Bite of the Best » Beverages

entwine Pinot Grigio

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 04:59:58 +0000

Bonnie: I'm sure you've noticed that Food Network has its "hands" into everything from cookbooks to cookware - with its latest venture, not surprisingly, a wine called entwine. It's a venture with the family-owned California winery Wente Vineyards and fifth-generation winemaker Karl Wente. The winery is America's oldest continuously ...

Bryan: Earlier this year, the Food Network, the channel that has seemingly cemented its place in the American psyche as a foodie institution, launched its own new wine label. Though highly anticipated by some, the release also raised a few eyebrows from food traditionalists and critics alike. While it is widely appreciated, the Food Network is regarded by some as having turned its back on...

Eric:I would never consider myself to be a wine connoisseur; I put the effort into receiving my introductory sommelier certification, which merely states that I know that wine is derived from grapes and that there are many varietals in different parts of the world to choose from. This depth of knowledge is just about where the Food Network is positioned with...

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Wine-A-Rita’s Berry Pom-A-Rita

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 03:59:17 +0000

Bonnie: Looking for something different to serve guests on a hot summer day? I tripped over this frozen drink mix while walking around the Fancy Food show in DC last month. Berry Pom-A-Rita is a drink mix for wine. Yes, wine. To make, you just blend 1/2 package of the mix, ice cubes...

Bryan:Until this month, there were only a few wine "cocktails" with which I was really familiar. The first on my list is sangria, a wine punch typically consisting of red wine (though white can be used), chopped fruit, something sugary (honey, OJ, soda) and a bit of brandy… all poured over ice. It's a truly wonderful summertime drink, as the red wine is transformed from...

Eric:I'm pretty set in my ways when it comes to my choice of alcohol, and although I enjoy the full spectrum of taste, Bourbon is synonymous, for me, with the term "ice-cold beverage." Wine, is not. On a hot summer day, a pitcher of red sangria certainly can be refreshing, but it's not...

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Sting Ray Spicy Bloody Mary Mixer with Ocean Clam Juice

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 03:59:05 +0000

Bonnie: Tales of the Cocktail brought aficionados from around the world to New Orleans just last month to celebrate the mixed drink with seminars, tastings and more. Those festivities made me think about the Bloody Mary, a classic cocktail made with a twist using Sting Ray. This mildly spicy mix has been around for a ...

Bryan: Dressed or undressed... how do you take your Bloody Mary in the morning? If you have a private patio or sunroom for an intimate morning brunch, this question might mean something entirely different to you, but to the folks at the Blue Crab Bay Company, it's all about fishing nets. Fishing nets, you're asking? What could fishing nets possibly...

Eric: Bloody Mary drinkers are a rare breed -- but they are still incredibly particular when it comes to their beverages. A Bloody Mary is not just tomato juice and vodka; it's a combination of heat, spices and zest mixed with a neutral spirit. The St. Regis in NYC might have created ...

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Godiva Chocolate Infused Vodka

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 03:59:48 +0000

Bonnie: A couple of weeks ago, I attended a public relations agency's holiday open house, sharing its client's products that it hoped might be included in a winter holiday story. Most print magazine editors who attended produce their Christmas and New Year's stories in the summer. Those of us on the Web, have a much shorter lead time.

At one station, I learned about Godiva's...

Bryan: To me, chocolate is a tremendous addition to almost any dish or food product. Almost all things sweet can do right by a little dip in chocolate; Heck, even some things savory do well with a smidge (I'm looking at you, mole sauce). As a general rule of thumb, I'm pro-chocolate anything. But, even with such unbridled chocolate enthusiasm, I must say I was less than excited when I heard we'd be tasting a new chocolate vodka.

I immediately imagined...

Eric: Vodka, by definition, is a neutral spirit (flavorless, "tasteless" and odorless); when you "boil down" to it (distillation humor), vodka should be pure, unadulterated alcohol -- with, sometimes, the addition of water. As a self-proclaimed alcohol aficionado, I always laugh when I encounter flavored vodka -- the reason being is that as soon as you flavor a vodka, it becomes a gin.

Godiva's new chocolate-infused gin (joking)...

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Fever-Tree Premium Indian Tonic Water

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 03:59:40 +0000

Bonnie: We do like our libations!

Generally the only sweet mixer I ever use is tonic — especially in summer. For me, I mix it with vodka; for some friends, with gin. And to save calories, I made a "sonic" — the alcohol mixed with part bubbly club soda or seltzer + part tonic. For the seltzer, you can either ...

Bryan: What more can I do to let you know how amazingly good and unique Fever-Tree beverages are than to simply list the collection of outstanding, luxury, eating establishments that currently serve it? What more would it take for you to think these tasty drinks are worth a try? What wonderful adjectives could I put forth that would do better than noting that Fever-Tree mixers are currently served in seven out of ...

Eric: I wouldn't consider myself a tonic drinker. In fact, it was only while I was spending time in Africa that I found myself sipping a gin and tonic -- and that was mostly due to my belief in the "medicinal" benefits as it's a natural mosquito repellent.

Tonic has never found a spot in my fridge; the bitter, dry flavor is something my ...

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Wódka Vodka

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 04:59:40 +0000

Bonnie: I learned to drink vodka in Moscow in the '70s when on a French-speaking tour of the then USSR. I didn't speak French.

The food was horrific; the beverages worse. Each meal consisted of some unidentified diced ingredients and a slab of protein aspic. Vodka was the only thing to drink, as I had been told by someone who spoke ....

Bryan: Vodka to the People! Why must the spirit industry go the way of clothing and cars? Why can we not all agree that brand doesn't always equal quality? Or at least that cheap doesn't always equal bad? Well, one vodka company is bucking the Grey Goose trend, and has decided that its traditional Polish recipe will be "call" good, with "well" prices (meaning...

Eric: I was sitting around a table in Charleston, SC having a "heated" discussion about the characteristics of vodka with the president of W.J.Deutsch & Sons, the wine importers, when he turned to me and the rest of the table (including PR representative Barbara Scalera and Chef Bob Waggoner), and said "Enough debate. Let's have a tasting." Five minutes later, there were...

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Hint Water

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 03:59:47 +0000

Bonnie: My thirst-quenching beverage of choice is sparkling water (aka seltzer or carbonated water made using my can’t-live-without Soda Club sparkling-water maker). Second, I’d choose that bubbly water with an added splash of juice — a drink that was the “soda” in ...

Bryan: Imagine you’ve just finished off a bottle of juice, and then refilled the bottle with cold, crisp water. Take a sip. What do you taste? A hint of that juice flavor, just a bit of something to give your water a different sense of ...

Eric: It’s great to finally see a flavored water in the beverage aisle that doesn’t contain absurd amounts of sugar, chemicals and sweeteners. Sure there might be one or two others out there, but none with the similar (subtle)...

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Purista Caipirinha Cocktail Mix

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:05:36 +0000

Bonnie: “Cachaça?” asked the puzzled bartender.

It was the early ’90s in Beaver Creek, where I was skiing fresh powder with a German restaurateur. Exhausted from skiing, we skied to our lodging for an après-ski drink where Klaus ordered us caipirinhas.

The bartender said...

Bryan: I only really heard about cachaça (Brazil’s prized national liquor) a few months back, when I received an email about National Cachaça Day (insert link). So if you are like me and a bit unfamiliar with the word “caipirinha,” it refers to Brazil’s national cocktail, a beverage made with cachaça, sugar and lime. Cachaça is by far Brazil’s most popular alcoholic beverage. Though it is consumed in massive...

Eric: When facing most challenges in life, preparation is the key to success. Two years ago, I learned this lesson all too well while holding a bowl of limes, a bunch of mint and standing behind a bar surrounded by a crowd of thirsty people. “Cut, rip, muddle, pour” is a sequence synonymous with the painstaking...

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Weaver’s Organic Blend Coffee

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:01:45 +0000

Bonnie: I begin my day by freshly grinding coffee beans, then brewing a pot full. I find that aroma intoxicating as I sit at my computer beginning to respond to emails while waiting for the coffee to brew. That good cup of coffee makes my morning at the computer so much more enjoyable.

Earlier this year I received an email from Amy Bonetti, sharing information about...

Bryan: Though I sort of hate to admit it, coffee is becoming a bigger and bigger part of my life. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve never had anything against the ubiquitous beverage; it’s just that I never wanted to like it too much. There are coffee lovers and there are coffee needers. Thankfully, I still believe I fall into the first...

Eric: The past two years of my life have been a little chaotic; I’ve moved three times, have been involved with four different jobs (and one potential career), bought a dog and, most importantly, realized that a morning routine is the mother-of-all necessities. This includes a hot cup of freshly brewed coffee. Although my day begins with an early ...

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Señor Sangria

Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 04:01:23 +0000

Bonnie: People always ask me how we find products to review on Bite of the Best. Some are samples that just find their way into my mailbox, some I trip over at events/conferences and others find us through PR (public relations) pitches.

“Do you ever look at alcoholic beverages?” e-mailed Jeff Davis. “I’m working with a new premium, all-natural sangria. If up your alley, let me know.”

That was the first time I’d heard about this new sangria. What followed next intrigued...

Bryan: Sangria, literally translated, as “bloody,” essentially is a wine punch. The drink originated in southern Europe (Spain, Portugal and Italy) but now can be found as a sweet summer offering all around the world. Sangria is as much a reflection of its locality as any food. There is no actual “recipe” for sangria as much as there is a loose interpretation of the drink, allowing for endless flavors to emerge from a single idea.

Though the rules are loose, the beverage generally consists of a combination (often with vastly... Eric: Ever since my first visit to Spain, sangria has become my quintessential summer drink. It is refreshing, intoxicating and delicious (that is of course dependent on the variety) and even my girlfriend, an avid nondrinker, will usually fill a glass, sit back, and enjoy. The difficulty when it comes to drinking sangria is that if you don’t have the right ingredients at home, you’re usually heading to the nearest restaurant to get a pitcher – and that is not always a sure thing.

In my opinion, the....

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