Mrs. Bottle here for my weekly dissertation and today’s libation is the Homestead Cocktail. This is a concoction that consists of gin and sweet vermouth with a garnish of an orange slice. Mr. Bottle and I both slightly liked it but there was an odd flavor, which we attributed to the vermouth. The Homestead Cocktail is a take on the traditional martini, but after flipping through Mr. Boston, there appear to be an abundance of these takes. I’m thinking that instead of blogging about each of these individually, maybe we should have martini night so we don’t have to figure out why having 0.25 ounces less gin and 0.25 ounces more vermouth makes a damn difference. This isn’t Top Martini. I might not be able to discern the different flavors imparted by less juniper berry juice like Tom Colicchio but I could be Padma…
 |
| Beauty isn't everything |
Speaking of Padma, I want to spend a few moments discussing the glass you see housing the Homestead Cocktail. It’s really quite lovely and elegant on the outside but a real pain to deal with. Why would we buy such a glass? You know how at Christmas time all the liquor stores sell those packages of your booze with fancy glasses you don’t really need? Well, one year we got a package of Bombay Sapphire gin and it included this glass. I got suckered in by the beauty, not realizing that the glass was as deep as Paris Hilton. You can hardly fill the saucer glass with any liquid before it’s in danger of spillage. But it sure does look good, right?
Let me rein it back in to discuss vermouth. Vermouth is fortified wine and there are actually three different basic types: extra dry, bianco/white, and sweet/red. I also just learned that sweet vermouth is drunk as an aperitif, straight up. Um, I think if you’ve tasted it straight up, as we do with each new liquor that we purchase, you’d be quick to disagree. According to Martini & Rossi, the makers of our sweet vermouth, their Martini & Rossi Rosso is “like a symphony” and “each herbal extract hits the palate in a different way to provide intrigue and taste”. Intrigue? Like Jason Bourne? I thought it was just fortified wine. I guess it is mysterious why anyone would drink vermouth straight. Again, that’s why I’m not Tom Colicchio. I’m sure his palate would appreciate that intrigue.
 |
| How can I move without spilling this? |
Overall Rating for the Homestead Cocktail
Taste: 2
Presentation: 5 – It’s hard to beat that shallow glass
Ease of Preparation: 4
Drinks Until Blackout: 3 – 37 % Alcohol
Ingredients
1.5 oz Gin
.75 oz Sweet Vermouth
No comments:
Post a Comment