Thread: Recession Spirits -- What's your Favorite and Why?

I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
would you all recommend? Why?

Current cupboard contents are quite eclectic:
Single Malt - Auchentoshan
Blended Scotch - Chivas Regal
Gin* - Llords Gin (gift from a non-gin drinker)
Rum - Bacardi White
Vodka - Ketel One and Seagrams and Skyy

Wine:
$2C
Trader Joe's
Fetzer

Beers:
Fat Tire
Blue Moon

* Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
me.

The Ranger

On Sun, 17 May 2009 12:22:49 -0700 (PDT), The Ranger
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
>attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
>would you all recommend? Why?
>
>Gin* - Llords Gin (gift from a non-gin drinker)

I ordered a martini before dinner last night. Decided to take pot
luck on the gin, so I didn't call it. The gin was really different to
me... it had a floral nose, almost like lavender and I thought it was
smooth to drink. I'd never heard of the brand. ChrisD assured me
it's "cheap" gin, but I didn't think it was harsh at all. I think
I'll buy a bottle and see if I still like it.

http://www.bartonbrands.com/fleischmanngin.html
>
>* Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
>me.
>
Tanquerey makes a perfect G&T, AFAIC. Sapphire is my usual "call" for
martinis. The smell isn't kerosene, it's juniper berries. Haven't
you ever substituted a little gin in recipes that call for juniper?


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

In article
<[email protected]>,
The Ranger <[email protected]> wrote:

> I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
> attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
> would you all recommend? Why?
>
> Current cupboard contents are quite eclectic:
> Single Malt - Auchentoshan
> Blended Scotch - Chivas Regal
> Gin* - Llords Gin (gift from a non-gin drinker)
> Rum - Bacardi White
> Vodka - Ketel One and Seagrams and Skyy
>
> Wine:
> $2C
> Trader Joe's
> Fetzer
>
> Beers:
> Fat Tire
> Blue Moon
>
> * Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
> me.
>
> The Ranger

Clear Springs grain alcohol.
190 proof, $16.00 per bottle. (3/4 Liter)

Cut it in 1/2 and you have Vodka.

More bang for the buck imo. ;-)
--
Peace! Om

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.
-- Anon.

The Ranger wrote:
>
> I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
> attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
> would you all recommend? Why?

If cost matters, maybe it's time to learn
how to make your own. Are there really
revenooers out there hunting unauthorized
stills these days? It seems to me there's
lots bigger fish out there.

I've heard of amateurs making artisanal
liqueurs, like absinthe. Maybe you could
take up a new hobby?

On Sun, 17 May 2009 15:30:48 -0500, Omelet <[email protected]>
wrote:

>In article
><[email protected]>,
> The Ranger <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
>> attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
>> would you all recommend? Why?
>>
>> Current cupboard contents are quite eclectic:
>> Single Malt - Auchentoshan
>> Blended Scotch - Chivas Regal
>> Gin* - Llords Gin (gift from a non-gin drinker)
>> Rum - Bacardi White
>> Vodka - Ketel One and Seagrams and Skyy
>>
>> Wine:
>> $2C
>> Trader Joe's
>> Fetzer
>>
>> Beers:
>> Fat Tire
>> Blue Moon
>>
>> * Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
>> me.
>>
>> The Ranger
>
>Clear Springs grain alcohol.
>190 proof, $16.00 per bottle. (3/4 Liter)
>
>Cut it in 1/2 and you have Vodka.
>
>More bang for the buck imo. ;-)

Have one 40oz. of Crown Royal, a bottle of 18 yr. old Chivas Regal,
and two bottles of Glenlivet ... No beers, no wines

On Sun, 17 May 2009 13:31:00 -0700, Mark Thorson <[email protected]>
wrote:

>The Ranger wrote:
>>
>> I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
>> attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
>> would you all recommend? Why?
>
>If cost matters, maybe it's time to learn
>how to make your own. Are there really
>revenooers out there hunting unauthorized
>stills these days? It seems to me there's
>lots bigger fish out there.
>
>I've heard of amateurs making artisanal
>liqueurs, like absinthe. Maybe you could
>take up a new hobby?


a 40oz. of everclear, and make your own liquors

sf <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> On Sun, 17 May 2009 12:22:49 -0700 (PDT), The Ranger
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>* Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like
>> kerosene to me.
>>
> Tanquerey makes a perfect G&T, AFAIC. Sapphire is my
> usual "call" for martinis. The smell isn't kerosene, it's juniper
> berries. Haven't you ever substituted a little gin in recipes
> that call for juniper?

No it doesn't, yep it is very kerosene-ey, and nope I've never subsitituted
gin in any recipe...

As far as floral and enjoyable: I really enjoy Plymouth and Anchor Junipero.
Both are solid performers but both are expensive. And neither require you to
sneak up with nose-plug firmly in place in order to gain that first sip,
unlike Tanquery and Sapphire both!

The Ranger

Mark Thorson <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> If cost matters, maybe it's time to learn
> how to make your own. Are there really
> revenooers out there hunting unauthorized
> stills these days? It seems to me there's
> lots bigger fish out there.
>
> I've heard of amateurs making artisanal
> liqueurs, like absinthe. Maybe you could
> take up a new hobby?

If SWMBO won't let me participate in a minor homebrewing experiment, I'm
pretty sure setting up a still requiring a more exotic (and heat-based)
set-up would be out.

The Ranger

[email protected] wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
[snip]
> Have one 40oz. of Crown Royal [..]

Canada brews some wonderful beers (Molson's and Moosehead) but that whisky
isn't what I'd consider worthy of keeping in the liquor cabinet... Even as a
boiler-maker.

The Ranger

[email protected] wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
[snip]
> a 40oz. of everclear, and make your own liquors

Everclear -- the wheelchair of alcohol.

The Ranger

The Ranger wrote:

> * Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
> me.
>


That's turpentine, not kerosene. (Gin is supposed to smell a little
like turpentine.)

I buy both Seagram's and Booth's for G&T's and to mix with grapefruit
juice. Not sure if they are good enough for a martini, but that's OK
because I'm not old enough to like martinis*

Bob

*Martini = gin + vermouth with a garnish. It's not a martini if you
make it with vodka or leave out the vermouth. And certainly not all
those silly drinks with the suffix -tini.

On Sun, 17 May 2009 16:23:55 -0500, zxcvbob <[email protected]>
wrote:

>And certainly not all those silly drinks with the suffix -tini.

Most, if not all, of them are made with vodka anyway and I think -tini
refers to the stemmed glass part. How would you know it's a martini
glass and not a wine glass otherwise?


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

zxcvbob <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> The Ranger wrote:

>> * Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell
>> like kerosene to me.
>>
> That's turpentine, not kerosene. (Gin is supposed to smell a little like
> turpentine.)

And yet I enjoy the boutique gins just fine...

> I buy both Seagram's and Booth's for G&T's and to mix
> with grapefruit juice. Not sure if they are good enough
> for a martini, but that's OK because I'm not old enough
> to like martinis*

Seagrams might end up being the hooch-du-jour in my cabinet because they're
so much cheaper while maintaining a standard level of quality. (The
Budweiser of hard alcohol.)


> *Martini = gin + vermouth with a garnish. It's not a martini if you make
> it with vodka or leave out the vermouth. And certainly not all those
> silly drinks with the suffix -tini.

What's your favorite vermouth? I just learned about Vya and Punt e Mes for
high-end but haven't ever tried them. I prefer the more traditional Noilly
Pratt Dry and Cinzano Dry. Do you use sweet or dry? I don't think I've ever
tried sweet; what would that do to a martini?

The Ranger

On Sun, 17 May 2009 16:23:55 -0500, zxcvbob <[email protected]>
wrote:

>The Ranger wrote:
>
>> * Tanquerey and Bombay Sapphire both taste and smell like kerosene to
>> me.
>>
>
>
>That's turpentine, not kerosene. (Gin is supposed to smell a little
>like turpentine.)
>
>I buy both Seagram's and Booth's for G&T's and to mix with grapefruit
>juice. Not sure if they are good enough for a martini, but that's OK
>because I'm not old enough to like martinis*
>
>Bob
>
>*Martini = gin + vermouth with a garnish. It's not a martini if you
>make it with vodka or leave out the vermouth. And certainly not all
>those silly drinks with the suffix -tini.

"Shaken, not shtirred, Miss Moneypenny"?

You mean Bond James Bond was full of it after all?
--
mad

On Sun, 17 May 2009 14:44:59 -0700, "The Ranger"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I don't think I've ever tried sweet; what would that do to a martini?

Sweet vermouth is great in a Manhattan. It doesn't take a genius to
say it'll make your martini sweet and tinge it pink. With your taste
in gin, maybe sweet vermouth is for you.

That said, here's a recipe for a "Perfect Martini" which uses equal
parts of dry and sweet vermouth.

http://www.drinkswap.com/drinks/deta...recipe_id=5991

Perfect Martini
Ingredients
2 oz Gin
1/2 oz Dry Vermouth
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth

Directions
Stir ingredients and strain into a frosted cocktail glass.
Garnish with a twist of lemon, and serve.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sun, 17 May 2009 15:02:43 -0700, sf <[email protected]> wrote:

>On Sun, 17 May 2009 14:44:59 -0700, "The Ranger"
><[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>I don't think I've ever tried sweet; what would that do to a martini?
>
>Sweet vermouth is great in a Manhattan. It doesn't take a genius to
>say it'll make your martini sweet and tinge it pink. With your taste
>in gin, maybe sweet vermouth is for you.

I once ordered a Manhattan in Harlem, and the bartender didn't know
what the hell I was talking about.

True.
--
mad

On Sun, 17 May 2009 12:22:49 -0700 (PDT), The Ranger
<[email protected]> wrote:

> I have recently been looking for good, cheap options for hooch in an
> attempt to trim back my overall food and drink expenditures? What
> would you all recommend? Why?
>
> Current cupboard contents are quite eclectic:
> Single Malt - Auchentoshan
> Blended Scotch - Chivas Regal
> Gin* - Llords Gin (gift from a non-gin drinker)
> Rum - Bacardi White
> Vodka - Ketel One and Seagrams and Skyy

Don't replace the bended Scotch, the gin, the rum or two of the three
vodkas.

When the malt and last vodka run out restock with something you love
even if it costs a fortune. In fact better if it costs a fortune
because it'll be easy to resist the temptation to have a nip whenever.

Drink less. Enjoy more.


Matthew
--
Mail to this account goes to the bit bucket.
In the unlikely event you want to mail me replace usenet with my name

Brandy and tequila at the moment - I'll get a botle of vodka when I go
to the liquor store. I like brandy in my coffee, and I have been
known to do shots of tequila with lime and salt.

I don't go for the high-priced stuff, either.

Beer - most dark beers or a nice amber lager.
--
mad

sf wrote:
> On Sun, 17 May 2009 14:44:59 -0700, "The Ranger"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> I don't think I've ever tried sweet; what would that do to a martini?
>
> Sweet vermouth is great in a Manhattan. It doesn't take a genius to
> say it'll make your martini sweet and tinge it pink. With your taste
> in gin, maybe sweet vermouth is for you.
>
> That said, here's a recipe for a "Perfect Martini" which uses equal
> parts of dry and sweet vermouth.
>
> http://www.drinkswap.com/drinks/deta...recipe_id=5991
>
> Perfect Martini
> Ingredients
> 2 oz Gin
> 1/2 oz Dry Vermouth
> 1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth
>
> Directions
> Stir ingredients and strain into a frosted cocktail glass.
> Garnish with a twist of lemon, and serve.
>


That's the only Martini I've tried that I really liked. Except I used a
lot more gin than that -- I think it was 4 ounces of Booth's 90 proof
gin and a generous 1/2 oz each of sweet and dry vermouths. The gin was
ice cold (poured from the freezer) and I didn't add any ice.

Bob