Decadent Weekend update: I woke up around 11 to realize that I'm out of cheesecake, but I've started some lobster tails steaming, so me and the cat will survive. I've also caught up on my nerdy research, and I now know several more famous martini recipes, including Hemingway's Montgomery, most variations of Ian Fleming's Bond nonsense (Do not. I repeat, do not), and the martini habits and recipes of the last dozen Presidents, including Hoover, Roosevelt, Reagan and Nixon. I have ascended to the next belt in martini-fu.
Blasting Bob Marley and old classic Jamaican ska with a live video feed of Anguilla after glutting on cheesecake and martinis (and leftover lobster for the cat). That's how we're rollin' today.
Gin Tasting Notes: Opihr Oriental London Dry Gin.
It's been a long time since I've done a Gin Tasting Note. Today I found this intriguing bottle of gin waiting for a review: Opihr Oriental London Dry Gin, hailing from England, of course. Its label manages to sum up a couple centuries of colonialism, as does its description of spices of the former spice route, from India, Morocco, and Indonesia. It delivers on its peppery promise without overwhelming, both on the front and the aftertaste. Curiously they've managed to sweep the usual bite of gin under the rug, and this is even more pronounced in both dirty and dry martinis. With the usual bite of gin gone, your martini sipping will turn into martini gulping, so be warned. Verdict: the lack of bite might make a martini enthusiast frown, but it's perfect if that same bite has kept you from enjoying a martini. And unlike many gins, this one holds up best by itself served neat, unadorned.