What is the difference between liquor and liqueur?
What is the difference between liquor and liqueur?
A liquor is an alcoholic drink that is distilled from grains or plants, such as rum, vodka, gin or whiskey.
A liqueur is a sweet or herbal alcoholic drink that is made from fruit, herbs, flowers, nuts or spices plus (usually) sugar and a spirit such as grain alcohol, vodka or rum. Liqueurs can be served as before or after-dinner drinks and used in desserts. Many liqueurs are made in France, such as Cassis (made with black currants), Chartreuse (made from plants and flowers) or Pastis (flavored with anise seeds).
what you should know
In 1850, Seth Lewelling lit out for Oregon to grow fruit. His first success fruit was the Black Republican cherry, which he named in honor of the abolitionists trying to end slavery. (Back in Iowa, the Lewellings had been involved in the Underground Railroad.)
Lewelling named his next cherry after Ah Bing, the foreman who oversaw his orchards. The large, dark red Bing cherry was sweet, plump and crisp.
the pick When it was released in the mid-1870s, it became a sensation: one pound (roughly 35 cherries) sold for a dollar in East Coast markets. The Bing quickly became and still is the most widely grown of the sweet cherries.
tis the Cherries should start arriving right about now from central California (and, with them, "unquestionable proof" that summer is coming). In a couple of weeks, you'll start seeing Bings from Oregon and Washington state, where almost half the sweet cherries in the U.S. are grown.
low risk, high reward The Bing--like all sweet cherries--are low risk/high reward fruits. Look for cherries that are firm and shiny. Avoid soft or bruised fruit. Store cherries in the fridge, where they'll keep for a few days. (You can also freeze cherries.)
pit stop To pit a cherry, treat it like an olive. (Or get out a nail or paper clip.)
what you need
If you go in for those super-specific kitchen tools like the cherry pitter, we recommend the one made by OXO. (It'll also work for most olives.)
As with pitting olives, we get along just fine with a dough scraper.
Chez Panisse Fruit is filled with simple and refined stone fruit desserts.
what you do
Convert someone to spinach with this Bing cherry and Brie salad.
Cook & Eat explores the compatibility between sweet and savory in fruit and honey focaccia and a fennel and cherry salad.
As you enter grilling season in earnest, keep this rustic cherry pie (also from Cook & Eat) in mind.
One of the classic uses for Bings is in a cherry clafoutis, which is part of this week's installment of the Barbara Kafka Dessert Anthology.
(Top image courtesy of the California Cherry Advisory Board.)
A Negroni is an Italian apéritif made from equal parts gin, Campari and vermouth.
Legend has it that the Negroni was invented at the Caffè Casoni in Florence, in 1919. It was supposedly named in honor of Count Camillo Negroni, whose request for an Americano with gin led to the creation of a brand new pre-dinner drink.
Variations on the classic Negroni -- which is traditionally garnished with a curl of orange peel -- include the American version, with sparkling water and lemon. Other Italian versions substitute spumante brut or vodka for gin. A Sparkling Negroni is made with Champagne or prosecco. A Negroni Zimbabwe is made with orange juice.
In 1919, the Negroni Family opened the Negroni Distilleries in Treviso, manufacturing a ready-made Antico Negroni 1919 formula.
Vermouth is fortified white wine that's been infused with herbs and spices.
The word vermouth is from the German word for wormwood (wermut), which was a main ingredient until somebody decided it was poisonous. Vermouth was first commercially produced in Turin, Italy in the 18th century and now most vermouth is produced in Italy and France. But people have been making fortified wines since the 5th century.
Vermouth ranges from dry to sweet. White dry vermouth is a popular apéritif and used to make a martini; sweet red vermouth is drunk on ice or mixed into cocktails like a Manhattan; white bianco vermouth is slightly sweet.
Vermouth is also used in cooking, primarily to add an herbal wine-flavored touch to sauces.
Pastis is an anise-seed-flavored liqueur that is a popular apéritif in southeastern France. It is similar to Pernod, which is made in northern France.
Pastis is actually a watered-down version of absinthe, which was considered "madness in a bottle" and banned in France, in 1915, because the wormwood was thought to cause hallucinations and madness.
Manufacturers responded by stripping absinthe of wormwood, upping the anise flavor and sugar and lowering the alcohol content. But licorice-y pastis is still very strong; to drink it, you dilute it with cold water -- and ice if you like it extra-cold -- which turns it cloudy.
When used in cooking, pastis lends a licorice note, particularly to seafood dishes.
Note: Pastis is also a word for pastries made in southwestern France.
Recipe: Pastis Negroni (Cookthink)
Recipe: Pastis-Flamed Shrimp (Cookthink)
what you should know
An anise-flavored liqueur native to southern France, pastis is known as the "milk of Provence." It's the honey, too, a symbol for the region's slower, sunnier pace.
Peter Mayle, who made a fortune selling the idea of Provence, wrote in his second book that "the most powerful ingredient in pastis is not aniseed or alcohol, but ambiance."
pastiche The classic/clichéd setting for a pastis: among the old men lobbing boules on a hard-dirt pétanque court in Aix-en-Provence, the plane trees spangling in the late afternoon sun.
5 to 1 To enjoy pastis, just mix it with cold water. The classic ratio of water to pastis is five parts water to one part pastis.
madness in a bottle Pastis is a friendlier, less hallucinogenic relative of absinthe, the wormwood-laced liqueur that was banned for decades because of fears it caused madness.
drink me? Marilyn Manson -- better known around here as Evan Rachel Wood's boyfriend -- is at the forefront of an absinthe renaissance. The genre-bending rocker has his own absinthe label called Mansinthe.
what you need
Though you could use any old jug of cold water to dilute your pastis, there's something especially refreshing about water from a chilled glass pitcher.
Those old French men are onto something: you can't improve on a warm day spent tossing boules while sipping pastis. Get your own pétanque set from Playaboule.
If you really want to get in the mood for pastis, make something out of Patricia Well's At Home in Provence and then plop down in front of the TV for a marathon session of Claude Berri's masterworks, Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources .
what you do
A classic pastis is the perfect apéritif, but perfect can get boring. When you need a change, try a pastis Negroni instead.
Goat cheese coated with pastis and Herbes de Provence is a simple and elegant way to create a delicious appetizer.
If you're bored by the same old thing, start a fire with this dramatic pastis-flamed shrimp.
Mussels love pastis almost as much as white wine. So why not combine them for these mussels with shallots and tomato sauce?
There is nothing more classically Provençal than bouillabaisse, the rich, aromatic throw-fish-in-a-pot stew.
Featured recipe: For dessert, try these cornmeal and pastis cookies, from Cooking 4 the Week (again!). It is the featured recipe for this week's Root Source Challenge.
what you should know
All bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon. "Whiskey" is produced all over the world and can be made with a number of grains, notably barley, rye and corn.
To be called "bourbon," a whiskey must be made in the United States, and its mash must be at least 51% corn. Then, the resulting liquid must be aged for two years in charred new oak containers. After that, it's "bourbon."
you don't know jack Jack Daniels? George Dickel? They're not bourbons. Since they're filtered through maple charcoal (using a method known as the Lincoln County Process), they're labeled "Tennessee Whiskey."
spiritual center Not all bourbon is made in Kentucky, but most of it is. The town of Bardstown is the Bourbon Capital of the World. There you'll find, among other bourbon-related attractions, the Museum of Whiskey History.
and they're off Lots of contenders in Saturday's Kentucky Derby. (We're going for a Monba-Big Brown-Recapture the Glory trifecta.) Even if you don't care for the ponies, be sure to tune in just to see the world's largest mint julep, which will be on display this weekend at Churchill Downs.
what you need
While there are many Parker-esque buying guides available to help you choose the right whiskey, our favorite source is Chuck Cowdery, the Mike Royko of bourbon. His classic book Bourbon Straight begins: "It is February, 1621. The Mayflower colonists are panicked because they are running out of beer."
Chuck also writes about bourbon (and Blues and politics) at his blog, where he recently declared that "the best bourbon is free bourbon."
Depending on your poison, you might be interested in the history of Jack, Jim or Pappy.
While a faceted lowball glass feels right for a liquid lunch, we prefer a heavy-bottomed, smooth old fashioned glass.
Do you collect silver julep cups? Keep these tips in mind when shopping.
what you do
In her excellent new book, Bon Appétit, Y'all, Virginia Willis reinterprets the traditional honey baked ham by adding bourbon to the glaze.
If you want some really solid ribs in just a few hours, try Washington Post food editor Joe Yonan's first-timer's ribs.
Buttery maple-bourbon sauce pools in the curves of grilled acorn squash.
A simple bourbon-infused whipped cream adds complexity to Steamy Kitchen's easy apple tart (and any other simple dessert).
If a Mint Julep is too bourbon-y for you, try an Old Fashioned or a Rebel Yell.
featured recipe Bourbon loves sweet potatoes, and we love these bourbon-glazed sweet potato tarts. The recipe came from Stephanie of Adventures in Shaw.
