Three Quick Things

I’ve been busy as hell the last few weeks, and that’s not due to change for a while, but there are a few items needing a quick note:Mixology Monday XVI: Creme de la Creme

First, Mixology Monday XVI is upon us. This coming Monday, June 18, post your favorite drink for the theme “Creme de la Creme,” using cream-based liqueurs (or, as host Anna says, “lazy bums can include cream in their cocktail if they have no cream based liqueurs at home” — a category I suspect I’ll find myself in come Monday). Anna’s posted more details over at her site, Morsels & Musings, so take a look and either grab the Bailey’s or head for the dairy cooler, and we’ll see what you’ve got come Monday.

Lucid Absinthe SuperieureSecond, a couple of posts back I mentioned that the first honest-to-god absinthe to be legally sold in the United States was hitting New York in late May. Well, hit it has, and the bottles are going fast. Called Lucid, the absinthe is made in France by Ted Breaux, maker of Jade Liqueurs, some of the world’s finest commercial absinthes such as my current super-premium go-to Edouard, and the equally swoon-worthy Nouvelle-Orleans. The chief drawback to these has been the price and the shipping; a single bottle of Jade with courier shipping to the U.S. can run more than $160. I haven’t tried Lucid yet so I can’t say how it compares to the Jades (this guy, however, can, and the short answer is “favorably”), but I can say that Borisal Liquor & Wine in Brooklyn is currently selling Lucid online for $59.99 and, even better, free overnight shipping. They’ll sell out fast — that’s why I placed my order before putting this up — so get there soon. (And yes, I know the bottle design looks suspicious, but if I have to put up with a bottle that looks like it’s been made for the club crowd in order to have some quality, affordable absinthe in the house, I can deal with it. I keep the liquor behind closed doors, anyway, so the cat’s eyes won’t creep me out too much.)

Third, a public service announcement that time is ticking away — if you haven’t bought tickets for Tales of the Cocktail sessions, you probably need to hurry. From what I’ve read and heard, this year will be a blockbuster, and I plan to catch everything I can. If you need a couple of tips on things to check out, may I be so bold as to suggest the Lost Ingredients panel on Thursday, moderated by Dr. Cocktail and featuring, among many other things, tastings of my most recent falernum; the Spirited Dinner at the Delachaise on Thursday evening, featuring chef Chris DeBarr, Darcy O’Neil and myself (I believe half the tickets have already been sold for this event, so get a move on if you’re coming); and the Cocktails and the Blogosphere session on Saturday, with Rick Stutz and Chuck Taggart joining Darcy and I for a morning chat. How’s that for a self-serving plug?

Now, back to work

13 Responses to Three Quick Things

  1. Thank you and WHAT THE HELL!!! You couldn’t have told me that Lucid was available before posting?!?!?!?!?!
    Anyway, back to thank you, I have 2 bottles coming and looking forward to tasting (and sharing with my guests of course).
    OK, one more thank you.
    By the way, if you want to taste St. Germain’s Elderflower Liqueur, come and visit me at VESSEL.

  2. for the mixology monday do we literally need to use cream? or can we synthesize creaminess “by any means necessary”…

    i.e. another emulsion with similar properties…

  3. Thanks for the tip. I always look forward to trying something new. Anyone have a suggestion for how best to consume it? Should I add water and dissolve sugar?

  4. I ordered a couple of bottles from LeNell’s Monday. I will post a follow-up once I have had a chance to drip a few. I agree with regarding Edouard and N-O, which remain two of my favorites. And, this is really the season to enjoy. The timing for Lucid just couldn’t be better.

    Cheers from Spo-vegas.

  5. Like I really needed to spend another $60 this month. Thanks a lot!

    Tough MxMo for me. I can count the number of cream drinks I enjoy on one hand. Barbary Coast, Ramos Gin Fizz, and maybe the Belmont. Woo! Two fingers to spare.

    I guess I best get to work discovering another!

  6. Stephen & Erik — I’m in the “any means necessary” camp — personally, I don’t have any cream liqueurs in the house, and I can only think of a couple of cream-including cocktails. In the interest of inclusivity, if you think a drink will fit with the idea, I’d say go for it.

    Tim — water, definitely yes. This is a true absinthe, which means it clocks in pretty high (around 140 proof if I recall, though I don’t have the exact number in front of me). It’s best to add the water at a slow drip, and carefully watch it as it louches, with the clear, undiluted spirit remaining at the top — at last year’s Tales of the Cocktail, Ted Breaux suggested dripping just until that clear layer disappeared; this should be in the ballpark of 3 or 4 parts water to 1 part absinthe. Dripping through a sugar cube (perched on an absinthe spoon spanning the glass) is traditional, and some folks say the sugar is essential to open up the flavor of the absinthe. The absinthes I have on hand — the aforementioned Edouard and the Combier Blanchette — are sweet enough to my taste, so I typically don’t add sugar to my drip. I’d say try it both ways, and see what you prefer.

    But, for god’s sake, whatever you do — DON’T BURN IT! I don’t care if your buddy says that’s what they always did when he was in Prague — this is quality stuff, and fire should play no part in the process.

  7. Thanks for the absinthe tip. Ordered and on the way, I hope!

    Re: MxMo — I’m going the lazy bum route myself, as I loathe Bailey’s and I am so not screwing up any of my crema di limoncello by mixing it.

  8. I’m so psyched for Tales of the Cocktail. I’m hoping my press pass will get me in to everything because I want to see (and drink) it all.

    If they have wireless I should live blog your Cocktails and the Blogosphere lecture- that would be hilarious.

  9. Camper–

    I had a media badge last year and it worked for everything, though I’d suggest double checking — the online registration seems to indicate they want media & presenters to pay, which I’m convinced must be an error. Did you get booked for a Spirited Dinner? The media badge doesn’t work for those, but they arranged one for me separately last year — definitely something to check out.

    You should absolutely live blog the seminar — I was trying to figure out how to do that, without sitting up on the dais, tapping away at my keyboard the whole time. That would be a riot.

  10. 10:45 AM Paul looks like hell. Too many hurricanes last night?

    10:47 AM It’s too early for Rick to be slurring. Also, who picked his outfit?

    11:35 AM Sorry I blacked out for a minute. Why is everybody staring?

  11. Hurricanes? Egad, Camper — haven’t you realized that when it comes to getting paralytic in New Orleans, I’m strictly a “too many Sazeracs, milk punches and herbsaint frappes” kind of guy?

    (and if we get lucky with the Lucid, that could be “absinthe frappes”)

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