Saturday, March 30, 2013

Mead Update, Wine and More - A Long Overdue Update

I just realized I haven't posted anything here since last year and it's almost April! Sheesh! No, I haven't given up my beer journey, but I have slowed down quite a bit with a lack of funding being the main reason.

Last year, I created a batch of Mead and it has continued to ferment ever since. I've been sampling some every once in a while and it is definitely getting better with age. The very first sip I took tasted about the way nail polish remove smells and wasn't too promising. Around Christmas, it was starting to mellow out some, but still nothing to write home about. But now, it's starting to come of age after about 5 months and is becoming something yummy. It has a very mellow and semi-sweet flavor to it along with a very smooth feel in the mouth. I made three different flavors (plain, vanilla and nutmeg) but honestly, I can't really taste the flavors that much. You can tell there is something in the nutmeg batch, but it's hard to tell it's nutmeg at all. I can't wait to see what this will turn into the longer it sits.

Several weeks ago, my wife and I went on a cruise and were introduced to something new. The first two nights, I had a glass of wine with diner, but on the third night, the couple we were with asked our amazing waiter if they had any desert wines. I had never heard of a "desert wine" before but I was intrigued and ordered a glass too. It was an amazing experience that not only I enjoyed but my wife as well and she does not like wine at all.

Needless to say, when we got home, we went to Macadoodles to see what they had in terms of a desert wine. I spoke with one of the very knowledgeable ladies there and she showed me the section and talked about some of the ones they had. She pointed me to some of the better ones and we walked out with a bottle of 2010 "Obtuse" from Justin Vineyards & Winery in Paso Robles, CA. This wine was very sweet and heavy and absolutely delicious! The bottle was a little costly (about $15 for a 375ml bottle) but was worth it for a great treat.

Also while we were on the cruise, the Liquor Store on board had a sampling session with some basic spirits (Jack Daniels, Crown, a few Rums) but they also has a few liquors. One was a coffee liquor that was absolutely wonderful (I can't remember it's name though) and the other was called Amarula. This is a cream liquor made from the marula fruit in South Africa. From what they said, you cannot get it in the United States. Well, it was delicious (and cheaper than the coffee liquor) so I bough a box (2 bottles). I have loved this ever since and am sad that my first bottle is already gone. I'll be saving the second for later in the year since it's apparently going to be a long time before I get another.

That's it for now. Hopefully it won't be as long before my next update.

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