Celebrate Both the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras with Three Great New Orleans Cocktails

It's rare that one American city is called upon to play host to two major events almost simultaneously. Yet that is what is happening in la belle New Orleans this week where happy Mardi Gras party goers will mix with hopeful Super Bowl ticket holders.

But have no fear - New Orleans is more than up to the task at hand. Her fine hotels, outstanding restaurants, famous streets and multicultural cuisine can easily welcome them all, especially when the many visitors have a chance to taste one of the City's famous cocktails. 

THE SAZERAC COCKTAIL - This honored cocktail is the very first recorded American cocktail to be created and is credited to Antoine Amadie Peychaud, a Creole apothecary before the dark days of the Civil War.

He crafted the cocktail from a mixture of cognac or rye whiskey, absinthe or Herbsaint and Peychaud's Bitters. 

According to culinary legend he served his new drink in the large end of an egg cup which was called a coquetier in French. The americanization of word conversed the French word into the word "cocktail" and so gave a name to a whole catagory of over 125,000 drinks! 

THE HURRICANE COCKTAIL - Was there ever a cocktail with such a perfect name? This drink can steady the nerves of anyone facing a frightening future whether from high waters or the horrors of war. For you see, this cocktail was created by Pat O'Brien during the early days of World War II.

Faced with both an excess of lower grade rum forced on him by distributors and also many nervous service men, he blended his unwanted rum, fruit juice and grenadine together and happily served his creation in an available bowed glass that mimiced the shape of a Victorian wind-resisent oil lamp. 

The name of the lamp transferred to the cocktail and is now the official drink of New Orleans' French Quarter. Today it often served in a plastic cup since the City premits enjoying a cocktail in public but only in a non-breakable despoitable plastic container. Safety first please!

BRANDY MILK PUNCH - Don't be fooled. This is not exactly your mother's good-night glass of milk. Instead, it is a favorite for one of New Orleans' grand tradition: Sunday Brunch. After church, friends and family could (and still do) meet at one of the City's classic restaurants such as Cafe Adelaide or Brennan's to discuss the week's events.

Brimming cups of brandy, milk, cream and nutmeg mixed together were and still are perfect to calm a troubled stomach from the night before or ideal to match the rich foods in the Sunday feast before them. Ah, New Orleans, she always has an answer for every question. 

What a grand city!  

Shackleton’s Rare Whisky Returns Home to Antarctica

Reflecting the modern awareness of archeology to respect and preserve, three bottles of Mackinlay’s Rare Old Malt Whisky, that once belonged to the polar explorer Ernest Shackleton, have been returned to their original home beneath the dusty floorboards of the Shackleton’s hut on chilly Ross Island in Antarctica.

The three unopened bottles, first sealed shut in 1898, were flow from Scotland, where in 2011 a small sample of their content was carefully drawn out via a syringe and analyzed.

Mackinlay’s Master Blender Richard Paterson, after long months of painstaking work in Scotland, recreated the forgotten whisky.

The initial 50,000 boxed offering of his reproduction sold out almost immediately at $150 per bottle. Five percent of the purchase price benefited the Antarctic Heritage Trust, generating over$400,000!

Hearing the cry of whisky lovers worldwide, who were unable to obtain a bottle, Whyte & Mackay has now released a second whisky inspired by the rare Shackleton find.

Labeled The Journey, it, too, is a blend of different malts that replicates the original. And once again, a percentage of the profits will be donated to the Antarctic Heritage Trust.

But the story doesn’t end there. Random House New Zealand is now publishing a new eBook that documents the whisky’s amazing travels from the Highlands to the Arctic ice and back again.

Entitled Shackleton's Whisky: A Spirit of Discovery: Ernest Shackleton's 1907 Antarctic Expedition, and the Rare Malt Whisky He Left Behind, it is easily available to readers everywhere via Kindle.

So sit back and enjoy. For where else can you hold a historic whisky in one hand and a modern digital reader in the other and know they truly belong together. 

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2013 

Downton Abbey Cocktails

This Sunday on January 6th, the third season of BBC's big hit series, Downton Abbey, will launch to the delight of million of viewers worldwide.

And while the dueling grand dames, played by Maggie Smith as the Downton Dowager and Shirley MacLaine as the progressive American mother-in-law, will be dueling for the best one liner putdowns, it is actually the three Downton daughters who anchor the plot's movement through good and bad times.

The series' resulting popularity has generated an interest in all things English, including food and drink, which has prompted an interesting Internet question: What cocktail best suit each of the Earl's elegant daughters?

Lady Mary, played by Michelle Dockery, has in past airings been the series' main heroine. As the eldest child of Lord and Lady Crawley BUT sadly only a girl, she cannot inherit the estate. Viewers have watched her make two romantic mistakes only to end up in the arms of Matthew, who WILL inherit the name and lands of Downton Abbey - maybe. 

After a long wait for a proposal in the softly falling snow of December, Abbey devotees are hoping for a wedding (finally)and NO MORE problems for the fair and long suffering Mary. The perfect Lady Mary cocktail would seem to be a classic (and well earned) Champagne Cocktail.

The next Downton daughter is the very proper Lady Edith, played by Laura Carmichael, who is waiting and hoping, and hoping, and hoping for her prince charming to appear, even if he is older than she and handicapped from an arm injury obtained on the horrific battlefields of World War I.

Her frustration often brings out a mean streak in her that may well mellow as the story line develops and she finds either meaning or love in life beyond just title and rank. Currently many bar masters are serving the Lillet Cocktail as the drink that matches Lady Edith's reserved English personality the best.

Finally there is Lady Sybil, played by Jessica Brown Findlay, the rebellious daughter of Downton, who reads feminist tracks, argues for women's sufferage, dares to wear the latest Paris pants fashion and, shock of shock, falls in love with the family's free thinking Irish chauffeur, Tom Branson, AND marries him. Oh no, below the salt! But what nerve!

In a strength of will worthy of any early era feminist, she stands up to her family and moves to Ireland with her new husband, leaving the wealth and grandeur of Downton for conviction and true love. It seems only a hardy Irish coffee would be perfect for this beloved but definitely brave black sheep of the family.

So choose your favorite lady of the Abbey to cheer on to fame and happiness and THEN raise your glass to BBC for another great series that's sure to set many new culinary trends as well as delight viewers everywhere . Many thanks and England forever!

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2013

Fortnum & Mason Gets Ready to Set Christmas Holiday Decorating Trends

Thanksgiving is only a few days away which means that the Christmas season will soon be upon us. But have no fear - Fortnum & Mason is near.

For whether you live in London (lucky you!) or anywhere else, London's legendary store is close at hand, thanks to the Internet and the international post and, of course, the original founders William Fortnum and Hugh Mason. 

From candles and tea to the Scotch Eggs (which they invented), everyone every where, who enjoy the best, love the robin blue boxes that have been a hallmark of style for over 300 years.

Among those who have relied on Fortnum & Mason for the best in gourmet delights are Queen Victoria, Oscar Wilde, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra - even explorers on Mt. Everest and weary soldiers in distant battle zones. 

And this year Fortnum & Mason has created holiday treats that will be equally treasured.

From traditional English Christmas crackers (the pull apart type) to elegant tree trimmings, Fortnum's has it all and this year they are celebrating all things London.

And why not - London has just completed a wonderful year that's includes the Queen's Diamond Jubilee AND the stunning Summer Olympics! Congratulations to all in London on a job well done!

Post Note, November 16, 2012: As the Lord Mayor of London says, " No one does Christmas like Fortnum's." And just to prove his point, here is the open of Fortnum's 2012 Holiday window displays...

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2012

Switzerland Welcomes a New and Amazing Wine Museum

The famed Lavaux Vineyard Terraces on the shores of Switzerland’s Lake Geneva will soon have an addition.

Mauro Turin, one of the world's leading architects, is currently building a stunning new wine museum that soars out from the mountainside into open space.  This innovative project was initially only an imaginary architectural submission for a Swiss design magazine.

But now it is becoming a reality that will soon give visitors not only a breath-taking view of the beautiful wine terraces below but also Lake Geneva and the Alps in a unique panorama.

And why not – grapes have been grown here since Roman times with the present vines dating back to the skilled Benedictine and Cistercian monks who planted them there in the 11^th century.

This fine vine heritage will continue as the museum would be a part of a new World Heritage Site when completed. Fantastic – it will be a must-see destination!

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2012