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Post by azbob643 on Aug 23, 2024 12:24:42 GMT -5
Scrabble is a favorite. Against the computer. I love to play against tough foes only, and they’re hard to find. I set the game above my skill level on purpose… Frustrating when you still have a Q late in the game... www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKGWqzZryDk |
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Post by chiyankee on Aug 23, 2024 12:52:34 GMT -5
The first year in decades I have not watched a game. Partially because I cut my cable contract to save money (state employees struggle to survive in this state) but also because I love hitting and this team has been painful to watch at that. But I need to start again, I have the MLB tv deal on my computer, just never use it. This is an outrage. |
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Post by inger on Aug 23, 2024 13:09:15 GMT -5
Scrabble is a favorite. Against the computer. I love to play against tough foes only, and they’re hard to find. I set the game above my skill level on purpose… Frustrating when you still have a Q late in the game... www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKGWqzZryDkNot as bad once you discover the words that don’t require a “u”… |
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Post by desousa on Aug 26, 2024 19:51:56 GMT -5
Until last week, Gloria had never had a gin and tonic. I bought some canned gin and tonics made by a Vermont distillery called Barr Hill that she liked, but it was expensive. So, being the former bartender I am, I bought some Barr Hill gin, Schweppes tonic and some limes to make her one, and now she wants one every night. They are so frigging good.
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Post by pippsheadache on Aug 26, 2024 20:01:40 GMT -5
Until last week, Gloria had never had a gin and tonic. I bought some canned gin and tonics made by a Vermont distillery called Barr Hill that she liked, but it was expensive. So, being the former bartender I am, I bought some Barr Hill gin, Schweppes tonic and some limes to make her one, and now she wants one every night. They are so frigging good. Well done Matt! G&T is my go-to refresher when I don't want anything too weighty. To me the Schweppes is more essential than the brand of gin. I've tried all the frou frou tonics like Fever Tree and Q, but Schweppes remains "curiously refreshing" and you can get it anywhere in the world. You have definitely earned some "he points" with your better half.👍 |
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Post by desousa on Aug 26, 2024 20:04:36 GMT -5
Until last week, Gloria had never had a gin and tonic. I bought some canned gin and tonics made by a Vermont distillery called Barr Hill that she liked, but it was expensive. So, being the former bartender I am, I bought some Barr Hill gin, Schweppes tonic and some limes to make her one, and now she wants one every night. They are so frigging good. Well done Matt! G&T is my go-to refresher when I don't want anything too weighty. To me the Schweppes is more essential than the brand of gin. I've tried all the frou frou tonics like Fever Tree and Q, but Schweppes remains "curiously refreshing" and you can get it anywhere in the world. You have definitely earned some "he points" with your better half.👍 She didn't like bourbon until I made her an old fashioned. She's coming around after 17 years. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Aug 26, 2024 20:14:54 GMT -5
Well done Matt! G&T is my go-to refresher when I don't want anything too weighty. To me the Schweppes is more essential than the brand of gin. I've tried all the frou frou tonics like Fever Tree and Q, but Schweppes remains "curiously refreshing" and you can get it anywhere in the world. You have definitely earned some "he points" with your better half.👍 She didn't like bourbon until I made her an old fashioned. She's coming around after 17 years. Slow but steady progress! Eventually you work up to the Martini. Bet she'd like a Manhattan too. I've been making mine with Michter's Rye, although I know Rizz is a bourbon Manhattan guy. |
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Post by rizzuto on Aug 26, 2024 20:49:21 GMT -5
She didn't like bourbon until I made her an old fashioned. She's coming around after 17 years. Slow but steady progress! Eventually you work up to the Martini. Bet she'd like a Manhattan too. I've been making mine with Michter's Rye, although I know Rizz is a bourbon Manhattan guy. I am becoming a fan of Rye, especially for an Old Fashioned. I do like a good Manhattan. Wasn't Julia Childs's favorite cocktail a reverse Martini? |
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Post by pippsheadache on Aug 26, 2024 20:53:55 GMT -5
Slow but steady progress! Eventually you work up to the Martini. Bet she'd like a Manhattan too. I've been making mine with Michter's Rye, although I know Rizz is a bourbon Manhattan guy. I am becoming a fan of Rye, especially for an Old Fashioned. I do like a good Manhattan. Wasn't Julia Childs's favorite cocktail a reverse Martini? They're all good. Rye has made a nice comeback over the past 20 or so years. I wasn't aware of Julia Childs' cocktail preferences. I always thought she was taking slugs of the cooking sherry when the camera wasn't on her. Another drink I like is the Sidecar. Cognac and Cointreau are the base spirits. |
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Post by inger on Aug 27, 2024 11:02:54 GMT -5
I am becoming a fan of Rye, especially for an Old Fashioned. I do like a good Manhattan. Wasn't Julia Childs's favorite cocktail a reverse Martini? They're all good. Rye has made a nice comeback over the past 20 or so years. I wasn't aware of Julia Childs' cocktail preferences. I always thought she was taking slugs of the cooking sherry when the camera wasn't on her. Another drink I like is the Sidecar. Cognac and Cointreau are the base spirits. Did the song “American Pie” save rye? If so has it done the same for levees? … or Chevys? Or were Chevys saved by government cheese? … Things to ponder… |
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Post by desousa on Aug 27, 2024 11:27:15 GMT -5
I am becoming a fan of Rye, especially for an Old Fashioned. I do like a good Manhattan. Wasn't Julia Childs's favorite cocktail a reverse Martini? They're all good. Rye has made a nice comeback over the past 20 or so years. I wasn't aware of Julia Childs' cocktail preferences. I always thought she was taking slugs of the cooking sherry when the camera wasn't on her. Another drink I like is the Sidecar. Cognac and Cointreau are the base spirits. In all my years of bartending, I believe I only had one customer who ordered a sidecar and that was in the late 70's. She insisted I used Remy Martin Cognac, Cointreau, fresh lemon and sugar around the rim. She said I made them to her liking. It's actually a pretty good drink that needs to be resurrected. About a month ago, Gloria and I had a horrible meal at a local Italian restaurant. At the end of the meal, I ordered an anisette and the bartender had no idea what that was. I thought that was odd, but she knew what Sambuca was. Whenever Gloria and I go to her hometown of Newark, NJ, we call ahead of time to the local Portuguese liquor store and order a case of Portuguese brandy and a couple bottles of their version of an anise flavored liquor called Escarchado. Each bottle has a stick of anise in it and after I was finished with the anise, the stick still had much of the anise left, so I would buy a bottle Tito's and pour it the bottle. It made a damn good after dinner cocktail. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Aug 27, 2024 16:06:17 GMT -5
They're all good. Rye has made a nice comeback over the past 20 or so years. I wasn't aware of Julia Childs' cocktail preferences. I always thought she was taking slugs of the cooking sherry when the camera wasn't on her. Another drink I like is the Sidecar. Cognac and Cointreau are the base spirits. In all my years of bartending, I believe I only had one customer who ordered a sidecar and that was in the late 70's. She insisted I used Remy Martin Cognac, Cointreau, fresh lemon and sugar around the rim. She said I made them to her liking. It's actually a pretty good drink that needs to be resurrected. About a month ago, Gloria and I had a horrible meal at a local Italian restaurant. At the end of the meal, I ordered an anisette and the bartender had no idea what that was. I thought that was odd, but she knew what Sambuca was. Whenever Gloria and I go to her hometown of Newark, NJ, we call ahead of time to the local Portuguese liquor store and order a case of Portuguese brandy and a couple bottles of their version of an anise flavored liquor called Escarchado. Each bottle has a stick of anise in it and after I was finished with the anise, the stick still had much of the anise left, so I would buy a bottle Tito's and pour it the bottle. It made a damn good after dinner cocktail. Your little anecdote got me to change my Happy Hour drinking plans from an Aviation to a Sidecar, Matt. No Remy Martin in the house but I had some Courvoisier VSOP in the back of the cabinet, plenty of Cointreau, squeezed a few ounces of lemon juice and I was ready to break in a new set of coupe glasses. Did the sugar-rimmed glass for my wife, but skipped it for mine. After stirring in the shaker I double strained to keep out a few bits of lemon pith that snuck in, then finished it off with some showtime, letting some orange peel oils drip through a flame and then using it for a garnish. I don't think it changes the taste but it's fun to do plus it gets the Alice Kramden eye-roll from my wife. Yeah, Sidecars were invented in France either during or just after World War I and practically disappeared after World War II until the cocktail revival of the early 2000s. But they are a really solid choice and I think pretty accessible for an inexperienced drinker. You would obviously know better than I, but it seems to me that your bartending years were kind of a low point in popularity for classic mixed drinks. Not that they went away, but it seemed as if the old school cocktails were considered more like holdovers from the 50s and 60s. At least at my watering holes I saw fewer Martinis or Manhattans or Old Fashioneds. Holy cow, it's hard to believe a bartender wouldn't know Anisette. I'm not familiar with Escarchado, but it sounds like fun. I generally like anything in the Anisette/Ouzo/Pastis/Raki family. Very continental. I've had Aguardente in Portugal, which seems to be in that same grouping. Are you familiar with that? I do love Port wines, especially with Stilton cheese, one of the most perfect food-wine pairings I've ever had. Or with chocolate. We once spent a week in the Douro Valley enjoying the bounty. We also like the crisp Vinho Verde Portuguese wines. Are you familiar with Ginja? We would see people lined up in front of booths in the town square around lunchtime getting their fix. Especially in Lisbon. It's a nice pick-me-up to get you through the afternoon. |
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Post by desousa on Aug 28, 2024 14:11:27 GMT -5
In all my years of bartending, I believe I only had one customer who ordered a sidecar and that was in the late 70's. She insisted I used Remy Martin Cognac, Cointreau, fresh lemon and sugar around the rim. She said I made them to her liking. It's actually a pretty good drink that needs to be resurrected. About a month ago, Gloria and I had a horrible meal at a local Italian restaurant. At the end of the meal, I ordered an anisette and the bartender had no idea what that was. I thought that was odd, but she knew what Sambuca was. Whenever Gloria and I go to her hometown of Newark, NJ, we call ahead of time to the local Portuguese liquor store and order a case of Portuguese brandy and a couple bottles of their version of an anise flavored liquor called Escarchado. Each bottle has a stick of anise in it and after I was finished with the anise, the stick still had much of the anise left, so I would buy a bottle Tito's and pour it the bottle. It made a damn good after dinner cocktail. Your little anecdote got me to change my Happy Hour drinking plans from an Aviation to a Sidecar, Matt. No Remy Martin in the house but I had some Courvoisier VSOP in the back of the cabinet, plenty of Cointreau, squeezed a few ounces of lemon juice and I was ready to break in a new set of coupe glasses. Did the sugar-rimmed glass for my wife, but skipped it for mine. After stirring in the shaker I double strained to keep out a few bits of lemon pith that snuck in, then finished it off with some showtime, letting some orange peel oils drip through a flame and then using it for a garnish. I don't think it changes the taste but it's fun to do plus it gets the Alice Kramden eye-roll from my wife. Yeah, Sidecars were invented in France either during or just after World War I and practically disappeared after World War II until the cocktail revival of the early 2000s. But they are a really solid choice and I think pretty accessible for an inexperienced drinker. You would obviously know better than I, but it seems to me that your bartending years were kind of a low point in popularity for classic mixed drinks. Not that they went away, but it seemed as if the old school cocktails were considered more like holdovers from the 50s and 60s. At least at my watering holes I saw fewer Martinis or Manhattans or Old Fashioneds. Holy cow, it's hard to believe a bartender wouldn't know Anisette. I'm not familiar with Escarchado, but it sounds like fun. I generally like anything in the Anisette/Ouzo/Pastis/Raki family. Very continental. I've had Aguardente in Portugal, which seems to be in that same grouping. Are you familiar with that? I do love Port wines, especially with Stilton cheese, one of the most perfect food-wine pairings I've ever had. Or with chocolate. We once spent a week in the Douro Valley enjoying the bounty. We also like the crisp Vinho Verde Portuguese wines. Are you familiar with Ginja? We would see people lined up in front of booths in the town square around lunchtime getting their fix. Especially in Lisbon. It's a nice pick-me-up to get you through the afternoon. When we were in Portugal, the wine was inexpensive and really good. Drinking Port and eating cheese or chocolate is great way to spend an afternoon. One thing I liked about Portugal was much of the country shuts down for a couple hours at lunch time. One day, Gloria and I were the first ones seated at a restaurant a little before noon, and 10 minutes later the place was packed with workers enjoying a nice lunch and a little wine. |
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Post by desousa on Aug 28, 2024 15:31:18 GMT -5
Hey kay, after seeing you drafted Anthony Richardson for your fantasy team, I had a strong desire to watch "Unbreakable" for a second time.
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Post by pippsheadache on Aug 28, 2024 16:34:31 GMT -5
I love how laid back Portugal is. Just enough off the beaten path to have a slower pace. Although Porto sure isn't a secret anymore -- we've even discussed retiring there -- and the Algarve, like the Costa del Sol in Spain, is almost a British colony. Still, there are plenty of quiet spots and as you say life stops for a few hours every afternoon. We love Coimbra and some of the villages around there. Sintra, Cascais, that area, just beautiful.
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