December 31st, 2009 — Health
Tomorrow is New Years Eve, many of you lovely wives will be ringing in the new year with a few glasses of Champagne or other alcoholic beverage. And since some of you have kids and husbands to take care of New Years day, Here’s a sure fire way to wake up with out a hangover.
– THE WIFE
Barroom wisdom posits that clear drinks like vodka and gin induce fewer hangovers than dark ones like brandy, red wine, or certain rums and tequilas. At least one study bears this out: When researchers gave volunteers the same dose of alcohol in the form of either bourbon or vodka, only 3 percent of those who drank the vodka reported a bad hangover the next day, compared to 33 percent of the bourbon drinkers. Scientists suspect that the compounds in darker liquors are to blame.
Food slows the absorption of alcohol, preventing the sudden spike in blood alcohol that’s often followed by actions you’ll probably regret—including more drinking. If, at the end of the night, you realize you’ve had too much, downing some crackers or fruit juice will slow metabolism of the alcohol still in your stomach, advises Swift. You should wake up feeling better in the morning.
You know the best way to avoid morning punishment is to drink less, but how do you do that when every time your glass empties, someone’s refilling it? Try this: Alternate a glass of booze with a glass of seltzer. You’ll halve the amount you drink and you’ll be well hydrated, thereby warding off the hangover symptoms caused by alcohol’s diuretic effect—headache, dry mouth, and light-headedness. – Oprah.com
Hangover Prevention Checklist:
Eat a Hearty Dinner
Drink a glass of Water for every alcoholic beverage consumed
2 Advil before Bed Time
Try to Eat Eggs for Breakfast
December 30th, 2009 — Cooking
From the grape to the glass, Krug champagne is nurtured with painstaking care and attention to detail. The Krug philosophy is, first and foremost, about a passionate commitment to craftsmanship, defined by a series of uncompromising choices which, taken together, create a taste, a style, that is as legendary as it is unique.
Of fundamental importance to the Krug style is its approach to grape selection. Krug sources its grapes, not from a few large vineyards, but from an intricate mosaic of fine-quality plots, some of which are not much bigger than gardens. This choice is based on Krug’s knowledge of the terroir of Champagne, and the fact that the same grape variety cultivated in different vineyards develops subtle nuances of flavour. As a result, the wine is more exciting – the more you drink, the more you discover. Krug knows which areas best suit its style, and endeavours to secure the best-quality supplies from those areas – indeed, some farmers have been supplying the Krug family with grapes for generations.
The grapes, selected by hand, are pressed to obtain the “must ”, which is transferred to 205-litre oak casks, individually labelled by area and vineyard. It is in these small oak casks that the wines are born. Alone among the great champagne houses, Krug still ferments all its wines in oak – not out of some slavish devotion to tradition, but because only this method can bring each and every wine so vibrantly to life. Another advantage of the first fermentation in oak is that the exchanges which take place between the wine, the wood of the casks, and the oxygen in the atmosphere naturally favour a slow, long evolution of the wine, resulting in the exceptional longevity of all Krug champagnes.
Time is the greatest luxury of all, and Krug, which has spared no effort in the making of its champagnes, now allows them all the time they need to reach maturity. For this reason, every Krug champagne is aged for upwards of six years, and in some cases much longer. Not until each has attained its perfect balance of freshness and fullness will it be released from the cellars in Reims. At Krug, a passion for the craft is also a matter of patience.
To guarantee the consistent excellence of the Krug style, despite the vagaries of climate and harvest, Krug can draw on a resource unrivalled in Champagne – its stocks of reserve wines. These are a selection of the best still wines from previous harvests, carefully stored in the Krug cellars. Like a perfumer’s library of fragrance essences, reserve wines are among Krug’s most precious raw materials, for it is the only champagne house to use them as a significant part of the structure of the blend. Above and beyond consistency, reserve wines create both harmony and complexity – indeed, for Krug, they represent the very essence of “assemblage”.
“Assemblage”, or blending, is one of the miracles of champagne, and the culmination of Krug’s craftsmanship. Different grapes from different vineyards and different years are blended together to create a whole that spectacularly surpasses the sum of its individual parts. The process of “assemblage” culminates over one week in February. It is the most crucial week of the year at Krug, on which the work of all the others depends.
Every year since 1843, Krug champagne has been blended by a member of the Krug family. The art of blending is passed down from one generation to the next, with each generation gradually building up a “memory bank” of tastes and references with which to perpetuate the Krug style. For it is from taste and memory alone that the inimitable taste of Krug has to be recreated every year. There can be no formula, no recipe, given that no two harvests are ever quite the same.
A traditional Krug Grande Cuvee, $150.00
December 30th, 2009 — About Me
Krug Tasting
A few years ago on a marvelous trip to magical Paris, a few friends and I were lucky enough to be whisked away to Champagne France. While there we had a private tour of the Krug home and vineyards. Upon arrival we were taken on a tour of the cellars that house the grand oak casks containing the fermenting champagne. It is here I found out what sets Krug apart from the rest… Their standard time for fermentation is 6 years or longer. While other champagne companies only dedicate 2 years to their process. We traveled upstairs to the tasting room to samples of Krug’s Grand Cuvee, Rose and Vintage 1996 (My Favorite). For Lunch it was off to Chateau Les Crayeres for a decadent 5 course lunch at Le Parc. After lunch we were chauffeured to Krug’s vineyard Clos de Mesnil for a brisk walk around the vineyard on a cold winters day.
Krug Cellar
Myself holding a bottle of Krug Champagne in Clos de Mesnil vineyard
Alex pours Marcus a glass of champagne to toast cheers with.
December 30th, 2009 — Cooking
Mandarin Champagne
Ingrediants:
Makes one cocktail
1 Ounce Mandarin Liqueur, such as Mandarine Napolean
4 Ounces champagne
Clementine Peel for Garnish
Directions:
1. Pour liqueur into a champagne flute; top with champagne. Twist clementine peel over glass and gently drop into cocktail.
– Martha Stewart
Lavender Champagne
Ingredients:
Serves 16
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Tablespoon dried Lavender
4 Bottles (750 mL ) Dry Champagne or Sparkling Wine, Chilled
Fresh Lavender Sprigs, for Garnish
Directions:
1. Bring sugar and 1/2 cup water to a boil in a saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar, stir in lavender. Remove from heat. Let cool completely. Strain out lavender. Refridgerate syrup until ready to serve ( Up to 1 month )
2. Pour about 6 ounces Champagne and 1 1/2 teaspoons syrup into each flute. Garnish with lavender sprig.
– Martha Stewart.
December 28th, 2009 — Style Inspiration
