Much to the chagrin of my coffee purists friends, I like flavored coffee. Yes, I like a Caramel Macchiato, but that’s not what I’m talking about – I’m not talking about putting flavor in coffee, I’m talking about actually flavored coffee. For example, our favorite is Boca Java’s Surfin Safari: An exotic blend of sweet vanilla, rich caramel and tantalizing kahlua. Our next favorite is Lee’s Caramel Kiss, which is drinking coffee for a good cause: Coffee with a caramel and chocolate kiss. Dedicated to Lee Freck, cherished wife, mother and grandmother, who battled leukemia for thirteen and a half years. A portion of the proceeds from this coffee will be donated to the leukemia and lymphoma society.
Boca Java’s an internet coffee company-see the link to the left bar for a discount or to check out their site. They have other somewhat normal flavors too- Chocolate Hazelnut Heaven, Rip Tide Rasberry (choc and raspberry), along with a few odd ducks: Coastline Creamsicle (tangy orange and creamy vanilla), Apple Gourmet in the USA (like apple pie) and Maple Bacon Morning (yes, bacon and maple syrup). Keep in mind, these are all coffee- so its not like you’re having a creamsicle, you’re having a coffee creamsicle. All in all they have 33 flavors, not counting their non flavors, from dark to light roasts and all that. They even have reserve Jamaican blue mountain coffee.
Well, its not cheap, in fact, its priced close to Starbucks coffee beans. A bit ago, I asked a coffee purist friend to do a blind taste test on one of their non flavored beans to give me a quality assessment. Not that it really mattered, its far cheaper than Starbucks, and we like it anyway, but I was hoping she’s say it was good quality and that would make me feel better about special ordering coffee over the internet. Which she did. (whew)
But, we’ve been drinking it for about two years now and have looked and can’t find anything else that comes close to how yummy it is. The best part-its sugar and carb free and low in calories-just like a regular cup of coffee. But better.
Drink up, its Monday.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Sangiovese the Intensifier
I have a confession to make. I like milk with red sauce. Pizza, lasagna, marinara, whatever. I suppose its because that’s how I grew up-drinking milk with everything that the two naturally go together with each other in my mind. I’m trying to break this habit, since so many Italian-style wines are made for food and we like them so.
The other night I made my marinara sauce and served up some Imagery Sangiovese, a gift from the Luce’s. Side note: I’m not a recipe follower – I’m a taster. Taste, add a bit of something, taste, etc. So by that point, I had tasted the sauce at least 4 times to ensure that it was perfect. A bit of herb spiciness, but not hot. Robust flavor. I'm excited to have them together.
First sip of the wine…yummy. Delicous. Another sip, just as yummy. Oh this is going to be good. Take bite or two of pasta. Yummy as well. Drink of wine. Hot. Huh? Eat. Drink. Eat Drink. Hot. Spicy. Hot. I don’t understand. The description doesn’t say anything about hot spice. Its all lush and fruit. (which is how it was by itself)
TASTING NOTES: Our 2005 Sangiovese is a lush, full-bodied, complexly flavored wine. With beautiful richness and lengthy finish, the dominate flavors include dark fruit, such as black cherry and ripe plum, with an earthy balance of tobacco and oak.
Hmm. After a bit, I ask Mr. Lush “is this hot to you”? He says “yeah, you made the sauce too hot”. No, I didn’t, I say. Its actually less hot than I made it the last time. I know the wine isn’t hot, it was great. Then it dawns on me. I get a glass of milk. Eat. Drink. Eat. Drink. Not hot at all. Ah. I see.
The sangiovese has totally highlighted and intensified the spices. My normal “robust” pasta has become extra robust and zesty and downright spice-hot. Perhaps its my tendency to drink milk, but we'd had reds before with it and it hadn't happened. I had no idea and was really suprised.
The wine was delicious before and after dinner. Not a hint of spice. Just not a pair for my marinara sauce. Oh dear. I’m not sure what to do…modify my recipe so its more wine friendly or keep trying other wines until I find the perfect mix. Hmm.
The other night I made my marinara sauce and served up some Imagery Sangiovese, a gift from the Luce’s. Side note: I’m not a recipe follower – I’m a taster. Taste, add a bit of something, taste, etc. So by that point, I had tasted the sauce at least 4 times to ensure that it was perfect. A bit of herb spiciness, but not hot. Robust flavor. I'm excited to have them together.
First sip of the wine…yummy. Delicous. Another sip, just as yummy. Oh this is going to be good. Take bite or two of pasta. Yummy as well. Drink of wine. Hot. Huh? Eat. Drink. Eat Drink. Hot. Spicy. Hot. I don’t understand. The description doesn’t say anything about hot spice. Its all lush and fruit. (which is how it was by itself)
TASTING NOTES: Our 2005 Sangiovese is a lush, full-bodied, complexly flavored wine. With beautiful richness and lengthy finish, the dominate flavors include dark fruit, such as black cherry and ripe plum, with an earthy balance of tobacco and oak.
Hmm. After a bit, I ask Mr. Lush “is this hot to you”? He says “yeah, you made the sauce too hot”. No, I didn’t, I say. Its actually less hot than I made it the last time. I know the wine isn’t hot, it was great. Then it dawns on me. I get a glass of milk. Eat. Drink. Eat. Drink. Not hot at all. Ah. I see.
The sangiovese has totally highlighted and intensified the spices. My normal “robust” pasta has become extra robust and zesty and downright spice-hot. Perhaps its my tendency to drink milk, but we'd had reds before with it and it hadn't happened. I had no idea and was really suprised.
The wine was delicious before and after dinner. Not a hint of spice. Just not a pair for my marinara sauce. Oh dear. I’m not sure what to do…modify my recipe so its more wine friendly or keep trying other wines until I find the perfect mix. Hmm.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Where have all the descriptions gone?
I have a bone to pick with restaurant managers who make a wine list. Give a description. Not a long one, but something-even a phrase. Yes, I’m aware that some wines and some regions typically don’t need a description. However, some do. Chardonnay, for example, can be vastly different. Is it minerally? Buttery? Oaky? Crisp? The same with merlot. Is it fruit forward? Full bodied (for a merlot) or light and easy drinking?
This is especially true for blends. Now, if I have no idea what grapes are in it or the rough percentage of grapes, I can’t even fathom a potential description. So please, help me out. Give me a couple words.
Where does this plea come from, you ask? Well, Mr. Lush and I were at an Italian restaurant. We both ordered a cream based sauce. Keep in mind, Mr. Lush and I are not sauvignon blanc fans nor are we big pinot grigio fans. So, we’re looking over the wine list to come up with something that we’ll both enjoy while waiting for the food and with the food. Hopefully something a bit crisp, but not too much. A buttery creamy chardonnay wouldn’t cut through the thickness of the cream sauce, and I don’t recognize all of them and don’t want to take chances. Then I see a white blend from Hayman & Hill- Interchange. Well, my pasta is supposed to be spicy, so if it’s more Gewurztraminer/Viogner/Chardonnay based it would probably be fine with my food, if its more Chenin Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc based, it would be good with Mr. Lush’s food. It arrives, and it’s fuller bodied and rich, tad bit of crispness but not a lot, and goes fairly well with my food. (should my dish have been spicier, it would’ve gone better) Mr. Lush liked it, but said “its better alone than with my food”. He did enjoy it before and after his food, so all was fine in the end. (It is a nice wine, a good everyday drinking type blend. Just don't eat it with rich pasta-go for slighly spicy food instead.)
Now, I looked it up and the composition is:
47% Chardonnay
34% Sauvignon Blanc
7% Muscat Canelli
5% Malvasia Bianca
4% Semillon
3% Gewertztraminer
Description: Hand crafted blend then stainless steel fermented for freshness (with only a small component barrel fermented). Aged in small French oak for six months for complexity and softness.
Tasting notes are: Bright citrus and mineral acidity give the wine a fresh, clean backbone. Complimented by a rich and smooth palate to round out the tropical fruit characteristics.
Should I have known that it was a Chardonnay based blend, or that 60%+ was fuller bodied grapes, some sweeter, or that it was aged in oak, or that it had a rich and smooth palate, we probably would’ve ordered something else that Mr. Lush would’ve enjoyed with his food.
Yes, I can talk to a sommelier and get their advice, but why must we? Why can’t they give enough information to let people make a quasi-informed decision on their own??
This is especially true for blends. Now, if I have no idea what grapes are in it or the rough percentage of grapes, I can’t even fathom a potential description. So please, help me out. Give me a couple words.
Where does this plea come from, you ask? Well, Mr. Lush and I were at an Italian restaurant. We both ordered a cream based sauce. Keep in mind, Mr. Lush and I are not sauvignon blanc fans nor are we big pinot grigio fans. So, we’re looking over the wine list to come up with something that we’ll both enjoy while waiting for the food and with the food. Hopefully something a bit crisp, but not too much. A buttery creamy chardonnay wouldn’t cut through the thickness of the cream sauce, and I don’t recognize all of them and don’t want to take chances. Then I see a white blend from Hayman & Hill- Interchange. Well, my pasta is supposed to be spicy, so if it’s more Gewurztraminer/Viogner/Chardonnay based it would probably be fine with my food, if its more Chenin Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc based, it would be good with Mr. Lush’s food. It arrives, and it’s fuller bodied and rich, tad bit of crispness but not a lot, and goes fairly well with my food. (should my dish have been spicier, it would’ve gone better) Mr. Lush liked it, but said “its better alone than with my food”. He did enjoy it before and after his food, so all was fine in the end. (It is a nice wine, a good everyday drinking type blend. Just don't eat it with rich pasta-go for slighly spicy food instead.)
Now, I looked it up and the composition is:
47% Chardonnay
34% Sauvignon Blanc
7% Muscat Canelli
5% Malvasia Bianca
4% Semillon
3% Gewertztraminer
Description: Hand crafted blend then stainless steel fermented for freshness (with only a small component barrel fermented). Aged in small French oak for six months for complexity and softness.
Tasting notes are: Bright citrus and mineral acidity give the wine a fresh, clean backbone. Complimented by a rich and smooth palate to round out the tropical fruit characteristics.
Should I have known that it was a Chardonnay based blend, or that 60%+ was fuller bodied grapes, some sweeter, or that it was aged in oak, or that it had a rich and smooth palate, we probably would’ve ordered something else that Mr. Lush would’ve enjoyed with his food.
Yes, I can talk to a sommelier and get their advice, but why must we? Why can’t they give enough information to let people make a quasi-informed decision on their own??
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