SeanMike

2 ounces Kopper Kettle Virginia whiskey, 6 ounces Regatta ginger beer, 1/2 ounce lime juice, a dash of Angostura bitters. I want to remake this with the Angostura orange bitters, but this ain't bad as it is.

I have to admit that reading that article makes me thirsty for some moonshine, and I'm thinking I'm going to go grab that bottle of Kopper Kettle (Belmont Famrs, no longer made if I remember correctly) out of the back of my liquor bookshelf and have a sip. I never thought of mixing moonshine with root beer like the article mentioned at Cochon in N'awlins. That makes me wonder how it'd taste mixed with ginger beer - which I may experiment with here in a minute. The Catdaddy is available in Virginia according to the article - anyone know an ABC store that carries it? I know I've seen the Midnight Moon around. I like the idea that moonshine might be the next "thing" in mixology; honestly, I'm excited to experiment with it. Then again, I'm the grandson of at least one moonshiner, and the stories I've heard from relatives really makes me want to experiment myself. (But it is illegal, and I do not want to go to federal "pound me in the a--" penitentiary).

Last night at the baseball game: Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat. I thought I didn't like it, but it hit the spot. Also: Cuervo shots, Jaegermeister shots, and a number of other things that made me regret that half-smoke and empanada I had for dinner last night. (So, today: lots and lots of water and Coke Zero.)

I've come to discover that I do like "moonshine" style liquor - if it's what I'm expecting. For instance, the Belmont Farms stuff all has that flavor profile that I remember from mason jars of hooch from WV, and if that's what I'm in the mood for, well, that's good - but I need to be mentally prepared for it, and not be expecting, for instance, aged bourbon. But nothing goes with a moon pie like some white lightning!

Tonight it will be to Bo Diddley. RIP.

It was interesting to hear what you said about not needing to keep it cold. I perhaps get overly paranoid about some of my beverages; I always keep vermouth and creme liqueurs, for instance, cold. I'll have to pass that on to my parents, as I gave them a bottle of Castries this weekend. I had thought of mixing it with some Starbucks coffee liqueur to make a variant of a "Baby Guinness", or maybe seeing how it'd pair up with Frangelico, but I got lazy and didn't want to put too big of a dent in their "gift" bottle.

Well, I got "roped" into a cookout, so hey, no big deal...

If people are meeting there Sunday for dinner I will probably do my best to make it there - it's not far from my house! (And on my way to work...)

I've bought the tonic water, the bitter lemon, and the ginger ale from Ace. I'd definitely recommend the first two, though it does depend on what gin you're drinking with them as to which I prefer. The ginger ale is good, but I have to admit - I tend to prefer spicier ginger beers for the most part. I've got so much ginger ale/beer in my fridge that I probably wouldn't buy any again for a while...

You may also want to try Dogwood Tavern - dunno about reservations (haven't had to make 'em yet) but good food by the guys who own Ragtime.

It often is a waste - but that's part of the reason why I have a second fridge in my room!

I'm going to have to say: it depends. Personally, I don't typically keep any creme liqueurs around, mostly thanks to the need of refrigeration coupled with their high fat content. At least, not in bottles - I do usually have a mini or two of Bailey's for Irish coffee mornings. With this, I'd be MUCH more likely to keep some around because I like it a lot. The men in my family all tend to be rather big peanut fans in general, however, so keep that in mind. I also like to try to keep things that the future sister-in-law would like. Overall, I would say it's more of a "fun novelty" like flavored Bailey's or that chai creme liqueur. It's good, but unless you're craving it for whatever reason, I wouldn't necessarily recommend running out and buying it right away. On a side note, the bottle for it is rather cool, and if you know anyone who likes to collect just "cool bottles" (like said future sister-in-law), they might like it a lot.

So, two drinks made this weekend with it: A sort of Jamaican coffee - sort of. We didn't have Bailey's, so our Irish coffee was Jameson's and Castries rather than Jameson's and Bailey's. Next time, though, I'll use rum instead of Irish whisky. For the future sister-in-law: 3/4 oz Castries, 3/4 oz Godiva chocolate liqueur, two drops of Penzey's double strength vanilla extract, shaken and strained. She's not a huge "strong drink" fan, and I would've considered filling it out with some milk had I any in the fridge; she didn't seem interested in adding heavy cream to it. I can't take full credit for it as there's a similar drink on the Castries website (if I remember correctly, it's 2 parts Castries, 1 part Godiva, 1 part vanilla vodka).

And the Harris Teeter near my house in East Falls Church/Arlington has Beamish, last time I was there...

Yeah. I was thinking of one in case I wanted to go into sugar shock...

There's one with vanilla vodka, Godiva, and Castries on their site (if I remember correctly) that I'm already plotting to turn into a drink for my brother's fiancee...

Has anyone else tried this stuff? I saw it at the VA ABC in Rosslyn yesterday and figured "what the heck". The men in my family are huge peanut fans. I tried a bit of it last night and thought it was rather good - not overwhelmingly peanut, and I didn't notice any artificial taste to it, just a pleasant mild peanut taste to it. I might try some cocktails with it, but has anyone else done anything with it?

Last night: My house, front stoop, with an Allagash ale aged in bourbon barrels and some Willett pot still bourbon. Tonight: Over to Chez Marshall...

Ahh, I must have the original 6 year old then. That is some darn good whiskey. I should drink some of it tonight. (And the pot still, but I belatedly remembered that it is a blend.)

Weren't some people talking about a seafood bake at the picnic, too? I must be anywhere there is a haggis. I've never had it before and it's been very high on my list of "foods I must try" so that, if anything, I can say "Yeah, I had that." And my idea of making it on my own is a bit constrained by the fact that I live in a condo with roommates.

LODGING: There's an EconoLodge that just opened up down there; you can Google for it. There's also the Amelia Inn, which is a B&B. Just wanted to add that...

Last night: the house pinot noir at Bistro des Celestins. Followed by a bit of Tuaca, a Dogfish Head Palo Santo Morran, Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA, and a Stone Pale Ale. The first couple of those while smoking my triple maduro cigar...

Woohoo! I was right! Waitaminute...is the "Pear Tree" the standard 6 year old Willett? I've got a bottle of six year old plus a bottle of the pot still shaped bottle...

Jeebus, I almost spit my beer all over my computer! :lol: I regret not getting a chance to try the fried chicken; the last piece was picked up as I walked over. It looked darn heck good!

I told some people about it at the picnic and thought I'd share what I know about it on here. Amelia, Virginia, is a quiet mostly rural county southwest of Richmond, Virginia, about 2.5 hours from NoVA. If coming from Richmond, it's just past Chesterfield County down route 360. My parents have lived down there for about 4 or so years now - it's actually still growing, become more of a suburb of Richmond. Every summer they have the Amelia Beef Festival. It can be hard to find information about it online (and I don't have a link currently but will try to find one later) and I don't have the pamphlet in my hand so I will do my best to pass on accurately what I remember about it and will update as I get confirmations. This year it should be on July 26th, 2008 - a Saturday. It's in the late afternoon/early evening and goes for a few hours. Basically, you pay one price - $20-25, I believe - and it's all you can eat beef and corn and all you can drink beer. The beef is done several different ways. There are steamhouse sandwiches (prime rib, basically, if I remember correctly, and often the only food that will have a significant line), ribs, and more that I'm blanking on. There's roasted corn on the cob by the bushel, with plenty of butter, and Budweiser has a two-three trucks with a number of taps. There's one or two bands playing at any one time, too, as the whole thing just takes place in a big ole field. There's usually lines for food and beer right at the beginning but after people get their initial load I've never had a problem just walking up and grabbing whatever I wanted without a wait. People usually bring chairs and blankets, scout out a spot, and relax. It rains every year I've gone. There's no appreciable shelter. The first year it was just a light sprinkle, enough to make it hard to keep the cigars going. Last year it absolutely poured down the rain. The lightweights leave when that happen. The rest of us had a GREAT time. You can only get but so wet. (Umbrellas are for beer, not you! The beer's already watered down enough, it is Bud! :lol: ) Anyways, as I've told people, it's a great time. I'm lucky because my 'rents live down there, so the lot of us crash with them, so I couldn't tell you what the hotel situation is like - but I'd be happy to check on it if anyone is interested.