Ballast Point Brewing Co. - "Indra Kunindra" export stout

You may recall I actually mentioned this beer several weeks ago in my review of Ballast Point's "Habanero Sculpin." I was doing some research on Ballast Point for that post, and saw this beer described on their website. It's originally a homebrew creation from Alex Tweet, picked up by Ballast Point and turned into a seasonal release. Those who know me know that I love to cook and eat South Asian food, so this beer is right up my alley. I was excited, but figured since it was seasonal it might be a limited distribution (like other BP offerings). Well, perusing the selection at Whole Foods recently, I noticed they had a couple bottles on the shelf. Score!

It's the "Indra Kunindra", a 7.00% ABV export stout made with Madras curry, coconut, cayenne, cumin, and kaffir lime.

An export stout is a stout made stronger than usual, a nod to the olden days when stouts for export needed to be brewed stronger for the boat trip overseas for sale in foreign markets. So it's no surprise that this beer pours dark. It generates a tan-colored head; and is not too aromatic, but I can detect both definite Madras curry spice notes and floral scents (likely the kaffir) as it warms up. As per usual with darker beers, I like to let them warm up a bit before drinking.

Aww yeah, damn this is tasty. It starts out with a nice burst of heat, some pepper flavors, and strong, clear curry flavors. I was surprised at how pronounced and straightforward those curry flavors were. But those flavors gave way quickly to very solid coconut and cumin notes, which also come through strongly and clearly. The finish is of cumin and some cayenne, which is nice, leading to a pleasant aftertaste.

I'm always so interested in trying experimental beers, if only to see how a brewery happens to pull off the attempt. And Ballast Point hit another home run here because this beer is very well put together. It's got a nice progression of flavors, a good mix of lingering heat and taste, and great balancing of flavors. Each flavor makes an appearance in succession, a rarity in beers with so many ingredients. Perfect, and at $7.99 for a 22oz bomber, a steal. D'Vines also has it for $9.99. Do yourself a favor and give this a try if you can - it's well worth it!

Beer Flash: Firestone Walker's "Luponic Distortion" IPA

Today's beer was referred to me by Chris, a Firestone Walker rep I met at D'Vines last week when he was conducting a tasting. Firestone Walker makes some good stuff - like the fine "Velvet Merlin", which he was serving at the tasting, as well as the "Wookey Jack" and its variants. They also have a fantastic line of specially-crafted anniversary ales, one of which I reviewed on the blog last year.

Today's is the "Luponic Distortion", a 5.9% ABV India Pale Ale. It's also labelled as "Revolution No. 001" - Chris says that the hops are experimental, and that they will be rotating the ingredients with each revolution. Cool. According to the box, this particular beer was canned on February 16, 2016. Nice and fresh!

It's got a golden color to it, fizzy, with a white head that clings to the side of the glass. The flavor is clean and hoppy, with very crisp and straightforward flavor and a slight bit of resin. One notable quality is the lack of a strong finish or aftertaste. There wasn't a heck of a lot of flavor on the finish, which isn't always a bad thing. In the end, this is a very clean, very easy drinking IPA with a light alcohol content, so it's fine as a session ale. Bottoms up!

Cellar & Stove: Spaghetti Carbonara and Sangiovese/Canaiolo red blend (Italy)

In another edition of my "Cellar & Stove" segment, I'm going to be pairing an affordable and multi-purpose red wine with my own personal take on celebrity chef Marco Pierre White's spaghetti carbonara.

Chef Marco Pierre White

Marco Pierre White is a three-time Michelin Star-winning English chef, famous for being a restaurateur and author. Called the "godfather of modern cooking", he trained Gordon Ramsay, among others. Raised by an English father and an Italian mother, White has an interesting take on Mediterranean fusion cuisine which I like a lot. Today's recipe is based on his spaghetti carbonara.

Carbonara is a delicious, simple meal, made with heavy cream, eggs, spaghetti, pancetta, and parmesan. Despite its fame, no one is quite sure about the origins of the recipe. MPW's version calls for bacon, which is traditional. Obviously bacon is awesome! But in the absence of it, I wanted to see what else I could substitute to add a bit of a flair to the dish. So I settled on some thinly-sliced chorizo, which is a kind of aged and cured meat often used in Iberian cooking.

To make this recipe, you'll need:

• 1/2 cup of heavy cream (or light cream, depends on how rich you want it.)
• Pasta. I prefer whole grain Barilla, but your choice will do.
• 2 eggs. 
• Your choice of meat. I realize that the traditional is pancetta or bacon, but you can experiment. 
• Parmesan. I use Parmesan-Reggiano, in block form, and use a grater. 
• Olive oil and black pepper (optional.)
• "Better than Boullion" concentrated chicken stock (also optional.)

The dish is rather simple, and easy to make. All you need to do is mix together the cream and eggs, and toss the pasta in that mixture once it's done. Add the cheese and meat, and serve. 

Since the chorizo has a lot of salt, I'm not going to salt the water - but instead season the water using a concentrated stock. And because the starch from the pasta and concentrated stock makes a nice broth, I will retain that pasta water and make a soup later. I've also decided, as my vegetable, to add some peas for color. So first I start some water boiling, adding both olive oil and bouillon for the pasta (and plain water for the peas). I'm not going to start the rest of it just yet, and while I wait for the water to heat up, let's talk wine. Today I have chosen a rather affordable bottle of Sangiovese from Tuscany as my dinner pairing.

It's Incanto's 2011 "Vino Nobile di Montepulciano." This wine is sourced from the Montepulciano grape-growing region of Tuscany. I was first introduced to Montepulciano wine (specifically Montepulciano d'Abruzzo) when I was touring Italy in 2004 with my father. The grape itself, Sangiovese, is a purple-skinned red varietal grown extensively in Tuscany and other central Italian regions. Sangiovese and its relatives have been grown for thousands of years, but the first mention of this wine by name was in 1590. Generally,  I remember it was the table wine served most often when my father and I went out to dinner in Rome; it isn't terribly expensive but is a good varietal in my opinion. And in fact, this wine isn't totally Sangiovese - there's 10% Canaiolo tossed in there, which is a common additive in Tuscan wines.

Since the dish is very rich, thanks to the eggs and the cream and the olive oil, I wanted a wine that could cut through some of that. Traditionally, that's a job for a white like Chardonnay. But the dish is also very salty, owing to the concentrated stock, the parmesan and the chorizo, so I am looking for a bit of strength to stand up to it. Remember, if you want to serve wine with your dinner, look for parity - you want your flavors to complement one another, not clash. The wine is soft enough not to destroy the creamy nature of the dish, but it also adds some texture.

With dinner well on the way,  it's time to investigate the wine a little. It's ruby red in the glass, and has an aroma of dirt and berries. There's a tiny bit of bricking on the meniscus of the glass - expected for a wine 5 years old.

Not wanting to sample it just yet, I set it down to tend to the final steps for dinner. Like I mentioned, this dish is very quick to prepare. As the wine is sitting out, breathing, it's time to whisk together the eggs and cream and add the drained pasta to the mixture. I've also tossed in the chorizo slices. Notice there isn't any parmesan on the pasta at this point - taking my cue from MPW, I layer the dish - parmesan in the bottom of the dish, then chorizo and pasta, then more parmesan on top. Adding cheese to the sauce before mixing it with the pasta would make it clumpy.

Now that everything is mixed, it's time to plate it and serve. I think it turned out magnificently. The wine is a little dry, which I feel works well with the meal. There's a definite burst of dark berry skin (cassis) flavor in there, some wood / cedar notes, and drinks rather smoothly. I like it. The finish and aftertaste are both slightly dry but very appetizing and crisp. The dryness of the wine matches well with the cheese and chorizo.

So this is a great meal you can make at home, easily, with a lot of space for creative license. You can adjust the creaminess of the dish or the level of Parmesan to your liking, without seriously affecting the overall delivery of the dish.  And the wine is a cheap, solid choice that would pair nicely with other dishes too - roasted meats, cheeses, and stews. This bottle wasn't too expensive at all - $10.99 - with some Montepulciano wines being cheaper still. It's worth investigating for certain!

Photo of MP White, source - http://nymag.com/images/2/daily/food/07/04/23_ianderry_lgl.jpg

21st Amendment Brewing Co. - "Fireside Chat" spiced winter ale

Here's another one from the archives, which frankly (pun intended) I should have done years ago. And before it gets any warmer out there, too! It's 21st Amendment's winter seasonal, the "Fireside Chat." 21st Amendment, based in San Francisco, CA, has released a bunch of good beers in the past, including many I have reviewed: their "Monk's Blood" Belgian ale, their "Toaster Pastry" India red ale, as well as other good entries like their "Sneak Attack" saison and their "Back in Black" black ale. They also have released some not-so-great stuff, including the overpriced and undersized "Lower de Boom" barleywine. But the "Fireside Chat" surely makes up for any failings elsewhere.

If you're a history buff, the name of the beer may be familiar to you. Between 1933 and 1944, President Franklin Roosevelt gave a series of 30 radio addresses called "Fireside Chats." These marked the first time a president communicated with the general public (thanks to the invention of radio!) He spoke to the nation on various affairs of state including banking crises, labor issues, foreign affairs, and regarding the declaration of war on Japan on December 9th, 1941.

And now that namesake is present in the "Fireside Chat", a 7.9% ABV spiced winter ale. made with Magnum and Golding hops and a variety of malts and top-fermenting yeasts. It's also brewed with cocoa nibs and spices, like many other winter ales. It pours a root-beer brown, throwing some soft aromas of chocolate and generating a fluffy, buff-colored head.

It's dark in the glass, and has a root-beer color when candled.

There's a lot of clove, caramel and chocolate notes to this beer. The Fireside Chat has a little carbonation, not too bad, and the flavors (while not as strong as they could be) are nice as a muted, soft background. One of the reasons this ale has been a seasonal favorite of mine is the texture. It's silky smooth, very warming, and  not bitter at all. Some winter ales have a steely, almost sharp taste to them, but this one is smooth and low-key, heavy on the sweet malts, with a rather low 45 IBUs. It's not overdone, and is a tasty (and somewhat sweet) alternative to some roasted malt-heavy, high gravity winter offerings. I like the fact this beer tastes way lighter than it is. At 7.9% ABV, one might think it would be thick and heady. But it's a remarkably light, easy-drinking beer that is a great session ale for the cooler months.

Beer Flash: Bell's "Hopslam" 2016 edition

Well, this year's "Hopslam" has just been released and I figured I should give it a mention. Longtime readers of this blog may recall my post from February 2015 about this beer. It's a 10.00% ABV double India Pale Ale from Michigan-based Bell's Brewery. This beer is highly sought after; so much so that most places sell out in days if not hours. I picked up this six-pack from D'Vines in DC for around $26; I split it with some other beer aficionados at my work. I figured I'd do a short Beer Flash on it in lieu of a full post, since I discussed it at length last year.

It pours quickly and throws a nice aroma of hops. It drinks light and smooth, with some honey tastes making an appearance (the beer is made with honey.) I like it, as it's heady and warming with some slight bitter aftertastes, and a nice quality of floral hop bitterness though. But what makes this good is that the bitterness is gentle - more of a background flavor than something that gets in the way. That kind of gentle bitterness is one of the reason it's so popular. Overall, a well-rounded and smooth DIPA, pleasing and delicious. Is it $26 worth of delicious? Maybe not. But give this a spin if you ever see it on draft; it's worth trying for sure.

Davidoff "Inspirational" Collection

Today's post is a three-fer: I'll be reviewing a set of three super-premium Davidoff robusto cigars. Davidoff is one of the finest brands of cigars out there; in the early 1900s, Ukrainian-born Zino Davidoff traveled the world to become steeped in the cigar trade and ended up opening a small shop in Geneva, Switzerland, which grew to a global cigar corporation. In addition to fine cigars, Davidoff also produces pipe tobacco, cigarettes, and other luxury goods. For a time in college I even wore Davidoff's fragrance, "Cool Water." No judgment please!

The box I have here is their "Inspirational" sampler, a display box of three robusto-sized cigars (that's roughly 5" long by 50 ring gauge, or 50/64ths of a inch wide.) The three cigars are more on the strong end of their lineup; they've rated them in terms of strength with 5 circle devices under each cigar. The more circles filled, the stronger the cigar. The plastic-looking sleeves that contain these cigars (and many of them sold retail) is actually not plastic but cellulose, and acts not only as a way to protect cigars, but to regulate humidity. They also help to hold in aromas and flavor, so if you're like me and have almost 150 cigars in your humidor, you'll want to keep them in the cellulose to prevent the more aromatic cigars from bleeding over into your more delicate ones. More will come on humidification later, right now let's get smoking!

First up is the Puro D'Oro Magnifico, the one with the gold label. It's the strongest of the bunch, according to the little pictogram thingy at the bottom. It features a dark and oily Yamasa habano wrapper, with Dominican long-fillers inside, which are aged for four years. 

This was strong. There was a heavy layer of hickory and pepper notes, and with cigars this strong, there's usually a heavy nicotine taste to them. There was a dark sweetness around the middle of the cigar, and the last third was dominated by a charred and peppery taste which "cliffed" quickly (meaning the taste turned from good to bad.) I admit, it was a bit overpowering and acrid for me. 

Next one I tried was the "Nicaragua", which I neglected to take a photo of beforehand. I've included a file photo for reference. I like the color of the leaf; mine was very even without a lot of tobacco stem seams. But, like many Davidoff wrappers, it was very thin and ended up unraveling a bit as you can see. 

I think this was much more my speed. I've enjoyed other Nicaraguan offerings before, namely Avo's "Syncro Nicaragua" and a lot of the stuff Drew Estate makes from Esteli, Nicaragua. It's certainly lighter, sweeter not in the nicotine sense but in the aged habano sense: it also tastes a little more mild and aged. But there still was a spiciness to it which I liked. I also smoked this one down futher than I did the Puro d'Or; less cliffing present. 

Finally that leaves the "Millennium Blend." At three-and-a-half circle thingys, it's supposed to be the most mild of the three; but still not as mild as Davidoff gets. This one also has 4-year-aged Dominican long-fillers, but instead features an Ecuadorian sungrown wrapper. The wrapper is darker than the others, but that's not always meaningful. 

Well, this one was pretty strong, too. It lights up nicely, and with some pull it starts to burn evenly. Overall, it's very heavy on the palette, with deep and strong leather, cinder, and tobacco flavors. While it's lighter than the Puro, it's still very strong. Finished it up with about 1.5 inches left on the stick, and enjoyed some ash-y aftertastes for a few minutes.

I prefer the Nicaragua out of the three, but overall, this whole line is a little too heavy for my taste. I can certainly appreciate the craftsmanship, and pleasantly, the wrappers did not crack on any of these smokes (Davidoff cigars have a reputation for very fine, thin wrappers that crack.) However, when it comes down to strength, I wouldn't buy the Millenium or Puro d'Or again. They're just too heavy for me, and a lot of the flavor gets bogged down in that heaviness. I wonder if that strength is part of the Davidoff culture - it seems many of the Davidoff cigars I have had are on the strong side. Another note for you to consider is the cost  - as a brand Davidoff are generally expensive and in my opinion, not worth it for the novice smoker. This particular assortment is $47 retail, so definitely not the most affordable. Even I seldom smoke Davidoff due to the cost, and my own particular preferences. I'm pleased to have tried that sampler, of course, and still have respect for the brand - I just may seek out their most mild offerings next time. 

Davidoff's logo, courtesy of Davidoff.com

Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits - "Habanero Sculpin" IPA

I actually came across this beer about a month ago, and passed on it. When I went back to get it later, it was all sold out! But luckily, I was recently in Massachusetts for a conference, and came across it in the East Hartford, CT super beer mart, where I've bought a few things that have appeared on this blog before. This trip I also picked up a few other special bombers, including an amazing couple of Stone offerings I've never seen before. Those Stone beers will sit in my cellar until I'm back in Connecticut in August. But on to today's beer!

It's from San Diego, CA-based Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits. I've been a fan of Ballast Point for some time now; their "Big Eye" IPA is good and cheap, as is their "Wahoo" which I had at Brouwer's in Seattle last year. I also saw their "Peppermint Victory at Sea" in East Hartford, which I wanted to get but passed this time. They also have tons more awesome offerings that I haven't seen, including their "Indra Kunindra," a stout made with Madras curry, coconut, cumin, cayenne, and lime. Oh man! I'd love to get in on that.

Today's beer is the habanero entry in their "Sculpin" series of ales, which includes a pineapple variant, and an evidently-popular grapefruit version. I admit to you fully that I am not super interested in the grapefruit one (or grapefruit anything) but the habanero is definitely a strong attractor!

It's got a nice dark yellow color, with some cloudy particles inside and lots of little bubbles rising to the top. It generates a thin white head that clings to the side of the glass nicely.

Wow, nice. It starts strong, presenting sharp pepper flavors almost immediately, and follows up with the hop flavor, quickly developing into a brassy taste that pairs well with the lingering habanero flavors. It tastes fresh and strong, and as it warms up, I'm starting to enjoying the hoppy flavors even more, and they pair nicely with the great lingering heat that stays on the tongue long after the beer is swallowed.

In the end, it's clean, very hot, and tangy with some great pepper flavors that last for a long time. It's also labelled as a "small-batch pepper beer" and that the heat "may vary." That's kinda cool; having a bit of variety in the final outcome shows that each batch is crafted based on actual fresh ingredients, with some natural variance therein. It's also lighter than many other pepper beers I've tried, so that was a cool plus as well. Most pepper beers I've had are stouts / porters, so having something a bit more ale-like was great. In the end, this was awesome - I highly recommend it if you're a pepper fan.