opinionated alchemist

Yes, this is not the first time I post the best mojito. My first article took all details apart and made some suggestions. However now, I really feel, that I am on the right way to the truly best mojito: We can all agree upon, that better quality and better matching ingredients makes a better mojito. The first secret is: I found the perfect Mojito rum. No joke. PERFECT. It is Diplomatico Planas. A Venezuelan rum, which is in the style of Cuban (and Dominican) rums - though better. It is longer aged, has a fuller bodied aroma, without being too dominating or funky (like a Jamaican rum. But the most important part is, that Planas is stronger than its competitors. Healthy 47%. There is no rum, which is coming close to it. Not Bacardi (the replicas are not bad... still no comparison). No Havana Club. The second choice would be a blend from a high-roof rum (white) and a reasonable good light rum (Matusalem Platino), and maybe a small fraction of aged rum. But even this is not close. Second...

  At this point I am on a quest of rethinking bar tools. While the shaker is an interesting subject (stay tuned), the jigger is an often overseen, but very important tool in the bar. For some time, I have used my OXO jigger (transparent). And to be honest I found, that it is far more precise than any classic or Japanese (or whatever) metal jigger. The issue is, that you can overpour a jigger - but also underpour it. And I see far too often, that people don't have the right pourer and measure approximately with the jigger. That is worse. Due to the conical form, it will be eventually wrong. Now - I have looked in different solutions. Some cylindric measures - some which look like tubes - but I ended up with those conical lab measuring cups. They are really similar to use compared to classic jiggers (especially the Japanese style) - but they have different fill lines, which make it easy to measure even fillers (if you have got bigger measuring cups and different sizes).  The dis...

 I am not sure if I am the only person who likes fresh watermelon (if it is nice, ripe and sweet) - but is usually disgusted by watermelon juice. It is a catastrophe - and it is independent if it is a pasteurized juice (there are few - maybe because of exactly this reason) - if it is purchased fresh - or homemade juice. A slow juicer makes it a bit better - but I would still rather drink any different juice. I believe, that it is a) the lack of acidity and b) the seeds, which introduce some "tannins" into the juice, which doesn't work with the overall fruity and refreshing aroma of watermelon. I tried basically everything possible (so I thought) to come up with a solution, which taste great. But basically by accident I found the solution: mix the watermelon with some hibiscus infusion. The idea originally was to make a watermelon aguafresca - blended with water and a bit sugar and strained. However I thought, it could not hurt to add a bit flavor. And as I needed anyway s...

When I have seen the first time some information about Seedlip, I could a) not believe it, b) directly wanted to get my hands on it c) thought that these people are magician to produce a product, which is not only alcohol-free, but also sugar-free and basically everything-free ... Unfortunately you literally cannot get your hands on Seedlip - at least until now - if you are not living in a "served" country. It is crazy - you might think, that Dubai is a great target market. But apparently it is not - and Amazon doesn't even delivers (neither other delivery sites) - I wonder why? It is alcohol-free... A bit of a sobering came, when more critical people reviewed alcohol-free spirits. It has to be said, that the "hype is real" - and that alcohol-free spirits are extremely trendy (lit?).  I will soon try them - as I have a source now. At least a competitor product to Seedlip. But I am not even anymore cautiously optimistic - rather the opposite. Now the idea isn...

 I have already written about the Black Sugar Ginger Ale ... but I thought that my efforts of creating some YouTube videos, would be rewarded, if I am using the above drink and make a recipe video. So enjoy the video - or even better watch it on YouTube and like and subscribe my channel!

  Folks - I was surprised that I could not directly find a Ginger Beer recipe on my site. I also added there far too much citric acid and far too less sugar. With time comes wisdom I guess. I was inspired by Liz the Chef  - I have checked the traffic sources of my blog - and just found out, a lot of traffic came from her website. Thank you. Anyways - she posted a Meyer Lemon Dark and Stormy (and yes, the post is several years old). But what did I needed to see? Store-bought Ginger Beer. This isn't great! The problem with store-bought ginger beer is, that it is a) pasteurized and b) it is made with ginger extract (which I guess comes from dried ginger). Hygiene-wise it makes perfectly sense. Ginger has a lot of microorganisms (a lot of good ones)... yeast and lactobacteria. The best way to get 100% rid of it (because you don't want to have a commercial ginger beer bottles, which are exploding due to rogue fermentation) is to use dehydrated ginger. No water - no (live) microorga...

I am fermenting (...) already so long, that it seems pretty easy in my eyes. Yet a lot of people asking me over and over again, how to do it.  Well there are a lot of websites which have good kombucha recipes. However I still think, that there is too much of a "tree-hugger" approach to the topic - hence I think, it is a good point to write up a post how I make kombucha (as straight forward as possible). What is kombucha? Kombucha is a ferment made out of (real) tea. It is made with a designated culture, which is called SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of bacteria and Yeast).  What is kombucha for? There is not much scientific evidence for or against health benefits. It is for sure lacto-fermented which is quite gut friendly. It also made with tea, hence it has caffeine which has a vitalizing effect. And real brewed kombucha is further low in sugar (as the sugar has been converted). And in the bar? We are not using kombucha for its health benefits. But in the bar the acidity in kombuc...