Photos by Alex Hafizi
As this is our June/July issue I thought of the red, white and blue drinks I’ve enjoyed during the summer months: Pinot Noir as it’s lighter in body and color than many other red wines, clear vodkas, and those icy blue cocktails I drank in my youth…all very refreshing, cool and unique.
The Lightness of Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir, at first glance just looks different than other red wines. I don’t want a heavy red wine on a hot day to pair with lighter prepared meals from chicken to lean meats, so Pinot fits the bill for me. At a recent tasting of Cakebread Cellars 2011 Anderson Valley Pinot Noir I relished the red cellophane color, bright cherry and stems, a beautiful balance. Vice Chairman Dennis Cakebread has, according to the company, “been diligently developing the Pinot Noir “project” – now nearly 20 years in the making” and it shows.
Clos Pepe winemaker Wes Hagen, whose current 2009 and 2010 each warranted 92+ points from wine critic Robert Parker, said it best in describing what he goes for when creating a great Pinot Noir from the Santa Rita Hills appellation, “I like wine[s] that are more jazz than heavy metal. Those same notes, D, C and A, over and over. Great Pinot Noir is jazz…Heavy metal is so monolithic you have to pay attention to it while jazz is orchestral…”
Flavorless Spirit or Not
If you are drinking vodka in a martini that only uses a spritz of vermouth, most of what you are tasting is the vermouth. Some people, including myself at times, prefer a certain brand of vodka over another brand for what we may deem a “smoother” quality. At home, I use American made Tito’s (distilled from corn) and in a bar, I order Grey Goose (wheat). Recently, I was offered Chopin at a bar. Because I hadn’t had it in awhile, I noticed the distinct flavor of what it had been distilled from: potatoes.
Some vodka companies will market how their brand is distilled, as drinkers have become aware that the more distillations the finer the vodka. One brand is distilled 10 times through charcoal and volcanic rock (Crater Lake), another is distilled in diamonds (Crystal Head) – whatever your preference is, the drinker is the only one that can decide smoothness. Try them apart, or in your martini, and think about how the vodka feels in your mouth to make your own decision.
Fun in Blue
When I was younger, I was enamored with icy, frothy, blue drinks often made with the orange liqueur Blue Curacao (pronounced Cure-ah-so) and nowadays drinkers have more choices with the plethora of flavored blue-colored vodkas. For this article, I wanted to try both, and I found all the ingredients I needed in a local supermarket, and neither spirit was over $9. Here are two recipes for our younger readers, and those reliving their youth. Note: These drinks mask the intensity of the liquor with their sweetness; keep in mind that they are just as powerful, if not more so, as the drinker may not realize that they are intoxicated.
Blue Lagoon: 1 part vodka, 1 part blue curacao, pour over ice, then add lemonade and a cherry.
Bomb Pop: 2 parts UV Blue Raspberry Vodka, 4 parts lemonade, serve over ice.
More: http://www.drinksmixer.com
 
 
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