What's your favorite hard-to-get drink?
Dec 15th, 2001, 02:57 PM
#24
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Guinness: I haven't been to Ireland since '75 where I drank and enjoyed Guinness for the 1st & only time. I've tried it in the US and London since but never ordered a 2nd round. Below is a recent post of mine from alt.travel.greece where the topic was the difference in taste of an exported Greek beer vs the taste in Greece. Regards, Walter<BR><<<I think that some beers just don't travel well. In '75 as a young backpacker I was travelling on an overnight ferry from Liverpool to Dublin. I befriended some Irishmen while drinking beer, what are the odds
. They asked if I had tried Guinness, I told them I had in London but didn't like it. They said too try it in Ireland where it would taste so much better. They explained that time & travel affected the taste. The exported beer would be trucked to a warehouse on the pier and stored. Then loaded on a ship and then unloaded and again stored in a pier warehouse. Then trucked to say a London warehouse and stored, then finally delivered to the pub. <BR> Also I wonder if extremes in temperature (esp summer & winter) between trucks, warehouses, and ship's hold would affect exported beer?>>>
. They asked if I had tried Guinness, I told them I had in London but didn't like it. They said too try it in Ireland where it would taste so much better. They explained that time & travel affected the taste. The exported beer would be trucked to a warehouse on the pier and stored. Then loaded on a ship and then unloaded and again stored in a pier warehouse. Then trucked to say a London warehouse and stored, then finally delivered to the pub. <BR> Also I wonder if extremes in temperature (esp summer & winter) between trucks, warehouses, and ship's hold would affect exported beer?>>>
Dec 15th, 2001, 03:41 PM
#25
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Walter, I think the water also has something to do with it. When in England the beers do not taste the same as those bottled here with the english labels. I also want to tell Americans who say that GB beers are warm-not true, but not like our over chilled beers that taste like razor blades where you don't get the taste of the beer. Our beer is too cold and it covers the taste to show not as good as the beers elsewhere.
Dec 16th, 2001, 09:31 AM
#28
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Limoncello from Positano and the general Naples area is my drink of choice that pops up only infrequently on US bar menus. <BR><BR>Has anyone ever had the Latvian staple, Black Balsam? My husband's relatives used to send it as a special treat, but it's an acquired taste we never managed to acquire.
Dec 16th, 2001, 06:56 PM
#33
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Hi Mimi<BR><BR>Where am I? In my home office sitting at my computer. I should be working on a report, but as you can tell, I'm on Fodor's instead. Oh, do you mean geographically? I'm in the San Francisco Bay area, south of SF. It'd be so funny if you were close by! Should I head for the cupboard to set out the pastis?
Dec 17th, 2001, 01:27 AM
#35
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Oh mi god, snakebite and black, chokling with laughter on my morning coffee. Kavey's right, I haven'e had it since I was about 15 either. Teenagers will do anything to get drunk fast.<BR><BR>It is just lager and cider, mixed together, lethal stuff, with a dash of blackcurrent cordial, and in fact most pubs won't serve it as it's just designed to get you pissed really quickly.<BR><BR>But not as evil as a "leg over" - cherry brandy and cider, the source of my first ever hangover aged 14. I still don't thik my mother has forgiven me. Ring any bells Kavey?<BR><BR>Guiness and cider is known as the poor man's Black Velvet, the rich man's version uses champagne instead of cider. Equally dodgy....
Dec 17th, 2001, 01:50 AM
#37
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RJD, glad to hear of another Chateau Tieldras fan. Didn't do the Grand Marnier but certainly loved that place. The intimate candlelight dinner was about the most romantic ever. When we were there an older couple were dressed to the nines (he in a velvet smoking jacket)and it was like a different era.
Dec 17th, 2001, 04:48 AM
#38
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Kavey and Kate:<BR><BR>Yeah, I know that Snake Bite is a teenage drink, but I just love the frutiness of the whole thing. I do enjoy a pint of Guiness and Ciders (when Snake Bite isn't available) now and then but I usually go for the "keep me above the table" drinks. Despite the usual warnings from my bartender in Austin, I've never had huge hangovers, etc. from it.<BR><BR>Another fave of mine is Irish Creme...mmm...yummy. I have a pretty sensitive stomach so anything with a milky coating is always nice.<BR><BR>How bout another angle to this? Is there any drink (now I'm talking alcoholic) that you can't stand the mere mention of? <BR><BR>For me it's Creme de Menthe. Warning: If you're drunk and a friend asks you to do a shot of this stuff for "old time's sake" DON'T DO IT. Worst pain I've felt in my life. Ick. There's a longer and more humorous side to this story but I won't get into it now.
Dec 17th, 2001, 04:55 AM
#39
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Mandarinetto, which I've never tasted.<BR>I love Limoncello, which I can get here in the States. A restaurateur in Italy<BR>recommended that I try "Mandarinetto" which he said was an intensely-flavored<BR>tangerine-flavored liqueur, a flavor that I would love. Have looked all over New York City's liquor stores, can't find it!
Dec 17th, 2001, 05:03 AM
#40
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Well, Jess, I haven't had cherry brandy since that youthful incident (some, er, 18 years ago), and I always TRY to avoid tequila shots which have a very peculiar effect on my sanity.<BR><BR>What's Irish Creme? Do you mean like Baileys?<BR><BR>I'm actually quite fond of Creme du menthe when mixed with brandy - has the marvellous ability of making you think you've got fresh breath when you've drunk 2 bottles of wine and smoked 20 fags.
