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8 The Weekender Friday, September 29, 1978
AAer-diito : alcoholic imlk
By BOB KNOWLES
I was wandering around inside a local
ABC stbre several days ago, when I was
struck by the thought that a novice
could get awfully confused with so many
alcoholic beverages to choose from.
An important step to remember
when buying an alcoholic beverage is to
find f out the beverage's strength. .
Depending on your taste or drinking
habits; alcoholic strength can be
influential when buying booze.
Look closely at the label of the bottle
you are interested in. On it,. in small,
print, there will be the word "proof and
a number. Every alcoholic beverage,
except beer and wine, must have its
proof the measure of the alcoholic
strength printed on the label. One
proof equals 0.5 percent of alcohol by
volume. A bottle of Mexican Mescal, a
type of tequila, is 180 proof or 90
percent alcohol. As far as I know, it is
the stongest drink you can buy.
liquor also has as many calories per
ounce as its proof. One shot of 86 proof
Canadian whiskey contains 86 calories.
Alcoholic drinks are no friends to those
who are constant weight watchers. But
then neither is beer because of the
additional calories that Remain due to
the cereal content of the beer's original
grain.
bartender
I mentioned last week that today's
topic would be cream drinks. . Cream
drinks are made with half-arid-half, or
whatever coffee cream is" available.
They are requested .most often after
dinner and are a big favorite with
women, because the basic flavor of all
cream drinks is sweet and creamy.
They are not very strong because the
liqueurs used in the recipes are low in
alcoholic content. One or two cream
drinks won't knock-you for a loop, but
they are rich and sweet like alcoholic
milkshakes, therefore very filling. -
Besides coffee cream a scoop of
vanilla ice cream is a good substitute
cream drinks are made from liqueurs or
cordials. The two words mean the same
thing and are interchangeable!
-Cor dials are a sweet, colorful family
of liquors produced from fruits, flowers,
plants and juices, whose extracts are
combined with a prepared spirit base,
sych as brandy, to give you the final
product. The U.S. government requires
that cordials must be 2.5 percent sugar
by weight. '
Many liqueurs are made from secret
recipes and processes. Benedictine is
an example. It is a herb-type cordial with
a long history, originally made by the
Benedictine monks from their own
special formula culminating in a honey
brandy taste.
Creme liqueurs are cordials with very
high sugar contents. Their creamy
consistency helps io give them their
name. Creme de cacao,, made from
cacao and vanilla beansv and creme de
menthe,.made from mint, are the two
most popular .. creme liqueurs. Both
come in two different colors. ' ;
v When making cream drinks or drinks
" containing cordials , make sure you
wash out your jigger combination after
measuring either cream or liqueurs.
This is done because both of them will
leave a coating onvthe inside that will
effect the flavor .of the next ingredient
measured. The same policy holds true
for glasses. Cream drinks will leave a
coating on the, inside of the glass that
only a good rinsing will remove.
Here are several recipes of some
popular cream drinks. Give them a try;
they, aren't hard to make:
Grasshopper '
.2 ozs. of cream
xz oz. of white creme de cacao
V2 oz. of green creme de menthe
.- Put a scoop or handful of crushedice into
a mixing cup or blender. Add the
ingredients. Blend and strain into a stemmed
cocktail glass (34-4 oz.)
Substitute a scoop of vanilla ice cream for
the cream and don't strain, and youH have a
Chicago Bomb. Substitute Kaluha for the
creme de. cacao for a coffee grasshopper.
" Golden Cadillac
2 ozs" of cream
xk oz. of white creme de cacao
V2 oz. of Galliano an Italian liqueur with a
hint of licorice " .
A scoppor handful of ice in a mixing cup
or blender. Add ingredients. Blend and
strain into gless.
Brandy Alexander
2 oz. of cream
2 oz. of brown creme de cacao
Y2 oz. of brandy
Ice in mixing cup or . blender. Add
ingredients. Blend and strain into a glass.
Top with nutmeg.
Bob Knowles is a staff writer for the
Daily Tar Heel. He holds a degree from
the Detroit Professional Bartenders
School
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