opinionated alchemist

It is always great, to explore a ethnic supermarket. Here in the Middle East unfortunately, there are not a lot... [however you could find some exotic things in a standard hypermarket]. Today - I found the Korean supermarket AMART. And as expected, they have a couple of unique drinks [I only selected three of those]. 1st: Sunny 10 Blast. This was the purple can. Unfortunately everything was written in Korean, however it tasted very [artificial] grapey [what the color suggested]. I would say, that it is something like a slightly carbonated fruit cocktail or a fruit nectar. Not very good [but also not terrible]. Not necessarily great for mixing [however it would do at home good for a simple highball]. You might buy, if you like thin, sweet nectars. 2nd: Milki. This is very similar to Calpico/Calpis from Japan. However I would say a bit lighter in taste - the acid taste seems to be citric acid and not lactic acid. On one hand I would not rate it as complex as the Japanese

Eggnog by the New York Times - 1958 recipe Eggnogg is another winter favorite - besides of mulled wine . However it is more an American favorite. This said, Europeans usually now advocaat a traditional Belgium/Dutch liqueur made from eggs, which is also pretty popular in all other European countries, especially in the winter. But lets face it: a properly made eggnog is so much better than advocaat. There are a myriad of recipes floating around the world wide web - and if it comes to traditional eggnog, I would emphasize on Jeffrey Morgenthaler's recipe of a foolproof, super-easy and delicious nog. When I researched a bit after a recipe [for Skylite ] I came across a recipe in the New York Times from 1997. They revived a recipe which was published in 1958 - of a rather edible eggnog. I think this is pretty cool. Boozy dessert - is better than a dessert drink [for me at least]. This post is just to give you the heads up... I will try this - however incorporate modern me

I am not a christmas'y person. Not at all. However I am a business savvy person - and I know, that a lot of people like to come into the mood of xmas with some awesome xmas drinks. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland I can't think of anything [liquid] which expresses more xmas memories like mulled wine. Its warm, spicy, syrup'y smells imbues the air and brings you into the mood of the festive season - if you drink it - well - one brings you into the mood, two are even better, three are taking you off the feet [doesn't mean, that it takes anything away from the mood - maybe only the morning later]. There is no need of using a premix - it is so simple. Use a wine. Don't use a fancy one. A dry, "working day" wine is more than adequate [however you don't want to use bad hooch - it will even worsen your hangover as if you would drink it normal]. You need an orange. You need spices. And sugar. 2 l dry, inexpensive but adequate red wine 10 clov

Since a long time, I always feel a bit uncomfortable [up to annoyed] if it comes to drink reviews. Lets face it everyones palate is different and the least people have such a refined taste - as well as have the knowledge about context, that they can do a independent [that means uninfluenced by marketing and image] and unbiased evaluation. And lets also face it - if you have several drinks to rate from 1 to 10 of taste, appearance, aroma, your ratings will change from the beginning to the end of your assessment. More specific, complex and "devious" rating sheet could help [ideally electronically]. But what would be the distinctive variables? As "you cannot argue about taste", lets get first of all postulate following points: Classic drinks stood the test of time - hence can be seen as paragon Temperature [T] is a measurable value - and is deciding if a drink is good or not. A very basic balance [Bb] is also key for an adequate drink - I don't mean