opinionated alchemist

I have found some new products, which let me thought over the whole concept of terroir of spirits. Belvedere released two unique vodkas which are made with rye out of two specific micro-regions. Please check the link , because I won’t run with the typical marketing b.s. The issue here is: does it make sense or is it total nonsense? We probably have first to make some important distinction, what means and what influences terroir. terroir   |  terˈwär  |  noun the complete natural environment in which a particular wine is produced, including factors such as the soil, topography, and climate .  •  ( also  goût de terroir  |  ɡo͞o də  |  )  the characteristic taste and flavor imparted to a wine by the environment in which it is produced .  ORIGIN  French ,  ‘ land ’ , from  medieval Latin  terratorium . Terroir (as well as unique sub-varieties) in directly consumed items is a non-b...

Folks, I have to admit, that I am not the biggest fan of Dirty Martinis. The usual combination between vodka and olive brine seems odd - and I am often more reminded on dirty dish water, than on a good drink. Olive brine itself isn't really that bad - even commercial olives just contain water, salt, vinegar or lactic acid. But it depends, how the olives are cured - one industrial process is, curing the olives in lye - which isn't that great (but on the other hand still perfectly save). The issue is, that "olive brine" doesn't taste that great. Fast forward, I have discovered an Iranian shop, with a lot of unique products - they are particularly strong in "flower waters" which are hydrosols. Hydrosols are basically the byproduct, you will get, if you are steam-distilling produce to get essential oils - there will be only very little essential oil - but quite a lot of water, on which the essential oil "floats". This water has strong arom...

There are really some people out there, which are reading my blog (duh) - and are interested in my "opinionated opinion". Thus in the years of this blog, I got quite a lot of samples. That can be a good thing (if the product is really something very special), that can also backfire... At times I avoid to review new products, because I just think, that I don't want to step on all feet of old and new friends. On the other hand, people who send me samples have read my blog before - so it isn't really too bad, if I give my (blogged) opinion, is it? Peter Steger of Sash and Fritz German Wodka (yeah - "ze Germans" are spelling vodka with a 'w'), is one of those friends (at least until this post).  To make it a bit more agreeable - and definitely more constructive than critical, I try here a bit of a new twist to this post - instead of a naked review - I try to consult on the product (however not before giving an honest review)... let's ge...