opinionated alchemist

There is an article on cookinglight.com which lists drinks per calorie content.

I am sorry to be again so opinionated - however this is utterly nonsense.
Besides of the fact, that I would rather have one proper craft beer (like a IPA) instead of 3 or 4 American macro lagers (or even worse: light beer) - but also the caloric values are misleading:

The issue is, that calories are calculated by burning the respective "material" and measure the energy (heat), which comes out of it. While this works quite well with simple and complex sugars and with fats, it doesn't necessarily work with ethanol (drinking alcohol). Why? Due to the fact, that our body cannot metabolize alcohol, as he metabolizes sugar. Hence if you are drinking a Martini cocktail (with proper vodka or gin which are theoretically only ethanol and water), you probably won't put some (additional) weight on, despite the fact, that it shows quite a "horrific calorie number".

This doesn't work wel…

Masafi is a UAE based drinking water supplier. There has been another brand (Al Ain) which has started the "zero sodium trend".  But what I have to give to Al Ain is, that they just advertised their water what it is: zero sodium. They didn't implied any health benefits or anything else. I found that pretty smart - as a lot of people are concerned about their sodium intake - hence they are "playing with the perception" that the water "can help" to reduce the sodium intake, without being misleading.

Masafi though is definitely misleading. They suggesting, that their water actively helps to maintain a healthy sodium intake. Why is it misleading? Because it all depends on ratio. Look - the recommended sodium intake of a normal adult is 1,500 mg (1.5 grams). The sodium content of "normal" mineral water is about 3mg to 33mg (latter is already pretty extreme- it is Badoit sparkling water with one of the highest sodium content of all commercial min…

The pink wave is approaching us and probably will overrun us all... at least this is my current feeling, when I see, what kind of new products are approaching and which products are hitting the trend-lists.

First there was the Cosmopolitan - then after a long hiatus of pink highly popular beverages, rosé wine started its incredible victory run. The frozé has been a wine based drink, which really pushed pink further. And now we are at pink gin. This is an obvious combination of "pink" and another current hyper trend: gin.

Gordon's, one of the biggest volume producer of gin (but in my eyes, maybe not one of the outstanding ones),  didn't wanted to stay behind - and also developed a pinkish gin.

How is it?
It is sweet, it is pink, it smells like strawberries and taste like a berry-fruit bouquet. There are for sure some juniper and other spice notes, which are coming through. Yet the beverage is not very complex. Which might be ok, for the target clientele?!

My issue: i…

Who would knew, that I am reviewing a budget vodka here - on the opinionatedalchemist.com. But this isn't a normal review. I skip the marketing perception and use this product to cut directly to the case:


Vodka is a "rather" neutral, colorless, "rather" flavorless and odorless distilled beverage from any agricultural source - and depending on the country, it has a minimum of 37.5% and 40% abv.

As I said time and time again before: at times it is absolutely nonsense to talk about premium and luxury, when the original product doesn't really "hold this promise". Luxury water can have luxurious marketing, luxurious packaging, can be even rare and slightly more expensive "to produce". However really it is just water. Maybe it has some nuances to normal water - however those nuances (in a blind-test) are pretty small. Vodka is extremely similar - and the chain of evidence (despite a lot of people trying to proof otherwise) makes it really clear…

Sorren Krebs over at OCDwhisky.com has written this post, which criticizes the whisky snobbery of many distilleries. And I can understand this cri de coeur without completely supporting it.

Look - I do find value for money brands great. I find it alluring, that some brands care about the fact, that their products to be consumed, instead of being traded - or being showpieces in rich men liquor cabinets. However - we are living in a capitalistic world, where the market just determines decisions of brands and companies.
But is it sustainable to hype your product and "premiumize" it?
There are many factors which determine, if a business survives on the long run. At this point (if in question) I would rather put my money onto The Macallan than on Glen Moray, when it comes to survival.  It is important, that we look at it not solely from the perspective of a seasoned and knowledgeable consumer (on-trade / off-trade) - it is important that we are looking at it from a business stand…

Not a lot of posts these days - I know. I am trying to keep a bit more busy on Instagram - I have heard, that people are far more active on this platform...
And I have been quite busy anyway (yeah, I know: as always). Now - I have to admit something: while my tarragon infusion worked perfectly at home (color-wise) - it has been not really successful on work. The aromas of tarragon were all there - but you have had (again) this faint light yellowish green.
Not good enough.
It seems though, that I found the culprit: too low alcohol! Even at 47% abc Bombay Sapphire isn't strong enough. When I used alcohol which has been around 70% it worked like a charm.  In the first hour (room temp) the alcohol slowly turned in a light green (but a more "unnatural" green with less yellowish hints). Heating it up to 65ºC It turned within another hour darker - but afterwards adding it into an ice bath, made it vibrant green.
Well - I have to admit, that the mint infusion has been more vivi…