Sydney - Saturday, Feb. 13th

This isn't about a beverage named Sydney. This is about a dog named Sydney. My dog.

Life is like a record on a record player, I've found. It continues to go, around and around, and always with pressure; a weight. There are ups and there are downs and sometimes it is everything you can do to keep from being pushed down and knocked about by the pressure. But a lot of people only focus on the pressure and the ups and downs and neglect the bigger picture. They neglect the fact that these ups and downs, combined with this weight, make beautiful music. Without these ups and downs, a record is just a thin piece of useless vinyl, spinning forever with no tune. Every time I think that life is getting to be too much, I realize that it's just part of the process. Without these dips, there would be no music. I wouldn't have a complete record of my life.

Today, I found out that my dog had to be put down. My Sydney, my dearest companion. Cancer is abhorrent. It has claimed far too many of my family and it probably won't rest on its laurels. She had an advanced form of bone marrow cancer that we just didn't put together. She started having trouble eating about six months ago. She couldn't stomach dry food so we switched her to wet food and she was ecstatic. Life continued on turning. Lately she'd been having a bit of trouble keeping that wet food down but, hey, she was 12 years old. She's not perfect. Finally, on Wednesday my parents had to bring her to the vet because she was running a high fever and was starting to get weak. A blood test came back and the doctors had to send another one out. They thought the test was wrong. They'd never seen a dog with such a low white blood cell count still standing. When they got it back, it was even lower. They said that there was little hope of recovery if we started chemo now, so we went for the only option left available. My parents said their goodbyes and my Sydney drifted off to the dog version of Valhalla, a land resplendent with rawhide-bearing bushes, Milk Bone rain showers, and clouds that float down from the sky for them to sleep on. My greatest regret is not being there to say goodbye. She and I had a bond forged from pure steel since the day we met and I feel almost ashamed that I wasn't there to cradle her and see her off.

She was a rescue dog. She didn't rescue people, we rescued her. She had been in an abusive home in the Carolinas where they didn't feed her at all and let her run loose. She was maltreated, to say the least. When the Animal Control found her, she had a severe case of heart-worm and they immediately put her on heart-worm treatments. If you know anything about heart-worms and dogs, the survivability rate isn't great. But my little Sydney beat the odds and overcame heart-worm. We found her through the internet and adopted her, having her flown in. My other dog is deaf and she needed a "companion dog", a hearing dog that would allow her some extension of senses that could be translated through doggie mannerisms. While she couldn't hear, she could have a buddy that could do her hearing for her. When we picked her up from Albany International, she was a waif of a dog.

The heart-worm treatment had left her almost emaciated. Her normal soft outer coat of fur had fallen out, leaving her hair short and bristly. She was skittish and so was I. She was a little fireball of a thing, even in her nervousness. We met her in the terminal as she was guided out on a leash by a stewardess. She approached us and sniffed us. She had no tail, as is customary with Austrailian Shepards (it had been "docked" off), so her sincerest form of joy was wagging her entire rear. Only recently did I know that there was a tiny little nub of a tail embedded in her fur that would wiggle furiously every time I came out of my room. This bond came from the ride home from Albany. Stuck in a crate that was too small for her, there wasn't enough room for a food bowl to be placed into it. She was hungry, you could tell, because she kept sniffing the air and staring at the bowl with those big brown eyes. So, I started feeding her kibble from my hand. Three kibble at a time, I'd squeeze my hand through the crate bars and she'd eat them. we did this through the entirity of the ride home, three little kernels of food at a time. When we got home and took her off the leash, she made a bee-line to my room. She scrambled in and immediately peed on my floor, right next to my bed. She was marking me as her own, as her trusted friend. And things went along swimmingly since then.

Sydney and I have had our ups and downs. She can be annoying and fickle but loving and sweet at the same time. She supported me through some of my toughest moments and I supported her through some tough ones of hers. But, unfortunately, her record is a 78, mine is a 33 1/3. Her record had to come off and be put away with all the others while mine continues to trundle on, its ups and downs carving out the song that is my life. One day I'll be able to put her record back on and listen to it, reliving everything we've had. But until then, I guess I just have to keep turning.

Bye Sydney.

Harney and Son's Stanley's Blend - Wednesday, Feb. 17th

Oh Harney and Sons. So many teas, so very little time. As the tea samples come in to review for Teaviews I find myself drinking more and more tea in an "evaluation" setting. For me, an evaluation setting is a clean palate and undivided attention to my notes and the tea. While it's nice to sit around and focus intently on all the subtle aspects of a blend or brand...it's also hellaciously nice to sit around and drink a cup of tea while reading, watching movies, or playing video games. I decided to pop into my review cup one of the family favorite blends that I managed to steal a sample of from the house. Stanley's Blend is a blend made by John Harney in tribute to his tea-tutor, Stanley Mason. So, cheers Stanley and John. This quaff's for you. Here are the notes:

Nose is malty. Assam background, I think. Has a tinge of sea brine to it as well. Little bit of smoke and spicy/nut-like quality that I can't put my finger on. It almost smells like wet dog but in a very comforting and good way. Like the smell of your favorite pet after a clean spring rain. Reminds me of curling up with my dog, drinking tea, and reading. If Sir Mixalot was a tea connoisseur, he'd say that this baby got back(bone). Sorry, lame pun but I couldn't help it.

Taste is slightly bitter but in the way that a good IPA can be bitter. A lot of people think that when I say bitter it's a bad thing. I like IPAs, so...not quite. Earth and a vegetable quality I typically find in greens is wayyyy down deep and buried but present. Slight wood (oak?). Some malty sweetness in there, along with a dark Indian tea strength.

Tea notes: It's blend of Assam and Darjeeling. I'm guessing mainly Assam with Darjeeling for that woodsy spice qualities.

Here are some pictures. The dry:


The liquor:



The spent leaves:



In other news, this weekend is the NYC Coffee and Tea Festival which I will be attending. As press. If you're in the neighborhood and feel like stopping by, I should be there early Saturday. Just wave if you see me. Oh, and introduce yourself, if you please. I'll be with my mom (who likes tea and the city) but don't be shy. She's awesome. In her own way.

Yeah.

Ace: Joker Hard Cider - Saturday, Feb. 7th

As you know, I love cider. A lot. I'm always on the hunt for new cider brands and when I find them I typically drink more than my weight in them. When I found out about the California Cider Company out of Sonoma County, I was elated. A whole company dedicated to making cider. How wonderfully buzz-copping is that? I contacted them asking if their cider made it out NY way and they said no. I was a sad panda. But they said they'd be more than willing to send out a few bottles for me to try. I went from a sad panda to a happy panda. Here she is:



The Ace cider is a European styled dry cider with a 6.9% ABV. It is an intriguing cider, although not in a hurry to replace my favorite ciders. The ABV makes it punishingly deceptive. It is easy to drink and gets you tipsy in a hurry. The aroma is straight apples with a slightly yeasty edge. I could almost swear that there is some pear in this as well as it has light pear-y notes too. The pear follows slightly into the taste as well. It says it has "natural flavors" in it so maybe it has pear in it as well. The taste is quite dry and has, as it states, a fine dry bubbly quality of a good champagne. The ingredients list is slightly disconcerting though. It appears to be made from hard cider, carbonated water, apple concentrate, and natural flavors. While "natural flavors" may be all natural I don't really view anything made with them as a "natural" product. I really do think there's some pear in there because the label has a joker juggling not just apples but pears as well. Gotta get to the bottom of this.

Overall, it's an alright cider. The pear/apple flavor is nice (if a touch light) and I think the addition of the carbonated water results in the light/weak flavor but it is an easy-drinking cider with a huge ABV to boot. I'd be curious to see what the price point is. The fact that it's 6.9% in a 22oz. bottle does not go unappreciated.

Vermont White Vodka

Typically, I don't do a whole lot of vodka, mainly because every single vodka available is pretty much pure ethanol. Not that this is a bad thing (it's a good thing) but I like some flavor with my drinks. The Eastern European countries that traditionally drink vodka (I'm looking at you, Russia) don't drink 40x distilled, 800x filtered vodka made of albino wheat grown in the Himalayas that's cut only with distilled water for additional purity. They drink vodka that's once or twice distilled, three at the most. It's not filtered and it's made from a wide range of tasty raw ingredients. Vodka isn't supposed to be engine degreaser, it's supposed to have flavor! Drink it with some friends while eating pickles, black bread, and smoked fish. Not mindlessly slammed down in coke or tonic endlessly while trying to catch the eye of that blonde on the other end of the bar. Flavor, people, flavor!

One ingredient that I had never seen as a vodka base is maple syrup. I figured: "Hell, they use it to flavor Bashah, the Stone/Brewdog collab beer and that's fantastic. Wonder what else it can do?" Vermont Spirits, distilling in...well...Vermont, makes a vodka that uses fermented maple syrup as a base. This is cool, says I. That probably tastes awesome. My fondest family trip memories were going to Mt. Trembland in Quebec province of Canada. They had this tiny little "sugar shack", or maple syrup manufacturer's shack, that sold maple syrup and maple sugar. One of their most delicious treats was ladling hot and sticky maple syrup onto fresh snow. It cooled into this sticky sweet and slightly buttery maple taffy that you would roll up with a Popsicle stick and eat as you walked. I always ended the day with my face coated in a fine patina of mapley glue that would freeze in the sub-arctic winds of Canada turning my face into the human version of that self-hardening ice-cream fudge. The Vermont Spirits people were kind enough to send me samples of their stuff and I obliged them by sampling them. I tell you this, however, to tell you about their OTHER vodka.

It's made with milk.

Yep. You read that right.

They ferment milk and distill it. Simple as that. Sounds horrible in theory, honestly. In practice...it is a gift from the Bacchus. It is -THE- perfect White Russian vodka. Here are the notes for the neat spirit:

Nose is sweet. It has the standard ethanol burn and sizzle with a clean sweetness to it. The milk base comes through though. You can really tell it's milk. It doesn't have that clean, sterile smell of grain or potato but rather a slight creaminess behind the ethanol.

The taste is amazingly delicious. It is rich and creamy almost like a fresh whole milk. It is exceedingly smooth with a clean alcohol taste. No congeners in this stuff, it's a nice cut. Makes me wonder if the heat denatures some of the milk proteins at all. The finish is long and lasting, almost like an alcoholic milkshake.



The White Russian with this bad boy is a religious experience. With normal vodka, the vodka tends to "water down" the creaminess in some way. The viscosity gets thinner and the fatty richness of the milk is diminished. Not with the White. It cradles that succulent taste and cares and nurtures it. It blossoms with milk added. It has almost an...alcoholic creaminess. It's very good. Mine I made with hazelnut Kahlua which made it like a Nutella Russian. So very good.

Summary: buy it.

Technical EDIT: Vermont Gold is made from maple sap, technically. And Vermont White is made from just milk sugars. Close enough.

The Donate Button

Let's chat.

If you look to the side of the blog, you'll see a donate button. I'm not trying to pimp this at the moment, but rather an explanation of my actions. As I've said in the past, I hate ads. Ads ruin a site. I hate those Google Adwords that somehow determine that an ad featuring male enhancement products/law advice (while I'm looking at drinking websites) is not just appropriate but warranted. Or, even better, are the ads for AA. Nothing plummets my self-esteem and faith in my supposed career like getting told by Google that I should probably be going to AA. Thanks Google.

This site does incur costs. It's minimal, really (about $9 a month) for hosting and a parked domain. I don't mind eating this cost. I love this blog and I love you fine readers that tune in daily. However, there are so many things that I'd love to review for everyone that I just can't afford on my own. I'm sure you'd love to see my take on expensive whiskies, teas, and all sorts of ludicrous goodies. I'd kill to give my take on them. But they cost money. Money I don't have. Mainly thanks to buying school-books but that's another rant for another day and a blog NOT dedicated to quaffing.

I added a donate button. Yeah, I don't like it either. I feel like I'm selling out and I'm sure you feel the same way. I'm happy to keep doing what I do but reviews of the expensive stuff will have to wait until far into the future (after I pay for grad school) unless you guys are willing to chip in for it. I CAN promise you this though. Anything and everything is welcome. You got $.50 lying around and you donate it to me? I'll take it and put it into the beverage fund. This brings up another thing. Anything and everything donated will go directly back into reviews. I don't really give a shit about profit on this site. In the future, maybe this site will serve as a portfolio for me as a writer and that'll get me a sweet job. That's awesome. In the mean time, I'm not looking to earn money on this website. That's not why I'm hosting it. I'm hosting it because I love to try new beverages and cigars. I'm hosting it because I love the communities associated behind them. I'm hosting it because I love to keep up on the news of these markets. I'm NOT hosting it to make money and become super-filthy rich. That's not me.

So, in summary, if you feel so inclined to chip in a bit, go for it. Don't want to? I don't really care. Keep tuning in for exciting reviews (I guess?) and debate-sparking op. ed. pieces. And remember:

I <3 you.

(That's a heart by the way, Mom.)