Write a tasting note for any cocktail, liquor or food over the week. That’s easy and I know lots of berserkers drink fun stuff other than wine and we know everyone is a foodie at heart so share your favorites in the name of charity and good fun. It’s worth $5 for each one.
My friend Laurie runs the Orange Country chapter of this organization and she shared some amazing cake pictures she has created and mentioned “this one was for a kid that had never had a birthday cake before, it’s for his 18th birthday”. That struck me and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. That’s not right, everyone should have a birthday cake!
Spread love, joy, & frosting!
For Goodness Cakes matches volunteers to make and hand-deliver birthday & graduation cakes to children in foster care and youth overcoming adversity on their special day."
About Us
For Goodness Cakes® is a nonprofit organization that gives underprivileged youth the chance to have a birthday by matching volunteers to bake special cakes just for them.
For Goodness Cakes® does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, immigration status, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligations, and marital status.
For Goodness Cakes® is an officially recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Tax ID # 81-1038383
Went for a light snack and glass of wine at a cool place in Encinitas, CA.
Got a glass of Portuguese rosè which was okay but the star was on the appetizer menu.
Baked Humboldt - like a baked brie but with Humboldt Fog cheese. Oh my… Served with bread, sliced pear, and a few warm nuts. Delicious.
Humboldt Fog is a mold-ripened cheese with a central line of edible white ash much like Morbier. The cheese ripens starting with the bloomy mold exterior, resulting in a core of fresh goat cheese surrounded by a runny shell. As the cheese matures, more of the originally crumbly core is converted to a soft-ripened texture. The bloomy mold and ash rind are edible but fairly tasteless. The cheese is creamy, light, and mildly acidic with a stronger flavor near the rind.
I usually buy a mag of the Anchor Our Special Ale(Christmas Ale) every year in addition to some regular six packs. The mags age effortlessly and I often take them to some celebration a year+ from vintage. Somehow I let this one go a couple more years than usual but its not showing it.
Not my favorite vintage for this beer. Its typically a darker beer with medium richness. A lighter ‘winter warmer’. In 2018 its more like a hoppier, stronger brown ale. So the alcohol shows a touch more than it should because its not rich enough to carry the 7%. Otherwise its fresh as a daisy and keeping me warm.
Newtown Brewing Company Cotton-Headed Ninny Muggins - a high ABV Winter Ale, loads of baking spice, a bit too sweet for more than one, but it’s warming and in the holiday spirit so no complaints
Echolocation by Perennial Artisan Ales, one of my favorite local St. Louis breweries. This is their second blend of this barrel-aged wheat saison. Primary fermentation was in a stainless steel fermenter, then it had 10 months of aging in a large format French Oak Foeder, and lastly finished in French Oak Barriques for an additional 7 months. Tart and lemony, and a little funky, but pillowy and smooth texture on the palate likely from the wheat. There is a judicious amount of oak that’s non-obtrusive. Overall a pleasant, low alcohol mixed fermentation saison that pairs well with our pizza tonight.
Geez, one shot of this stuff and I become incapable of taking photos, making a post. Who the heck hit me over the head! 90 proof, I am hopeless.
2013 Kutch Fine de Sonoma Coast Brandy - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (12/23/2022)
Bottle 118 of 168. I drink so very little spirits that I may be the worst source for a tasting note but WTH, why not do one. There is a smoothness to it, like an orange and maple combo, but not sweet. Some caramel here, I suppose from the oak this is aged in? Finishes with an evaporating note that gets into my beak, a little peaty going down. At 90 proof, I can't do much of this but it warms me up and it's also a note for charity so for a good cause!
That’s an Elijah Craig Small Batch Perfect Manhattan and, if you’re wondering, that’s a Flannery Beef California Prime New York Strip. It was cooked a few days back and I will warm it up and have it with some tater tots and salad.
Forgot the tasting note. The Manhattan is quite delicious.
Arrived at my parents house for the Christmas holiday this afternoon. One of the things that is alway part of the holiday is my mom’s wide variety of delicious, homemade cookies. This year there are Pecan Sandies, Turtles, Chocolate Chip (with pecans), Ginger Snaps, Ginger Shortbread, and Peanut Butter topped with peanut butter cups.
The Pecan Sandies have been my favorite since I was about five years old. The dusting of powdered sugar blows all over the place like snow on Christmas morning. They are a special treat for once a year. Turtles are a cookie that I have only come to love recently, but the homemade caramel drizzle is to die for.
Chocolate Chip are a classic, and I will put my mom’s version up against anyone else’s. I suspect that everyone prefers their mom’s version of the cookie.
Not so much a note as an hommage, but it’s what I’ve got.
Tonight, we used meat products to try to make imitation vegetables. We are thinking of calling them “Impossible Cauliflower” or “Beyond Broccoli.” These are balls of ground lamb, spicy Italian sausage, and diced pork jowl, stuffed with creamy goat cheese. We cheated and used some tomatoes and onions. While absolutely delicious, I don’t think they would fool any vegans.
Smooth, a hint of caramel on the nose, very long finish. Lovely if you can find it in the 50 price point.
Camut 18 year:
Xmas and the holidays on the nose with baking/warming spices and cinnamon and lovely toasted white chocolate on the palate. Endless finish. Recently sourced some rarete that I’m very excited about.
But, for sure, that beer is delicious.
