Exploring Jerry Thomas's Bar-Tender's Guide -- because while graduate school may be enough to drive anyone to drink, I prefer to be driven in style. [About]
This blog has been lying dormant as I was finishing up my dissertation. It’s going to sit dormant — or at least dormant-ish — a bit longer, and I’m in the process of relocating across the country to Chicago. I’ll be back with fresh content, exploring the bars of a whole new city this fall.
In any case, for those of you still following along, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and, soon, I’ll be sitting there with an Old Fashioned.
I love sangria. Love it. But, there is something about it that decidedly says summertime, or at least spring. Point being, as much as I love sangria, I always hesitate to make it in winter, which is why I have such a soft spot for mulled wine.
Mulled wine is easy and low fuss. Done right, it’s also dangerously drinkable — just like sangria. It’s a great way to serve a crowd, and the spicy, boozy smell it fills the room with is rather cozy.
My method for mulled wine is, as you can see, a little unrefined. I am forever forgetting to buy anything to bundle up the spices with, so I wind up straining them out after mulling. I don’t recommend this; it’s messy.
Mulled Wine For a Crowd
4 bottles red wine
2 small oranges
4 T. mulling spices
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brandyPour all wine into a slow cooker or large pot. Slice oranges thinly and add to wine. Stir in sugar and all spices. Simmer on lowest heat setting for one hour. If using a slow cooker, 1 hour on the low setting will work as well. Just before serving, stir in brandy.
Many companies sell ready-mixed mulling spices. Honestly, I think most of these are fine. If you’re bent on DIYing every step, go-to spices include cloves, peppercorns, allspice berries, cinnamon, ginger, and even cardamom. Personally, I tend to use 3-4 cinnamon sticks, 1 T. cloves, 1 T. allspice berries, and a pinch of peppercorns.
In any case, mulled wine is a great drink for improvisation and customization. Try orange liqueur instead of brandy, or apples instead of oranges. Perfect your own spice blend.
My first couple years of graduate school, I developed an affinity for Melbourn Bros. Cherry Ale. I’d buy myself a bottle now and then as a reward for surviving some of the small indignities of day to day life — I worked retail at the time, and there were many to be endured. I picked up the stuff by the bottle at Whole Foods, and then, inexplicably, they stopped carrying it.
I asked around at places with respectable beer departments, including Whole Foods, and no one knew what the hell I was talking about. Clearly, this was very disappointing. Well, while in Boise visiting the in-laws, we stopped by Brewforia Beer Market in Meridian, ID, and I saw a bottle that looked suspiciously familiar. It wasn’t labeled Melbourn Bros., but it appeared to be the same product. The narrative on the back that said the bottles originated “Melbourn Bros. tiny brewery set in a time warp in Stamford” convinced me I was correct. If I had any doubt, the taste sealed the deal.
I’ve finally found my lost favorite beer — well, technically an ale, but who’s keeping score? In any case, if you can find it, I highly recommend Samuel Smith Cherry Fruit Ale. The peach and the strawberry are nice, but the cherry is truly something special.
Hope everyone had a merry holiday. I’ll be posting in the next few days with a vegan eggnog I’m a little in love with.
I was going to mull some wine tonight — the air has a snap to it, and it took me an hour to drive home from work, so I figured the project would be relaxing and the wine would be a treat. However, because nothing is going my way, really, today, we don’t have adequate brandy for me to go about this in my preferred way. So, I will tell you nothing of how to mull wine, and instead tease you with a photography of mulling spices. Look at the star anise! Is there a spice lovelier than star anise?
I wanted to post the caramel sauce recipe I used for the ill fated drink I posted about last week. It isn’t mine, so I’m going to link to it, but the recipe does give delectable results. Try it yourself here.
I should be back with an actual drink sometime later this week. And, I may try to figure out something drinks-related to do with this sauce, although after the last failure, I’m drawing a blank on ideas.
