Absinthe, Schnapps, and Other Drinks

[K.D. Lightner]

What's Jagermeister? Is that a brand of schnapps?

If schnapps is a fruit brandy, I probably wouldn't like the stuff. I am a dry wine-martini-ale swilling kind of gal. The sweetest drink I imbibe is a margarita.

I am very fond of steak and eggs for breakfast, too. It's my favorite kind of breakfast. Steak, eggs over easy, sourdough toast, and good country fries, not hashbrowns. If I had to eat only one meal a day, it would be breakfast.

I am going to have to try a rib-eye, a lot of you seem to prefer it.

karol

 

[Brad Bowers]

What's Jagermeister? Is that a brand of schnapps?

I am very fond of steak and eggs for breakfast, too. It's my favorite kind of breakfast. Steak, eggs over easy, sourdough toast, and good country fries, not hashbrowns. If I had to eat only one meal a day, it would be breakfast.

Yuck! Jagermeister is nasty stuff. It tastes like black licorice, only worse.

Mmmm, breakfast! I'll take a big ol' plate of homemade biscuits and gravy!

Brad

 

[jamespowers]

I have to agree with Brad on this. Jaegermeister is the kind of stuff college kids drink to get drunk not drink for pleasure. I hate the taste of black licorice anyway. :kick:
You can keep the biscuits though. Karol, I have to agree with you for breakfast. I will have steak and hashbrowns though.

Regards to all,

J

P.S. Well-done steak=hamburger.

 

[K.D. Lightner]

Oh, Lord, now I am hungry for steak and my friend is taking me out for sushi tonight.

Luckily, I love sushi as much as I do a good steak.

Maybe I will have some hot saki with it. Now, that I do like to drink.

It's funny, I don't much care for saki when it's cold, it tastes slightly sweet to me. But, when you heat it up and serve it in one of those little containers and drink it in the tiny cups, oh boy, it burns going down the hatch and gives me an instant "buzz." Like a good martini does.

I am hungry!

karol

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

In Sweden we use the word schnapps (snaps) in a very general way. If you're having a shot of alcohol with your meal you're having a snaps. It can be anything you want really. What most of us drink though (at least in the southern parts of Sweden) is vodka flavored with herbs, usually containing alcohol at around 40% vol. You might've heard of aquavit, which is one kind (that I don't like myself, because I can't stand the taste of aniseed). I don't know if this is available outside of the nordic countries. Another popular snaps is Besk, which means bitter. And believe me, proper Besk will make your tongue curl up and hide somewhere.

People who don't drink herb flavored vodka usually drink vodka flavored with fruit, like Absolut Kurant and such. Or just plain vodka.

In any case we always end up having a great time, at least until someone drinks one snaps too many.

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

Jägermeister tastes somewhat like aquavit which I mentioned above, but is much sweeter.

 

[BellyTank]

GammelDansk

Harald- happy belated midsummers', that was Sankt Hans here in DK, I guess.

Is your Akvavit the really bitter dark stuff like Gammel Dansk?

I tried yer Surstrømming once- it must be quite an acquired taste to non-Swedes.

I just nipped out and bought another Ardbeg...he...he... :cheers1:

B
T

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

Harald- happy belated midsummers', that was Sankt Hans here in DK, I guess.

Is your Akvavit the really bitter dark stuff like Gammel Dansk?

I tried yer Surstrømming once- it must be quite an acquired taste to non-Swedes.

I just nipped out and bought another Ardbeg...he...he... :cheers1:

B
T

You have aquavit in Denmark too. Same stuff. Aalborg Jubileums (which I'm not very fond of, but Aalborg Dill is good) for instance. It's not as dark and bitter as Gammel Dansk (commonly referred to as cough medicine over here). Besk though is at least as bitter as Gammel Dansk, but still not as dark.

Havn't tried surströmming myself, it's mainly eaten in the norther parts of Sweden. And there is nothing about the concept of eating rotten herring that appeals to me.

If I wasn't hung over from yesterday I'd join you with another Islay whisky, Laphroaig.

 

[K.D. Lightner]

Thanks, Harald, that is interesting. I'd read in literature about people drinking schnaps and associated it with folks in northern European countries.

I wouldn't mind trying a taste of the Besk, just to see if I do like it. No sweet stuff, though.

What do people normally drink when they're having steak or a beef dish in Sweden?

karol

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

I wouldn't mind trying a taste of the Besk, just to see if I do like it. No sweet stuff, though.

It's definitely not sweet.

Many people make their own Besk. It's really easy. You take a bottle of pure alcohol (vodka), and add a few "twigs" of wormwood (had to look up that word, we say malört) with buds. I believe you can use both fresh and dried wormwood. Anyway, you leave it alone for a while. Many leave it in for a few days, then filter it through a coffee filter. A friend of mine never filters his Besk though. Depends how bitter you want your it, and if you can live with the occasional small pieces of wormwood in your drink.

What do people normally drink when they're having steak or a beef dish in Sweden?

If you go to a pub you usually drink beer with your steak. Many people drink cheap lager I'm afraid, but those that know to enjoy a steak (I would say
usually those that don't order their steaks well done, which MANY swedes do) drink better beer. I'm a total sucker for Guinness myself.

On the other hand if you eat steak at a restaurant or at home many drink red wine. French, spanish, portuguese and italian red wines are most popular I believe.

 

[jamespowers]

Many people make their own Besk. It's really easy. You take a bottle of pure alcohol (vodka), and add a few "twigs" of wormwood (had to look up that word, we say malört) with buds. I believe you can use both fresh and dried wormwood. Anyway, you leave it alone for a while. Many leave it in for a few days, then filter it through a coffee filter. A friend of mine never filters his Besk though. Depends how bitter you want your it, and if you can live with the occasional small pieces of wormwood in your drink.

Whoa! You mean you guys make your own absinthe? Wormwood is the active ingredient in absinthe. If you leave that twig in there long enough (like your friend does) you have quite a powerful and perception altering drink there.
When you drink it, do you notice increase persiration, dulled senses and a quick buzz in general? Is the drink green in color or does it remain clear?
Interesting.

Regards to all,

J

P.S. Laphroig?! Boy, you really like your medicine and iodine.

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

Whoa! You mean you guys make your own absinthe? Wormwood is the active ingredient in absinthe. If you leave that twig in there long enough (like your friend does) you have quite a powerful and perception altering drink there.
When you drink it, do you notice increase persiration, dulled senses and a quick buzz in general? Is the drink green in color or does it remain clear?
Interesting.

It is? I didn't know that. Perhaps they do/did something else with it to make absinthe? The only effect Besk has on you is what the alcohol brings. And besides, it's perfectly legal here, which real absinthe isn't.

The color is mostly clear, but with a hint at green/brown. Absinthe surely must be colored? At least the one I had in Copenhagen once (a nice place which is supposed to have real and potent absinthe). It was glowingly green.

I didn't feel funny from that absinthe though, but I only had one (again with the awful aniseed flavored spirits).

We don't usually drink more than 3-5 shots of snaps while eating the potatoes and herring. So it's not like were drinking bottles and bottles of it. Last night we were five people drinking snaps, and we finished off one bottle (75cl).

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

We have another strange tradition for Midsummer's Eve in Sweden. It consists of making a midsommarstång (Midsummer's Eve pole), and then dancing around it. Me and my friends havn't honored this tradition since we where children though, but many people do.

In most parts of the country the pole looks like a large cross, with two large wreaths hanging from it. It is "dressed" in leafs and flowers and such.

Here is a picture of one:
http://www.catrine.se/images/midsommar2003/Picture_0853.jpg

What's interesting is the pole, according to many historians, is supposed to represent male genetalia fertilizing the soil. They believe the celebration of Midsummer's Eve dates back to the 9th or 10th century, and that the pole was introduced in the 15th century.

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Yikes!......You can't make absinthe by soaking wormwood in alcohol, all that will get you is an upset stomach.

Absinthe has to be distilled to be made properly, the distillation process removes all the bitter nastiness from the wormwood.

All those recipes floating around the net, that tells one to steep wormwood in alcohol will just make you sick.
(Also avoid any "absinth" made in Germany, and the Czech Republic, which are all virtually undrinkable.)

A properly distilled French or Swiss style absinthe is an incredible drink, very smooth, and very drinkable. (Millions enjoyed the drink in it's heyday)

the two major types of absinthe are a verte, (green) & a blanche (clear).

I've been collecting vintage absinthe glasses and spoons for several years, and have sampled absinthe from all over the world, both modern and vintage.

At the present time only the Jade absinthes made in France (Recreated from vintage brands), and the Swiss blanches, aka "La Bleue's" (Generic Swiss name) are like a decent vintage style absinthe.

There is a lot of misinformation about absinthe on the internet.

 

[jamespowers]

Yikes!......You can't make absinthe by soaking wormwood in alcohol, all that will get you is an upset stomach.

Absinthe has to be distilled to be made properly, the distillation process removes all the bitter nastiness from the wormwood.

All those recipes floating around the net, that tells one to steep wormwood in alcohol will just make you sick.
(Also avoid any "absinth" made in Germany, and the Czech Republic, which are all virtually undrinkable.)

A properly distilled French or Swiss style absinthe is an incredible drink, very smooth, and very drinkable. (Millions enjoyed the drink in it's heyday)

the two major types of absinthe are a verte, (green) & a blanche (clear).

I've been collecting vintage absinthe glasses and spoons for several years, and have sampled absinthe from all over the world, both modern and vintage.

At the present time only the Jade absinthes made in France (Recreated from vintage brands), and the Swiss blanches, aka "La Bleue's" (Generic Swiss name) are like a decent vintage style absinthe.

There is a lot of misinformation about absinthe on the internet.

All of what you said is sort of what I meant. Wormwood is pretty bitter---very, very bitter if left for a long time. It would be pretty sick tasting to me.
Absinthe does indeed have two types. Copper is the reason for the green color. That kind of makes me wonder. Copper tainting is not exactly what I want in my drinks. I am not very interested in Absinthe but I would want it clear if I were to drink it.

Regards to all,


J

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Absinthe is not colored green by Copper.
The green color comes from artemesia pontica, and other coloring herbs. (The coloring step is a misnomer since it is done for flavor)

There were very few poorly made absinthes that were colored with metallic salts back in the 1800's, the vast majority of brands were fairly high quality, and enjoyed by millions of people during the Belle Epoch era.

Traditional absinthe never had anything that was poisonous, there may have been a few unscrupulous makers that sold an adulterated product for the poorest segment of the market, but those were few and far between.

Absinthe is just a pleasant drink with a rather undeserved notorious history.

You can see some fairly accurate historical information at Oxygenee.com

 

[HaraldTheSwede]

Wormwood is pretty bitter---very, very bitter if left for a long time. It would be pretty sick tasting to me.

Very bitter yes. It's an acquired taste. There is something very fresh and cleansing about Besk. Once you get used to it, you just want it more and more bitter.

 

[BellyTank]

A little off the Meat topic but-

I used to work at a Herbal Apothecary in London- Wormwood(Artemisia absinthium) in alcohol would be WormwoodTincture(could add some cloves to it). Good if you have worms to treat!
I remember sending 100 liters of Wormwood Tincture to the US because it was unavailable there, apparently due to the presence of the monoturpene, thujone. (also in the real Absinthe)
Strange that we were able to export it to the US though... We also used to stock a Tinture of Thuja(a type of Cypress tree), which must have a higher concentration of Thujone. Also strange that there are other, far more dangerous herbal extractions available in the US which aren't available in the UK...

There is a product called 'Swedish Bitters' which contains many bitter elements and is intended as a health tonic- it's about the bitterest I've tasted- contains Aloes- very bitter.

Speaking though of herbal intoxicants, I have made a Ticture of Kava-Kava (the traditional Fijian narcotic root stock) in Polish Spirit once. Quite alarming- put my whole mouth to sleep for a couple of hours. Alcoholic extractions of herbal matter can be quite potent as many of the aromatics,Turpenes, etc. are insoluble or less soluble in water (decoction). Cannabis Tincture is also available although it's made from seeds, rather than buds.

If you all are interested, there are many good books on Herbalism with lists of effects of various fresh or preserved(dried) herbs and recipes for their use.
It can be fun but it can be dangerous- it is medicine and pharmacology after all.

Check out my old company here for a big list of dried herbs, roots and barks-
www.baldwins.co.uk

B
T

 

[Biltmore Bob]

So that's what happened to you, BT! That explains much.



Just kidding, of course, my friend. Lest anyone be insulted by my good natured ribbing.

 

[BellyTank]

You are a good natured soul Bob :cheers1:


Ribbing, a pun huh? :kick:
B
T