Jam packed first post this week - we'll of course talk about what we're drinking this week, we listen to some relatively new music, and we'll be drinking the White Russian.
First though, I feel compelled to write something about the oil spill in the gulf. 60 Minutes, as it always does, scored the best interview available in the last 6 months, with a survivor of the oil rig explosion. Not only was he a survivor, but the man was a high-level technical engineer on the rig, with knowledge of the operation and the events leading up the disaster.
This spill is catastrophic. Recent news is that BP successfully built a mile-long pipe that can remove some of the oil spilt. One of the BP reps said that the pipe would capture upwards of 80% of the oil. Forgive me for being skeptical.
It's hard to put any faith in a company that is both accepting and disclaiming responsibility for this disaster. BP CEO Tony Hayward has been on the airwaves, loudly pronouncing that everyone else is at fault. Meanwhile, BP has said that they will cover the costs of clean-up, while also having sought out legal waivers for whatever destruction may arise to homeowners near the water. It's a big jumbled mess; a confluence of half-baked PR and legal strategies.
And I don't need to see pictures of the poor animals washing up on shore to know that this spill will be devastating on the ecosystem of the Gulf. Whatever the projected losses are at this point, double or triple them, because it's likely that whatever spillage information BP has shared to date is a fraction of the actual amounts.
I'm hoping that this accident shines some sunlight on drilling operations, putting worker and environmental safety ahead of profit driven enterprises willing to cut corners for an extra hundred-million.
Soundtrack this week: Broken Bells, Broken Bells - Broken Bells is James Mercer lead singer from The Shins, and Danger Mouse the DJ. The first track, "The High Road" is a hell of a song. I was telling some friends though that I think the rest of the album is good, but not great. Like many other Danger Mouse efforts (apart from Danger Doom, which was an incredible rap album) about half of the album is really good and the other half is just so so. It's worth a listen though, for the first track alone - it's an excellent song.
What We're Drinking This Week:
- Today: White Russian - the classic drink of Big Lebowski infamy, which we drink today.
- Wednesday: Bee's Knees - gin, honey, and lime juice. I love the name of the drink, as it portends good things to come.
- Friday: Petite Fleur - white rum, Cointreau and grapefruit juice. I'm a big fan of grapefruit anything, so this one is likely to be a winner.
Without further ado, let's have a White Russian! Cue obligatory picture of the Dude holding a White Russian:
American Bar
, page 197
White Russian
1 oz vodka
3/4 oz Kahlua
cream
Stir liquors over ice cubes in a mixing glass, strain into a sherry glass, top with light whipped cream.
For this cocktail, I'm using Ketel One vodka, Kahlua of course, and canned whipped cream.
This drink doesn't really need much of an introduction. The White Russian is a cocktail that even non-drinkers enjoy. It is smooth, flavorful, sweet, and delicious. The coffee notes are perfectly counterbalanced with the heat of the vodka - kind of in a similar way that an Irish Coffee imparts a nice bite to the mix of the cocktail.
The White Russian was so good in fact, that I forgot to take a photo of the drink before taking a sip. Hell, I finished the drink off before realizing that I didn't have a photo of the cocktail itself.
While the White Russian is served over ice, I find it to be a relatively warming drink because of the vodka. As a result of its warming tendencies and the use of ice, the White Russian can be consumed in the winter or summer and seems to fit in nicely no matter the weather.
As you no doubt noticed above, I used canned whipped cream in the place of lightly whipped cream, as the instructions call for. I did a quick blast of the canned stuff and it worked flawlessly. Know though, that if you attempt to impart it into the drink out of a can, you might not get an appealing looking mix. It will taste fine, it just might look as though the cream has coagulated.
Looking forward to the other cocktails this week - until then, cheers!
First though, I feel compelled to write something about the oil spill in the gulf. 60 Minutes, as it always does, scored the best interview available in the last 6 months, with a survivor of the oil rig explosion. Not only was he a survivor, but the man was a high-level technical engineer on the rig, with knowledge of the operation and the events leading up the disaster.
This spill is catastrophic. Recent news is that BP successfully built a mile-long pipe that can remove some of the oil spilt. One of the BP reps said that the pipe would capture upwards of 80% of the oil. Forgive me for being skeptical.
It's hard to put any faith in a company that is both accepting and disclaiming responsibility for this disaster. BP CEO Tony Hayward has been on the airwaves, loudly pronouncing that everyone else is at fault. Meanwhile, BP has said that they will cover the costs of clean-up, while also having sought out legal waivers for whatever destruction may arise to homeowners near the water. It's a big jumbled mess; a confluence of half-baked PR and legal strategies.
And I don't need to see pictures of the poor animals washing up on shore to know that this spill will be devastating on the ecosystem of the Gulf. Whatever the projected losses are at this point, double or triple them, because it's likely that whatever spillage information BP has shared to date is a fraction of the actual amounts.
I'm hoping that this accident shines some sunlight on drilling operations, putting worker and environmental safety ahead of profit driven enterprises willing to cut corners for an extra hundred-million.
Soundtrack this week: Broken Bells, Broken Bells - Broken Bells is James Mercer lead singer from The Shins, and Danger Mouse the DJ. The first track, "The High Road" is a hell of a song. I was telling some friends though that I think the rest of the album is good, but not great. Like many other Danger Mouse efforts (apart from Danger Doom, which was an incredible rap album) about half of the album is really good and the other half is just so so. It's worth a listen though, for the first track alone - it's an excellent song.
What We're Drinking This Week:
- Today: White Russian - the classic drink of Big Lebowski infamy, which we drink today.
- Wednesday: Bee's Knees - gin, honey, and lime juice. I love the name of the drink, as it portends good things to come.
- Friday: Petite Fleur - white rum, Cointreau and grapefruit juice. I'm a big fan of grapefruit anything, so this one is likely to be a winner.
Without further ado, let's have a White Russian! Cue obligatory picture of the Dude holding a White Russian:
American Bar
, page 197White Russian
1 oz vodka
3/4 oz Kahlua
cream
Stir liquors over ice cubes in a mixing glass, strain into a sherry glass, top with light whipped cream.
For this cocktail, I'm using Ketel One vodka, Kahlua of course, and canned whipped cream.
This drink doesn't really need much of an introduction. The White Russian is a cocktail that even non-drinkers enjoy. It is smooth, flavorful, sweet, and delicious. The coffee notes are perfectly counterbalanced with the heat of the vodka - kind of in a similar way that an Irish Coffee imparts a nice bite to the mix of the cocktail.
The White Russian was so good in fact, that I forgot to take a photo of the drink before taking a sip. Hell, I finished the drink off before realizing that I didn't have a photo of the cocktail itself.
While the White Russian is served over ice, I find it to be a relatively warming drink because of the vodka. As a result of its warming tendencies and the use of ice, the White Russian can be consumed in the winter or summer and seems to fit in nicely no matter the weather.
As you no doubt noticed above, I used canned whipped cream in the place of lightly whipped cream, as the instructions call for. I did a quick blast of the canned stuff and it worked flawlessly. Know though, that if you attempt to impart it into the drink out of a can, you might not get an appealing looking mix. It will taste fine, it just might look as though the cream has coagulated.
Looking forward to the other cocktails this week - until then, cheers!
Posts
