Oxford Taste Society

Gin, Vodka and Scotch

2008-04-09T11:18:00.002-05:00

A quick recap, especially for those that couldn't make it. We had salami (reviews below) and three liquors: vodka, gin and scotch. For each liquor Jake & Sarahmona had two bottles, one cheap and one expensive. The trick was to figure out a)which one was most expensive, and b) which one you liked the best. I was very good at figuring out which one I liked the best, but terrible (0-for-3) at determining which one was most expensive.

Salami Tasting at Jake & Sarahmona's

2008-04-09T11:08:00.001-05:00

Salami #1: Old Forest Salami
1. A nice classic salami
2. Ditto
3. Moisture just right, mild flavor, very nice
4. Mellow and well-balanced
5. Tasty, good texture, mild
6. My favorite

Salami #2: Gypsy Salami – Tziganskaya
1. Super oily, fatty (not necessarily a bad thing)
2. Tangy edge and god smotiness (?)
3. Peppery
4. Will Kill You !!!
5. Yikes – easy on the pepper next time!
6. Oily

Salami #3: Long Teli Hungarian Salami
1. More spicy than smoky – a fair salami
2. Artificial tasting
3. Tasty, mild
4. Not great

Salami #4: Salami with Gelatin and Parmesan
1. Really Good
2. Smells like a junior high boys locker room
3. And tastes like sweaty undies from that same locker room
4. Deliciously treyf! 

Salami #5: Sopressata
1. Particularly fatty, greasy
2. Fatty, but tasty
3. Ick – Inedible, Way off flavor
4. Too oily

Real March Madness!

2008-03-07T01:04:00.003-06:00

February Fun

2008-03-07T00:59:00.001-06:00

Water, Flour, Dough, Common Salt = Bread

2008-03-06T14:47:00.004-06:00

Hi Y'all,

Glad to see such a wonderful turnout so close to Spring Break. Hope everyone has a fun and safe trip. Look forward to seeing everyone in April. As an FYI, the next two OTS's will be on Saturday's. Details and dates to follow.

Michelle (thanks again for hosting) was kind enough to pass along the following information if you'd like to pick up some of the tasty tastings we had last night.

Breads (all from Fresh Market, in Memphis, except for 2-3-4-5):

1 Pane Rustico
2 Polish Rye (from Pumpernick and Pastry, in Buffalo NY: http://www.pumpernick.com/buffalo.html )
3 Pumpernickel (from P and P)
4 Marble Rye (from P and P)
5 Flax Seed (from P and P)
6 Foccacia
7 Sourdough
8 Baguette (French)
9 Wonder
10 Lavasch crackers

Spreads:
Goat Milk butter (Market Rhes, Oxford)
Plugra butter (Market Rhes, Oxford)
Strawberries (Schnuck’s, Memphis)
Bleu-cheese-stuffed olives (Schnuck’s, Memphis)
Artichoke tapenade (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Sun-dried tomato tapenade (brought by Gabe)
Maille Dijon mustard (Market Rhes)
Pastrami, sliced (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Assorted cured meats (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Eggplant dip, NOT baba ganoush (brought by Simona)
Bleu d’Auvergne (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Rosemary-Fig Cheese Spread (from Square Table cookbook: goat cheese, cream cheese, rosemary, black pepper, fig preserves)
Honey Jelly, orange blossom flavor (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Armenian apricot spread (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Raspberry-peach-champagne jam (Fresh Market, Memphis)
Nutella (Market Rhes, Oxford – but Lauren tells me it’s also available at Walmart)
Almond butter (Kroger, Oxford)

Pâté from Market Rhes, and an herb dipping oil from Fresh Market.

Boxed Wines were both made by Bibo, and purchased at Wine Market in Memphis:
Pinot grigio/Chardonnay (blend)
Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz (blend)

Addresses for Memphis stores (for those who use Google Maps):

Fresh Market = 835 S White Station Rd, (901) 682-3434 (next to Stein Mart, off Poplar)
Schnuck’s (they have a Kosher deli!) = 576 S. Perkins Rd., 901-765-4880
Wine Market = 4700 Spottswood Ave, (901) 761-1662 (in same shopping center as Williams-Sonoma outlet, Pottery Barn outlet; facing Target)

Market Rhes is in the Midtown Shopping Center on N. Lamar – now serving lunch! (if you like seafood)

Thanks also to everyone who brought wine!

White Wine Night

2008-02-19T17:55:00.002-06:00

Hey Folks,

Unfortunately I only got comments on two of the wines we drank back in December, but here it is. If I can track down the others, I'll let you know:

Wine #1: Broadbentfrom Portugal
1. Tastes like a wine cooler
2. Sour aftertaste, likes a bathroom cleaner
3. Chard? Yuk! Smells like old cat litter, tastes gross.
4. Yum
5. Tastes dry like pear cider
6. Fruity

Wine #2: Adam Scott
1. Sour apple, sweet taste - good for brunch
2. Smooth, but sort of bland
3. Good, smooth
4. Champagne-ish, don't like much
5. Bad aftertaste

Wine #3:
1.

More on the cheese

2008-02-14T17:47:00.003-06:00

I have a copy of the descriptions of the cheese we had last night. If you'd like a copy, send me an email and I'll zap you a copy.

More on the cheese

2008-02-14T17:47:00.002-06:00

I have a copy of the descriptions of the cheese we had last night. If you'd like a copy, send me an email and I'll zap you a copy.

Red Wine Night Pic

2008-02-14T17:38:00.002-06:00

Paul and Debbie, just chillin'

Red Wine Night - September 2007

2008-02-14T17:35:00.001-06:00

At Buffy and Steve's, Marvin, Sarahmona, Jake and Amanda are hard at work.

February Recap - Cheese-spectacular

2008-02-14T17:10:00.003-06:00

I believe Gruyere and Vignerons were #1 and #2

Comments:

Emmental:
1. Would go good with Ham
2. Dry, Subtle
3. Cheesy Aftertaste
4. Smooth
5. "It's Swissy"
6. "I loved it, it's wonderful."
7. Nutty

Appenzeller:
1. Feet
2. Feet is not that far off
3. Same enzyme/bacteria that produces vomit
4. Feet Flavored
5. Foul at the end
6. Bar Breath?
7. Goes well with apples, not with Pinot Grigio
8. "It's defenisble."

Gruyere - This was the favorite even though I didn't get any comments

Sbrinz

Vignerons
1. Herby and Punchy
2. Like acid reflux

Le Marachel
1. Vile
2. Tastes better than it smells
3. "I like the smooth cheeses."
4. Smoky Pate

Tête de Moine (Monk Head)

Musterd seed one
1. Needs more mustard
2. Inoffensive
3. Lack of build-up

I got a little confused so I am not sure which cheese to associate the following comments to, but one stinky cheese received the following comments:
1. Good Poison
2. Like True Green Chem Lawn. It'll make your grass green but poison everything in the process.
3. Grassy Radiator Oil
4. Like Appenzeller, but better
5. ? than Gruyere, yet more ? (apologies, I cannot read my own writing)

December Recap - White Wine

2008-02-14T17:07:00.002-06:00

Lots of white wine and lots of excellent gifts. Somebody out there has my moonshine. I'm so jealous...

November Recap

2008-02-14T17:06:00.002-06:00

Hi All,

November recap: Lots of chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate at Jen Mizenko's. It was all fabulous.

December's White Wine Night/Gift Exchange

2008-02-14T17:03:00.005-06:00

Lance says's, "Hell, yeah!"

2008-02-14T17:00:00.000-06:00

Meg says "It's exactly what I wanted!"

December 2007 OTS at Laura Antonow's

2008-02-14T16:58:00.001-06:00

Laura and Randy

And The Winner Is:

2007-10-11T11:07:00.000-05:00

Thanks to all for a fabulous evening at Meg's. A quick recap:

First Place: Hacker-Pschorr Dark Wheat

Second: Aventinus Doppelbock Wheat

Third: Boulevard Wheat

Fourth: Millstream

Fifth: Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat Ale

Wheat Beer Recap

2007-10-11T10:53:00.000-05:00

Hacker-Pschorr Dark Wheat
1. Very yeasty odor, but not overly yeasty flavor
2. Liked it.
3. Tastes like Blue Moon but w/no aftertaste
4. A drinkable "real" bear (most "real" beers aren't)
5. Randy says, "Old sneaker taste."
6. Wheaty, funky, pungent
7. Gassy
8. Good, darker beer. Not bitter.

Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat Ale
1. Uh, tastes like cat pee from a cat who ate a lot of raspberries.
2. Booo fruity beer
3. A Minus (-1) One
4. Smells like my toilet after I clean it w/Lysol. Yek. Ewww.
5. Like drinking potpourri
6. At least it looks nice - sunshine in a glass.
7. Flintstones vitamin-y flavor
8. Not as bad as expected. Didn't make me throw up.
9. Cidery, kinda weak, obsequious
10. Awful, good for after cutting the grass.

Aventinus Doppelbock Wheat
1. Better. Has balls!
2. Stronger flavor. Good.
3. Tastes better w/an orange slice.
4. Medicinal
5. Well, hmmm. Aventinus is not very adventurous! Somewhat creamy, lots of alcohol?
6. Fruity, chocolaty, spicy - like spoiled cherry cordials, very close to Three Philosophers
7. Smoky and Musty

Boulevard Wheat
1. Fancy Coors Light
2. Lemon jellow without the jel. Summer pool party beer
3. This beer will grow hair on your back.
4. A nice citrusy quality. Zing!!! A little bit slutty!
5. Harmless, weak
6. Pretty light, fizzy

Millstream Wheat
1. Coors
2. Very "beery"
3. Forgettable
4. Light
5. Great, citrus

Pumpkin Dip recipe

2007-10-11T10:18:00.000-05:00

From Cooking Light magazine:

3/4 cup (6 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
24 apple slices

Place first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add syrup and cinnamon, and beat until smooth. Cover and chill 30 minutes. Serve with apple.

Ordering beer from John's Grocery

2007-10-11T10:15:00.000-05:00

Beer from the October 2007 tasting brought to you by John's Grocery.

http://www.johnsgrocery.com/

You can't order online, but you can choose beers from their extensive selection and then give them a call. And yes, they ship to Mississippi!

September 2007 - Red Wine

2007-09-16T19:41:00.000-05:00

September 2007: Red Wine

A quick recap:

Wine 1 Cusumano Nero D'avola 2005 Sicily, Italy $13.39
Wine 2 Chateau Greysac 2003 Medoc (Gironde) France $20.00
Wine 3 Ecco Domani 2004 Chianti Tuscany region, Italy $12.25
Wine 4 Wrongo Dongo 2005 Jumilla Red wine, Spain $11.99
Wine 5 Vega Sindoa 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon-Tempranillo; Navarra, Spain $13.90

Wines 4 and 5 tied for first place with 6 votes. Wine 3 finished in third place with 5 votes. Wine 2 finished in second place. Wine 1 brought up the rear.

Memorable quotes from the evening:

Wine 1 Cusumano Nero D'avola 2005 Sicily, Italy $13.39
1. Serve with a cheap spaghetti dinner
2. Lots of tannins and peppery
3. Fruity
4. Makes me cough
5. Serve with chocolate, not cheese
6. Light with a slight alcohol scent
7. Serve when not trying to impress
8. Buy when I only have $5 to get my drink on.
9. Get’s ‘r done

Wine 2 Chateau Greysac 2003 Medoc (Gironde) France $20.00
1. I would drink this if “I had hippies over.”
2. It smells earthy, like Boulder, CO
3. Dark burgundy in color
4. Serve if hunting with Dick Cheney
5. Smells like grandma’s house
6. Nutty

Wine 3 Ecco Domani 2004 Chianti Tuscany region, Italy $12.25
1. Too smooth
2. Nice and light
3. Almost no smell
4. Layered and complex
5. Soapy
6. Serve with dinner when having friends over
7. Serve after everyone is already drunk

Wine 4 Wrongo Dongo 2005 Jumilla Red wine, Spain $11.99
1. Burns like cinnamon
2. Smells like a pugilist
3. Warrior-like
4. Smell is non-existent
5. Pungent
6. Something somebody at my stage in their career would buy
7. Naïve, innocent
8. Serve at a frat party
9. Gets you drunk real fast
10. Serve with breakfast, lunch and dinner
11. Not a sipping wine, serve with food
12. Earthy, dry, gritty

Wine 5 Vega Sindoa 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon-Tempranillo; Navarra, Spain $13.90
1. Dark red in color
2. Tobacco tasting
3. Serve with beef
4. Smoking loonish
5. Thick w/a long life on the tongue
6. Smells like some sense of motion
7. Smooth, deep and balanced

July 07 Celebrating America with Lagers Foreign and Otherwise

2007-07-09T08:52:00.000-05:00

Bavaria Holland (Netherlands): The favorite

Old Scratch (Colorado)

Asahi Super Dry (Japan):

Stella Artois (Belgium)

Grolsch (Netherlands)

Molson Canadian Lager (Canada)

Kingfisher (India)

September 2006 - Red Wine

2007-06-19T12:33:00.003-05:00

December 2006 - Bourbon

2007-06-19T12:33:00.001-05:00

March 2007 - Cheese

2007-06-19T12:21:00.000-05:00

1. Chauvre de Wal-Mart
a. Best thing ever from Wal-Mart
b. Touched by hands of sweat shop workers
c. Tangy
d. Well-cut and minty

2. Camembert
a. Better texture than brie
b. Not distinctive

3. Goat Gouda (Dutch)
a. First place w/6 votes
b. Ummmm
c. Creamy
d. Awesome
e. Tremendous
f. Buttery
g. Nutty

4. Smoked Gouda
a. It’s very creamy
b. “It’s good, not as good as last one.”

5. Cheddar something or other
a. About 3.5 votes
b. Cheddar, as cheddar should be
c. Good w/apples
d. Powerful
e. Full-bodied

6. Spanish Manchego
a. No comments, but good for 3 first place votes

7. Royal Stinky Butt
a. 2nd Place
b. It’s like the plate farted
c. Potent
d. An athletic cheese
e. Make out before you eat this cheese
f. Like licking the inside of a locker room

February 2007 - Tequila

2007-06-19T12:20:00.000-05:00

1st Place w/9 votes: Don Eduardo Anejo (our most expensive bottle):
“Aged in a godly-bourbon barrel”

2nd Place w/3 votes: Patron Anejo (second-most expensive bottle):
“Peppery w/out bourbon-ickiness”
“Naked and arrested”
“Less of an alcohol flavor”

3rd Place: Two-Finger Silver (second-cheapest bottle)
“Aged in bottom of a purse”
“Aged in orange plastic jack-o-lantern “
“Candycorn, butterscotch tasting”

4th Pace: Jose Cuervo: (cheapest)
“Tastes like a Saturday night”
“Smoother than expectations”
“Not as cheap as expected”

5th Place: Sauza Reporado Hornitos (median in price)
“With a name like Hornitos, it should have been better”
“Awful”
“Terrible”
“Wet sock”
“Disgusting”
“Blend of beer and tequila”
“Alcohol abuse”

November 2006 - Champagne

2007-06-19T12:17:00.001-05:00

1. Segura Viudas, Brut Reserva (Spain), about $25
a. Multi-layered, not too sweet, right amount of bubbles
b. Yeasty, bubbly, tastes expensive
c. Smooth & nicely dry
d. Miller High Life that’s gone stale

2. Tott’s Extra Dry (California), about
a. Sweet, clean-tasitng
b. Too sweet, not so bubbly
c. Ephemeral, Is it a diet champagne?

3. Domaine Ste. Michelle, Blanc de Blancs (Washington State), about $10-12
a. Taste is subtle and backloaded, a bit underwhelming
b. Extra-dry and crisp
c. Like Woodchuck Draft Cider/dentist-like

October 2006 - Beer

2007-06-19T12:15:00.000-05:00

1. UFO Hefeweizen (Boston)
a. Belchy
b. Out-of-this-world
c. Serviceable
d. Better than Coors Light

2. Paulaner Hefeweizen (Germany)
a. Funny Tasting
b. Not worth $11
c. Bitter, Acidic, Fruity
d. Apple Cidery Tasting

3. Pilsner Urquell
a. Skunky
b. Not watery, not weak
c. Beyond Description

4. Stella Artois (Belgium)
a. Budweiser of Europe
b. Front Loaded
c. Frizzy
d. Snarky
e. Snotty French
f. Reassuringly Expensive

5. Leinengkuegel Red Lager (Wisconsin)
a. Mellow
b. Rainy Day - Cheese
c. Pretty on the outside, empty on the inside

6. Warsteiner
a. Subtle, but powerful
b. Good balance of taste/smell
c. Like Honey
d. Smooth
e. Thick aftertaste
f. Malty & Bubbly

7. Three Philosophers
a. Cough Syrup
b. Old, Gym Socks
c. Fruity, peppery w/spicy aftertaste

8. Terrible (Montreal)
a. Terrible
b. Awful
c. Acidic
d. Love in a bottle
e. Flavored hydrogen peroxide
f. Opposite of Stella Artois
g. Like a paper cut
h. A garden frolic

April 2007 - White Wine

2007-06-19T12:10:00.000-05:00

1. Zolo, Savignon Blanc, distributed by Vino del Sol, Argentina, $12.99
a. Crisp
b. Cat-box aroma
c. High-acidity
d. More personality than #2
e. Nice for price
f. Like a hot pasta salad on a summer night

2. Santa Marguerita, Pinot Grgio, Italy, $26.99
a. Dryer than #1
b. Tangy
c. Good at back of throat
d. Too subtle
e. Chicken of white wines
f. The other white wine

3. Franciscan, Chardonnay, Napa Valley, $16.99
a. Cat-boxish
b. Weird aftertaste I can’t figure out
c. Delicate oaky taste

4. Blue Slate, Riesling, Germany, $17.99
a. Palette cleansing
b. Most champagney
c. Better than a white zinfandel even though they’re related

5. Candoni, Muscato, Central Italy, $13.99
a. Carbonated soda pop
b. Light and floral
c. Perfumey
d. After dinner drink
e. Candy necklace
f. Lighter Amoretto

May 07 - Martinis in May

2007-06-16T11:51:00.000-05:00

Classic Gin Martini

Vodka Martini

Lemon Drop Martini

Chocolatini

Cosmopolitan

June 2007 - Ales

2007-06-14T16:14:00.000-05:00

Sam Adams Summer Ale: The favorite

ESB Original Ale:

Dos Perros: Soapy tasting; like drinking a cigarette; beef jerky killed, skinned and hung out to dry.

Honey Raspberry Ale: Tastes like a baloney sandwich; artificial sweetener flavor

Harpoon IPA: Good!

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: Marvin's personal favorite

Bass Ale

Meg's Guac Recipe

2007-06-14T16:11:00.000-05:00

Chunky Guacamole

To minimize the risk of discoloration, prepare the minced ingredients first so they are ready to mix with the avocados as soon as they are cut.

Makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups

3 medium avocados, ripe, (preferably Hass)
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 medium clove garlic, minced
1 small jalapeño chile, minced (1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons)
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
2 tablespoons lime juice

1. Halve one avocado, remove pit, and scoop flesh into medium bowl. Mash flesh lightly with onion, garlic, jalapeño, cilantro, salt, and cumin (if using) with tines of a fork until just combined.

2. Halve and pit remaining two avocados, and prepare. Gently scoop out avocado into bowl with mashed avocado mixture.

3. Sprinkle lime juice over diced avocado and mix entire contents of bowl lightly with fork until combined but still chunky. Adjust seasoning with salt, if necessary, and serve. (Can be covered with plastic wrap, pressed directly onto surface of mixture, and refrigerated up to one day. Return guacamole to room temperature, removing plastic wrap at the last moment, before serving).