It started with college kids in Louisiana as a trend that he took advantage of. Good article on how Frank created “high end” vodka and rode the Jager wave.
Ah, when I said medicinal qualities I should have said “medicinal” qualities.
Just to correct the record, I missed a “w” there: śliwówka.
Yeah the first time I heard of it was some documentary on Metallica. Hetfield IIRC mentioned drinking it and that it “has a certain opiate that makes you extremely violent”, to which I thought “yeah no you’re just an asshole.”
Hey, Brown Eyed*! *Come back and tell us how things went.
How was “the coast”? (Which coast?) Did you grow to like Jäger? Force it down anyhow? End up cutting it with Sunny-D? Or drink something else?
Thanks for asking. I just got home. The coast was great, though wet and windy. We stayed in a yurt, which was very cozy and warm on wet, windy nights. We hiked to the world’s largest douglas fir and ran up one dune to see the very high surf and feel what’s it’s like to be sand-blasted*. We spent a lot of time playing cards and talking and laughing which was really nice for all of us. I got to prepare some good meals for my friends. It was very relaxing in spite of or actually due to the .poor weather. We were supposed to be backpacking on a trail to scout for areas that need work for our volunteer trail organization. The weather (snow & high winds predicted) caused us to change plans since we already had the time off work.
I still don’t really like Jager, but I did have some. She mixes it with water to make it go a little further. I tried to mix it with the lemon elderflower soda and it wasn’t all that great. She said it tasted like pickle juice; I dunno, but it was weird. I did bring my gin and tonic, though. I also had a few of my other friend’s Redd’s Wicked blackberry and although I still think they’re too sweet, they did the job. I didn’t feel obligated to or resentful that I drank what they were offering, even though they weren’t my preferences. It’s not really a big deal. I’d still like to experiment with some flavor combinations and maybe find a drink that I’ll like, just because I like to try new things. There were some intriguing suggestions here (thanks!).
Czarcasm, I do like Sambuca (and Ouzo) and will try to introduce her to both. Buca di Beppo makes a chocolate cake with a sambuca chocolate sauce that I thought was absolutely delicious. Maybe I should try mixing it with creme de cacao.
I haven’t had Galliano, but I’d like to try it. It sounds even better.
- It’s not altogether pleasant.
Do it. Harvey wallbangers are delicious. Plus you can use the bottle like a bat or sheleiglie in a scuffle.
I originally misread Jacquernagy’s post, thinking he couldn’t possibly mean distilling FROM herbs. Sorry about that.
One well-placed rumour can do a lot. Especially if the target audience is already primed to believe the rumour because it makes them feel better about themselves.
It’s possible I did, as well, but that’s the only interpretation I have for “brew alcohol out of whatever plants were available.” Maybe they meant “flavor alcohol with whatever plants were available,” but there’s plenty of pleasant tasting fruit around those parts of the world, so clearly there’s some sort of intentionality in the flavoring going beyond “let’s just throw all this shit in there to cover up the taste, because we have no other options.”
For those who have a second association to the word “Jaeger” :rolleyes:
Yes, this is what I was referring to. Whether they are literally made out of certain plants or herbs, or just flavored with them, is a distinction for a more educated mixologist than myself. My point is only that these things are to beverages what suppositories are to medicine.
But can you accept that some of us really do love the taste of this category of alcohol? It’s really not a heck of a whole lot different in concept to something like mukhwas – that mix of seeds (often fennel- or anise-heavy, and therefore licorice-flavored) you get after an Indian meal. It’s something after a meal, used to aid digestion or freshen the mouth or whatnot. And it’s all tasty! Herbs and spices are delicious and these sorts of liqueurs as well as bitters (which is a similar idea, but without the sweet component) is an important component of mixology. My very favorite liqueurs in the world are Unicum (which makes Jagermeister taste like candy in comparison) and Chartreuse (any variety, which I really don’t understand why people dislike, as there’s nothing in it that tastes particularly objectionable or “acquired” to me.) Then again, I grew up with all sorts of herbal teas (Polish folk are big on herbal teas), so my palette may be particularly primed towards those flavors.
Alright, I guess I can accept it, yeah. There are people who can’t stand the taste of certain things that I love, like heavily smoked or pickled fish, Vegemite (I love the stuff - tastes like a solid version of a dark beer) - I guess I can tolerate you people and your enjoyment of these bizarre concoctions. The one time I tried Chartreuse, I hated it even more than I hated Jagermeister. I was actually astonished at the idea that people could sit around and pour it into glasses and drink it and talk and hang out like everything was totally normal. But maybe their brand of Chartreuse was particularly concentrated or something.
Chartreuse comes from only one source: Carthusian monks in Grenoble, France (or, rather, it is made from their recipe nearby, but there’s no other brands of chartreuse, as far as I know.) There’s two main versions of it: a green one and a yellow one. The green one is 55% abv, the yellow one is 40% abv. They taste fairly similar to my palette, with the yellow one being more mellow and with the green the herbs are a bit more forward, perhaps with the extra alcohol. Then there’s a few extra variations, but the green and yellow are by far the most likely ones you’ll encounter. (There’s also a yellow and green VEP, which are aged extra long in casks, and a few handful of commemorative one-offs.)
Chartreuse is an ingredient in the last word, a great summertime cocktail.
You can burn your nasal hair off by setting fire to the green version and attempting to drink it, I’ve heard.
Interesting. Equal parts gin, lime juice, green chartreuse, and maraschino liqueur. I’m having a difficult time imagining the flavor, but I’m game!
We used to do that in college with Rumple Minze. With green Chartreuse, that’s a bit of a waste of money. (Rumple Minze is like $25 a fifth; green Chartreuse is closer to $60.) Or, hell, just go with Bacardi 151 or Everclear if flaming shots are the way you roll.
I actually like it with the yellow chartreuse, better; it’s more mellow and if you use rye instead of gin, it’s a last ward.
ETA:it’s deadly, drink with care.