretty cocktail to serve at your New Year’s party, may I recommend the Pomegranate Martini?

I tried, you guys. I really, really tried to make these not quite as alcoholic as my usual recipes. But I tested a recipe with three times as much pomegranate juice and slightly less vodka and it just tasted flat — like watered-down pomegranate juice. I tried 2 ounces of pomegranate juice to 1 ounce of vodka — still flat and boring, no matter how much lemon juice I added. Only when I bumped up the booze and decreased the pomegranate juice to 1 ounce per cocktail was I happy with the cocktail.

Maybe if I’d used a different pomegranate juice the less-alcoholic cocktails might have tasted more appealing (I used Trader Joe’s). Or maybe I’m just irrevocably a strong-cocktails person. Regardless, if this sounds like too much vodka for your holiday party, try Oprah’s recipe, which has a 4:1 ratio of pomegranate juice to liquor.

Pomegranate Martinis (Adapted from Ina Garten) — Makes 1
1 ounce pomegranate juice
1.5 ounces vodka
0.5 ounces triple sec or Cointreau
0.5 ounces lemon or lime juice
Pour liquid ingredients into an ice-filled shaker. Shake well and strain into martini glass.

Pomegranate Martinis in a pitcher – Makes 10
1 + 1/4 cup (10 oz) pomegranate juice
2 cup (16 oz) vodka
2/3 cup (~5oz) triple sec
2/3 cup (~5oz) fresh-squeezed lemon or lime juice
Pour liquid ingredients into ice-filled pitcher; stir and pour immediately into martini glasses, straining out the ice.

You may be tempted to skip the lemon/lime juice. Don’t. The pomegranate juice is very sweet and needs the acidity of the citrus to cut it. I thought lime juice was the best choice for this cocktail but lemon does just fine in a pinch.

Wine Wednesday: Holiday Wines 4

Sparkling wine is one of my favorite parts of the holidays.  Our usual bargain-priced standbys are Zonin Prosecco and Segura Viudas Cava, but sometimes you may want to uncork something a little fancier, or give it as a gift.  May I humbly suggest Crémant d’Alsace, a sparkling wine made in the Alsace region of France?

In my opinion, unless you’re hosting a party of hardcore Champagne lovers, Crémant d’Alsace will please a wider range of palates than Champagne.  Crémant d’Alsace tends to be less acidic and less “toasty” (for lack of a better word) than Champagne-region sparkling wines.  We have tried and really liked the charming Lucien Albrecht Crémants — my favorite is the rosé.  And at a recent tasting, this $18 Willm Blanc des Noirs Crémant blew a much more expensive California sparkling wine out of the water.  It had livelier flavors, more subtlety, and more depth than its Napa Valley competitor, which tasted harsh and acidic in comparison.

Plus, it’s a pretty color!  This is a Blanc de Noirs, so the slight hint of pink you’re seeing is a bit of the color from the skins of the Pinot Noir grapes.

The best part?  Most Crémant d’Alsace sparkling wines will be under $20.  This is a great example of the quality-to-price you can get if you’re willing to look for unusual regions or unfamiliar labels.

Wine Wednesday: Wines you should be drinking this holiday season 3

Back in November I returned to the Toronto Food and Wine Festival, where I happily sampled a wide range of wines and whiskeys from all over the world. I tried some lovely wines, but one in particular stood out: the 2010 Domaine Vincent Delaporte Sancerre, for $23.95 at the LCBO (and around $17 in the US).

This, to me, is an almost perfect white wine.  The Sancerre region of the Loire Valley is known for producing some of the world’s best Sauvignon Blanc and this one delivered on that reputation.  The Delaporte Sancerre has lovely round citrus notes, lots of minerals, and a crisp, clean finish. Yum.  This wine would be a perfect white to bring to a holiday cocktail party — it’s practically begging to be paired with seared scallops or stuffed mushrooms.

A Guide to Falling in Love with Parks and Recreation

Thursdays make everything better.  Why?  Because at 8:30 EST on NBC, I get to watch the best comedy on TV: “Parks and Recreation.”*

Image from Entertainment.Time.Com

I love this show for far too many reasons to count.  I love this show so much that this is my second post about it.  I love smart, ambitious, occasionally-selfish but fundamentally-generous Leslie Knope.  I love kindhearted finance geek Ben Wyatt.  I love ultra-masculine Libertarian Scotch lover Ron Swanson, douchebag-with-a-heart-of-gold Tom, sarcastic April, dopey Andy, and everyone else in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana, right down to the crazies who show up at Leslie’s public forums.

What’s that, you say?  You don’t watch “Parks and Recreation”?  Well, I think you should!  Yes, even if you watched some of Season 1 and didn’t like it.  (Especially then.)

To help you figure out if it’s worth giving “Parks and Recreation” a try, here are some of my all-time favorite TV shows:  ”Buffy,” “Firefly,” “Community,” early “How I Met Your Mother,” “Chuck,” early “The Office,” “Arrested Development,” “Mad Men,” “Veronica Mars,” and “Freaks and Geeks.”  Do you like most or all of those shows?  Then you owe it to yourself to give “Parks and Recreation” a chance.

If I’ve convinced you to try “Parks and Recreation,” just follow my three easy steps for falling in love with the show.  You’ll be quoting this quirky, wonderful gem before you know it.

Step 1:  Figure out how to watch old episodes of “Parks and Recreation”
Americans: Do you have Netflix?  You now have access to Seasons 1-3 of “Parks and Recreation” on streaming video.  Do you have Hulu Plus?  You have access to every single “Parks and Recreation” episode!  Brits/Canadians: You may need to rent the DVDs.

Step 2: Forget Episodes 1-5 (this is a CRUCIAL step)
A number of smart people with excellent taste gave up on “P&R” in the first season. The show hadn’t quite figured itself out yet and there were some pretty cringe-inducing episodes.  But trust me: it gets better.  A lot better.

If you are a P&R newbie or someone who bailed during that rough first season, I suggest starting with either the last episode of Season 1 (“Rock Show”) or the first episode of Season 2 (“Pawnee Zoo”).  ”Rock Show” is my personal favorite entry point — it’s their first genuinely successful episode, it sums up everything important about the relationships between the characters, and it introduces a recurring joke, Pawnee rock anthem “The Pit.”    But if you’re renting the DVDs it might sound a bit silly to rent all of Season 1 just for the single episode.  Skipping right to Season 2 is perfectly fine as well.

Step 3:  Watch “Parks and Recreation”, Seasons 2-4 (Season 4 is currently in progress)
If going in order doesn’t appeal to you and you’d rather start with the high points of season 2 to find out if the show is for you, watch the following episodes:

“Practice Date”
“Greg Pikitis”
“Hunting Trip”
“Tom’s Divorce”
“Sweetums”
“Summer Catalog”
“The Master Plan”
“Freddy Spaghetti”

If you’re not in love with Leslie Knope by the end of “Practice Date” (Season 2, episode 4), I will be shocked.

Anyone else want to help me sell new viewers on “Parks and Recreation?”

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*  It definitely doesn’t hurt that it’s in a time bloc with the 2nd-best comedy on TV, “Community” at 8:00 EST on NBC.

Wine Wednesday: Wines you should be drinking this holiday season 2

Several months ago, a dinner party guest brought us a few bottles of wine as a host & hostess gift.  We opened a couple on the night of the dinner party, but one that didn’t get opened was a 2007 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon.  Only later did I realize how very, very generous this guest had been in bringing this bottle of wine — the Caymus retails for $70+ a bottle.  We opened it on the night I celebrated my 30th birthday.

Pretty much every time I write about Cabernet, I go on about how I hate overly fruity Cabs and how Cabernet is not a sweet little cocktail wine and how I want structure and tannins and that warm leather-jacket, sitting-in-the-library-in-front-of-the-fire feel from my Cabernets.  The 2007 Caymus is not that.  It’s a fruit-forward Napa Cabernet that’s not particularly tannic — in other words, the kind of Cabernet I usually don’t like.

So you may be surprised to hear I liked this wine.  Scratch that.  I loved this wine.  If you’re going to do the big, fruit-forward Cabernet, by gosh, this is the way to do it.  The 2007 Caymus was absolutely mouth-watering.  It tasted of dark fruits — black cherries and blackberries, even a little blueberry — but it had the absolutely perfect amount of acidity to balance that fruit.  See that little dribble down the front of the label?  I still resent the fact that a whole drop of this wine went to waste.

Now, obviously this wine is a bit over my usual price range, and isn’t something you can just casually grab a few bottles of on the way to your co-worker’s holiday party.  But if you have a Cabernet lover on your gift list and a fairly high budget, consider the Caymus.

Anticipation

I come from one of those aggressively practical families that isn’t big on the “surprise” element of gift-giving.  We want our loved ones to just put stuff on a list and let us choose something cool from it so we know we’re getting them something they want and will use.*  As it turns out, my in-laws are very much on board with this philosophy of gift-giving as well, which means that I already know what I’ll be getting for Christmas.

A Kindle.  Specifically, the ad-free basic Kindle 4.

 And ever since I decided on the exact type of Kindle I want (after extensive testing at Staples, where they have display Kindles and Nooks), I have encountered situations where I really wish I already had my Kindle.  Sick in bed and out of reading material?  Oh, I wish I already had a Kindle so I could just download a new book!  Taking a long-ish public transit journey to a lecture?  Man, I wish I could slip a tiny 6-ounce Kindle into my bag and read on the bus.  Reading the new George RR Martin in hardback?  If I had my Kindle, I could have gotten the e-version and then I could take Dance with Dragons on the airplane!

Needless to say, I’m super-excited for Christmas.  In the meantime, I’m amusing myself by looking at awesome Kindle cases on Etsy.**  (The Amazon “official” Kindle cases strike me as a bit overpriced.  Plus, I’m a sucker for a colorful fabric.)  I think I want a Kindle sleeve — I want to take the Kindle out of its case when I read — but there are also some cute folding-cover cases that are awfully tempting as well.

I know a lot of you guys have eReaders.  Any tips for an eReader novice like me?  What kind of case do you use?

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*  One Christmas, my mom told me that she really wanted a paper shredder for her home office.  The Staples checkout guy looked at me like I was the worst gift-giver imaginable when I asked for a gift receipt.  But darn it, she still uses that shredder!

**  I haven’t been doing much Etsy shopping lately, largely because I have a hard time handling the number of options.  A search for “Kindle case” returns over 8,000 results!  If I don’t see something I love on the first page of results, I usually click through 2-3 more pages before getting overwhelmed and giving up.  Has anyone figured out a good way to manage results overload on Etsy?