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Some might suggest that bourbon and bacon are more appropriate.
Showing posts with label Adult Beverages. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adult Beverages. Show all posts
Saturday, July 3, 2021
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Well... darn!
I have mentioned the local beer store, 99 Bottles, a couple of times.
The Clue Meter: Breakfast of Champs
The Clue Meter: Kudos!
Plus, a lot of the beer I've mentioned was purchased there. They introduced me to the concept of buying a growler and taking it home.
I started wondering if they could last when you started being able to buy craft and micro brews at the local Safeway.
Then we voted to get the state out of the booze business (sort of: that thumb is still on the scale, covertly), and booze super store opened on town, and the writing was on the wall.
So the latest "Weekly Brews" email newsletter announced that they are closing the doors forever on December 10th, and they are selling everything.
Damn it.
The Clue Meter: Breakfast of Champs
The Clue Meter: Kudos!
Plus, a lot of the beer I've mentioned was purchased there. They introduced me to the concept of buying a growler and taking it home.
I started wondering if they could last when you started being able to buy craft and micro brews at the local Safeway.
Then we voted to get the state out of the booze business (sort of: that thumb is still on the scale, covertly), and booze super store opened on town, and the writing was on the wall.
So the latest "Weekly Brews" email newsletter announced that they are closing the doors forever on December 10th, and they are selling everything.
Damn it.
Friday, June 19, 2015
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Sangria!
White sangria this time.
I poured the wine and the pop into one of the pitches I described in last summer's post "Mmm-mm, good!" I poured the peaches into the "fruit infuser" tube, letting the syrup run into the wine/pop mix.
Then I put a handful of strawberries in, and assembled the whole thing.
Let it sit in the fridge overnight.
It almost made it through dinner...
Last week I made a batch with a 10 year old bottle of syrah and a can or 7-Up. That one used some ginger and mint as well as strawberries and a sliced orange. It needed some simple syrup, just didn't work as well.
- 1 750ml bottle of white moscato
- 1 can "Peach Citrus Pop" (Fresca)
- 1 cup of diced peaches in light syrup
- Handful Strawberries (Smallish ones, from our garden)
I poured the wine and the pop into one of the pitches I described in last summer's post "Mmm-mm, good!" I poured the peaches into the "fruit infuser" tube, letting the syrup run into the wine/pop mix.
Then I put a handful of strawberries in, and assembled the whole thing.
Let it sit in the fridge overnight.
It almost made it through dinner...
Last week I made a batch with a 10 year old bottle of syrah and a can or 7-Up. That one used some ginger and mint as well as strawberries and a sliced orange. It needed some simple syrup, just didn't work as well.
Friday, April 3, 2015
About my previous post...
...where I say that
He links to two articles on the subject:
In Tennessee, as it turns out, one can enter a restaurant that serves alcohol, but if The Man has authorized you to legally carry the means to defend yourself and your loved ones, you are expected to be on the wagon.it also turns out that, as Chance points out, while SayUncle » At the NRA Annual Meeting, many local eateries would -prefer not to be distracted by any money contaminated by icky guns.
He links to two articles on the subject:
- Some restaurants posted near NRA Nashville 2015 - Knoxville gun rights | Examiner.com
- With the NRA convention coming to Nashville in three weeks, what are the restaurants and bars where permit holders are welcome? - Crime Prevention Research Center
Posting against carrying a firearm has the force of law in Tennessee, so members should pay attention to the signs on or near the doors of any eating establishment.List of banned properties here: Tennessee Firearms Assoc. Inc. • View forum - Posted Properties - General
If it is visibly posted with verbiage and/or the circle/slash sign, you are prohibited from entering by law with a gun. Goeser noted in the interview with Walters that management in some restaurants told her that, although they had no signs up, they were still posted. Huh?
Relativity II
Back on Pi Day I wrote Relativity, in which I mused on the differences between various states' rules and procedures for applying and getting approved for a permit to carry a concealed pistol, by whatever name that permission slip may be known.
Now, I'm sitting here planning to attend the NRA Annual Meeting in Nashville, and am glad to note that Tennessee recognizes a Washington CPL. (In fact, TN apparently recognizes every other states' permits, except for Vermont. Oh, wait, Vermont doesn't even issue a permit, thus the original name for "Constitutional Carry", FKA "Vermont Carry.")
Now, here in WA I can carry in a restaurant, and even have a beer or some wine, but I cannot cross the--often invisible--line that separates the dining room proper from the bar. Entering a bar while armed is verboten.
"South of the border", down Oregon way, there is no rule against a lawfully armed citizen from sitting down in a bar and having an adult libation.
Getting drunk, no, having a drink, go for it.
In Tennessee, as it turns out, one can enter a restaurant that serves alcohol, but if The Man has authorized you to legally carry the means to defend yourself and your loved ones, you are expected to be on the wagon.
Now, I understand the reason behind this: "ZOMG, booze and guns don't mix!"And yet...
WA and OR manage to let a person who is deemed responsible enough to carry a gun to have a drink.
I am not aware of any state that says "No drinking and driving AT ALL."
"If you're driving you'd better not go take Communion!"*
Yeah, that'd go over well...
TN also does not let you carry in a park. (I understand that this is changing very soon, perhaps before the NRAAM.)
Many municipalities in WA try and ban lawfully armed citizens from carrying in public spaces, like parks, but state preemption and all, they regularly get slapped down for it.
Not all states have preemption, and it can get pretty silly, the gyrations you may have to go through, figuring out how the rules may have changed when you're crossing an invisible line.
Considering that it has been proven over and over again that crime goes down when citizens are armed, that all the panic-driven predictions of "blood in the streets" are untrue, it seems like being allowed to have a beer with friends, many of whom I've never seen, is jot too much to ask.
Now, I'm sitting here planning to attend the NRA Annual Meeting in Nashville, and am glad to note that Tennessee recognizes a Washington CPL. (In fact, TN apparently recognizes every other states' permits, except for Vermont. Oh, wait, Vermont doesn't even issue a permit, thus the original name for "Constitutional Carry", FKA "Vermont Carry.")
Now, here in WA I can carry in a restaurant, and even have a beer or some wine, but I cannot cross the--often invisible--line that separates the dining room proper from the bar. Entering a bar while armed is verboten.
"South of the border", down Oregon way, there is no rule against a lawfully armed citizen from sitting down in a bar and having an adult libation.
Getting drunk, no, having a drink, go for it.
In Tennessee, as it turns out, one can enter a restaurant that serves alcohol, but if The Man has authorized you to legally carry the means to defend yourself and your loved ones, you are expected to be on the wagon.
Now, I understand the reason behind this: "ZOMG, booze and guns don't mix!"And yet...
WA and OR manage to let a person who is deemed responsible enough to carry a gun to have a drink.
I am not aware of any state that says "No drinking and driving AT ALL."
"If you're driving you'd better not go take Communion!"*
Yeah, that'd go over well...
TN also does not let you carry in a park. (I understand that this is changing very soon, perhaps before the NRAAM.)
Many municipalities in WA try and ban lawfully armed citizens from carrying in public spaces, like parks, but state preemption and all, they regularly get slapped down for it.
Not all states have preemption, and it can get pretty silly, the gyrations you may have to go through, figuring out how the rules may have changed when you're crossing an invisible line.
Considering that it has been proven over and over again that crime goes down when citizens are armed, that all the panic-driven predictions of "blood in the streets" are untrue, it seems like being allowed to have a beer with friends, many of whom I've never seen, is jot too much to ask.
***
*Yeah, I know the "sacramental wine" is often actually grape juice that has not been changed...Sunday, August 3, 2014
Mmm-mm, good!
A few months ago Mrs. Drang picked up a pair of these drink maker/infuser pitchers at membership warehouse. In case you don't want to click the link, the set is two half-gallon pitchers, plus one "tea infuser" and one "fruit infuser." The infusers screw into the lid; the idea is that you fill the tea infuser with loose tea, make tea, then swap it for the other infuser full of sliced fruit and herbs and whatnot and infuse your tea with other flavors.
Of course, you could fill the pitcher with wine and use the fruit infuser to make sangria. Or fill the pitcher with water -- or vodka -- and make another kind of infusion.
I decided I wanted some "grown-up iced tea", what with temperatures holding in the 80's. (Hey, in Western Washington that's grueling!)
The first batch I used the bags of "Tropical Medley" tea that came with the pitchers. (They want you to use their tea, of course, but I'm not sure how economical that would be. OTOH, our local grocery store doesn't carry loose tea!.)(!) I made too much tea, and had to pour some off. Then I added bourbon, and put a sliced lemon and some mint in the infuser. This was more-or-less their recipe, except for the fact that I didn't exactly measure anything...
Not bad.
For the next batch -- effectively simultaneous, I had two pitchers to work with -- I made a batch of raspberry iced tea using Keurig K-Cups, added Chambord liqueur and vodka, and in the infuser I put some chopped up raspberries.
This one was a little more to Mrs. Drag's liking, although based on how long the pitcher lasted it might be sort of "situational". Plus, I was winging it...
When Mrs. Drang was shopping for loose tea, as I mentioned above, she couldn't find any; instead, she bought some Lipton Cold Brew tea bags. Each of these are supposed to make a quart of iced tea, and, as the name implies, don't need hot water to do so. I'm sure purists will object, but it tastes like iced tea, and is easier, so until they prove there's a health impact, I'm fine with this.
Anyway, current recipe is more-or-less:
It's pretty simple. It's pretty tasty. It's pretty.... Damn it! My glass is empty!
Okay, now that disaster has been averted (mmmm!) you obviously don't need a "Drinks Maker 4-piece Pitcher Set" to do this. Herbs can be put in a tea ball to infuse. Fruits (or vegetables, I guess, if that floats your boat, so to speak) could be floated freely, or put in cheese cloth, to facilitate retrieval. After all, sangria is usually served with free-floating fruit, like we did last year at Gun Blogger Rendezvous.
But it sure is refreshing after a hard, hot summer's day in The Salt Mines.
Of course, you could fill the pitcher with wine and use the fruit infuser to make sangria. Or fill the pitcher with water -- or vodka -- and make another kind of infusion.
I decided I wanted some "grown-up iced tea", what with temperatures holding in the 80's. (Hey, in Western Washington that's grueling!)
The first batch I used the bags of "Tropical Medley" tea that came with the pitchers. (They want you to use their tea, of course, but I'm not sure how economical that would be. OTOH, our local grocery store doesn't carry loose tea!.)(!) I made too much tea, and had to pour some off. Then I added bourbon, and put a sliced lemon and some mint in the infuser. This was more-or-less their recipe, except for the fact that I didn't exactly measure anything...
Not bad.
For the next batch -- effectively simultaneous, I had two pitchers to work with -- I made a batch of raspberry iced tea using Keurig K-Cups, added Chambord liqueur and vodka, and in the infuser I put some chopped up raspberries.
This one was a little more to Mrs. Drag's liking, although based on how long the pitcher lasted it might be sort of "situational". Plus, I was winging it...
When Mrs. Drang was shopping for loose tea, as I mentioned above, she couldn't find any; instead, she bought some Lipton Cold Brew tea bags. Each of these are supposed to make a quart of iced tea, and, as the name implies, don't need hot water to do so. I'm sure purists will object, but it tastes like iced tea, and is easier, so until they prove there's a health impact, I'm fine with this.
Anyway, current recipe is more-or-less:
- 1.5 Quarts Tea (I've been brewing it strong, but, you know, to taste...)
- Lemonade mix, suitable for making two quarts of lemonade (I.e., tub of Crystal Lite, scoops of Country Time, etc.)
- 2 cups booze of your choice.
- Infuse fruit and herbs to taste.
It's pretty simple. It's pretty tasty. It's pretty.... Damn it! My glass is empty!
Okay, now that disaster has been averted (mmmm!) you obviously don't need a "Drinks Maker 4-piece Pitcher Set" to do this. Herbs can be put in a tea ball to infuse. Fruits (or vegetables, I guess, if that floats your boat, so to speak) could be floated freely, or put in cheese cloth, to facilitate retrieval. After all, sangria is usually served with free-floating fruit, like we did last year at Gun Blogger Rendezvous.
But it sure is refreshing after a hard, hot summer's day in The Salt Mines.
Friday, April 25, 2014
Off we go...
...into the wild beer yonder!
Tried the P51 Porter a week or so ago, liked it so much I bought a couple of 
Wingman Brewers
I'll have to stop by their taproom. Interestingly,
Though we don't serve food, you're more than welcome to bring your own. There are a variety of great restaurants nearby which offer take-out and delivery options.I like their porter. Since I continue to be cursed with a pallet that "knows what it likes, but can't describe it", I'll just quote them:
P-51 is a robust and clean-finishing porter. Rich malty flavors highlight hints of chocolate and coffee. At 8% ABV, this dark beer will warm even the coldest Puget Sound nights.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Monday, February 17, 2014
Solace
So, after all the posts I've done about vacations and traveling around, plus 20 years in the Army, it may seem odd for me to say that I travel poorly. That is, I don't particularly enjoy it, and often find it tedious at best.
That goes double when I'm traveling without Mrs. Drang. I'm hardly the first to note that commercial air travel is no fun these days; for me, security is the least of the annoyances. (Although delivering myself into the hands of government bureaucrats is never pleasant.) Since deregulation, air travel has gotten so cheap that the airlines have to make the seats narrower and closer together, cut out services, charge for things that ought to be free...
So the Salt Mines have sent me off for two weeks of training, to teach me how to do the job I've been doing for a dozen years, and, at least in some aspects, for going on 30 years. This time it's to the parent corporation's training facility, which is close to several famous vacation destinations.
I, however, have next to zero interest on going and seeing and doing without my Bearcat.
I'm so boring. Not really much of a bourbon man, either...
I do like their wheat whiskey and their port cask-finished whiskey, though.
That goes double when I'm traveling without Mrs. Drang. I'm hardly the first to note that commercial air travel is no fun these days; for me, security is the least of the annoyances. (Although delivering myself into the hands of government bureaucrats is never pleasant.) Since deregulation, air travel has gotten so cheap that the airlines have to make the seats narrower and closer together, cut out services, charge for things that ought to be free...
So the Salt Mines have sent me off for two weeks of training, to teach me how to do the job I've been doing for a dozen years, and, at least in some aspects, for going on 30 years. This time it's to the parent corporation's training facility, which is close to several famous vacation destinations.
I, however, have next to zero interest on going and seeing and doing without my Bearcat.
I'm so boring. Not really much of a bourbon man, either...
Thursday, December 5, 2013
It's cold out there!
It's a good day to celebrate the Repeal of Prohibition with a Hot Buttered Rum:
If you can find cardamom pods, the cardamom itself will keep almost indefinitely. Not that we found some cardamom pods in the pantry that predated our marriage or anything...
Note: I have no idea where I found this recipe. If it is copyright, I invite the owner to contact me and I will remove it.
Hot Buttered Rum Batter No. 1
1 lb Brown sugar
1/2 lb Butter, salted
1 tsp ground Nutmeg
1 tsp ground Cinnamon
1 tsp ground Cloves
1 tsp ground white Cardamom
1 tsp Vanilla
Blend all ingredients in a food processor or mixer and store in the fridge or freezer. To make a drink add a shot of good dark rum along with 1 or 2 tbl spoons of batter to a mug of very hot water. Serve in Irish coffee cup.
If you can find cardamom pods, the cardamom itself will keep almost indefinitely. Not that we found some cardamom pods in the pantry that predated our marriage or anything...
Note: I have no idea where I found this recipe. If it is copyright, I invite the owner to contact me and I will remove it.
Saturday, November 2, 2013
R-R-R-R-R-R-Rainier
Mrs/ Drang has a post up about the old Rainier Beer brewery in Seattle. (R-R-R-R-R-R-Rainier)
Now having grown up here, but having driven by the place on my way from Ft Lewis to see not-yet-Mrs. Drang, I was glad to see the sign back up.
Don't recall that I ever drank any Rainier. But their commercials were a hoot and a half:
And my favorites:
and
Now having grown up here, but having driven by the place on my way from Ft Lewis to see not-yet-Mrs. Drang, I was glad to see the sign back up.
Don't recall that I ever drank any Rainier. But their commercials were a hoot and a half:
And my favorites:
and
Friday, November 1, 2013
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Overheard at the dinner table
"This Vigonier* seems to be off, it IS an '03, after all. See, this is why we need a Monogram Walk-In Wine Vault."
'Cuz the computer would tell us that the bottle in slot B73 was at the peak of it's drinkability.
Honestly, it's only recently we got all the bottles together and looked at what we have. If you saw the movie Sideways, there's a scene where the character Miles is describing his "cellar" as a cardboard box under the stairs; that's not too far off from what we have. "Had", actually: Like I said, we have all our wine in racks, and more-or-less inventoried now.
*Pronounced "Vee-own-Yay." It was a bottle of Fess Parker Vigonier that actually got us started doing more than just asking the waiter what was recommended with whatever we were ordering for dinner.
Yes, Fess Parker, Dan'l Boone, Davy Crockett, the pilot in Them!. And, speaking of Sideways, the scene where Miles drank from the spit bucket, set at the "Fraz" winery, was filmed in the Fess Parker tasting room. FWIW.
'Cuz the computer would tell us that the bottle in slot B73 was at the peak of it's drinkability.
Honestly, it's only recently we got all the bottles together and looked at what we have. If you saw the movie Sideways, there's a scene where the character Miles is describing his "cellar" as a cardboard box under the stairs; that's not too far off from what we have. "Had", actually: Like I said, we have all our wine in racks, and more-or-less inventoried now.
*Pronounced "Vee-own-Yay." It was a bottle of Fess Parker Vigonier that actually got us started doing more than just asking the waiter what was recommended with whatever we were ordering for dinner.
Yes, Fess Parker, Dan'l Boone, Davy Crockett, the pilot in Them!. And, speaking of Sideways, the scene where Miles drank from the spit bucket, set at the "Fraz" winery, was filmed in the Fess Parker tasting room. FWIW.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
"I felt a great disturbance in The Force...
...as though millions of Irishmen were crying out in anguish..."
Last Call: Crisis Closes Pubs, Mainstay of Irish Society - ABC News
Last Call: Crisis Closes Pubs, Mainstay of Irish Society - ABC News
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Mmmm, Ginger!
I like ginger. I really do. I love ginger ale, and my favorite confection is chocolate covered ginger. So when I saw this...
May have to stop on the way home and pick up a few more bottles.
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Kinda crappy cell phone pic...
Didn't try the "over ice with a twist" thing. Maybe next time...
Monday, January 28, 2013
Busy, busy, busy
Buncha errands today. Ran Mrs. Drang over to Renton to renew her membership in the Washington Arms Collectors.
On the way back I had to stop at the Verizon store, my Droid Razr Maxx had stopped working; naturally, when they did a reboot it worked fine, unlike the five or six times I had tried. *sigh*
BevMo is across the street, and I was out of Dry Fly Wheat Whiskey. They have several new styles out:
"Pure Triticale Whiskey", "Port Wine Finished Wheat Whiskey" (aged in huckleberry port casks), "Cask Strength Wheat Whiskey", and Bourbon 101.
What I got:
Having a bit of the Port Finished right now. Yum! Smoky like a nice single malt Scotch!
Stopped at Federal Way Discount Guns to get membership in their range. It's close enough to home that I felt it was worth buying a year's membership--ammo supplies permitting--but Mrs. Drang doesn't think she'll be doing enough shooting that the family membership would be worth it, so she went for a "pay as you go" membership.
With a full membership (individual or family) you can shoot shotgun (slugs only) and rifles from .223-7.62x39, so I can get some time in with the AR, the SKS, and the 12 gauge.
I was planning on getting a new Ethernet cable and seeing if I could get the Raspberry Pi (hooked to bag screen yesterday) on the Internet again, but my back feels like Sammy Sosa took a Louisville Slugger to me, so... pass.
On the way back I had to stop at the Verizon store, my Droid Razr Maxx had stopped working; naturally, when they did a reboot it worked fine, unlike the five or six times I had tried. *sigh*
BevMo is across the street, and I was out of Dry Fly Wheat Whiskey. They have several new styles out:
What I got:
Stopped at Federal Way Discount Guns to get membership in their range. It's close enough to home that I felt it was worth buying a year's membership--ammo supplies permitting--but Mrs. Drang doesn't think she'll be doing enough shooting that the family membership would be worth it, so she went for a "pay as you go" membership.
With a full membership (individual or family) you can shoot shotgun (slugs only) and rifles from .223-7.62x39, so I can get some time in with the AR, the SKS, and the 12 gauge.
I was planning on getting a new Ethernet cable and seeing if I could get the Raspberry Pi (hooked to bag screen yesterday) on the Internet again, but my back feels like Sammy Sosa took a Louisville Slugger to me, so... pass.
Monday, July 9, 2012
That time of year
The Green Fairy!
Quite refreshing on a hot, humid day, when prepare using the Parisian Technique.
Lacking a proper absinthe fountain, I filled a standard hard "BPA-Free" water bottle with ice and added cold water. Didn't work as well as the soft water bottle I used last year, but which is now standing by to top off the cat's drinking fountain, AKA table-top water feature. (You want a dribble, not a torrent...)
Previous absinthe posts:
Note that, since the first of these posts, we have acquired a couple of proper absinthe spoons, and even a couple of absinthe glasses. With this glass design (above) you fill the "bulb" with absinthe and simply top off with the ice water.
Previous absinthe posts:
Note that, since the first of these posts, we have acquired a couple of proper absinthe spoons, and even a couple of absinthe glasses. With this glass design (above) you fill the "bulb" with absinthe and simply top off with the ice water.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
A Peek Behind The Curtain
In the process of telling us what has kept him from blogging much, and his current project, Mr. Completely reveals some of the details behind I-1183 and the transition to private liquor sales in Washington State: Mr. Completely: Where I been At, Sorta........
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
A follow-up
As a follow-up to my post "What's going on?", I saw this on Facebook this morning:
Source: Initiative 1183 Supporters. Text:
Sometimes, it really is just taxes. If we assume that Costco pays the same base cost (1) for the same Bourbon used in its Kirkland Signature brand and that the markup between CA and WA (2) is roughly the same, we can see that taxes really do make a difference. There are no distributors involved in this example. The prices are actual prices from Tacoma and Temecula on a 1 liter bottle of Kirkland Signature Bourbon.Pretty bad when California's tax system is more taxpayer-friendly...
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