I've been reading the word "terpenes" a lot lately and a pitch on a terpene turbocharged tequila finally gave me the push I needed to learn what the heck they are. Terpenes are any of a class of monocyclic hydrocarbons of the formula C10H16, obtained from plants. [source] Any of... Read more →
For this story in The Manual, I gave some advice about ice - not just how to make it, but how to store it. Read more →
I recently read the book, Just the Tonic: A Natural History of Tonic Water by Kim Walker and Mark Nesbitt. As you know, I also wrote a self-published book about the history of the Gin & Tonic, but mine doesn't have the rich illustrations of this handsome hardbound book -... Read more →
Trying to replicate making clear ice by "canning" water. Read more →
Alcademics reader Andy L commented on the post about how to Make Clear Ice Balls Using a Thermos with an idea: Fill the ice ball with water and set the thermos upside-down on top of it like a dunce cap. This way the ice ball mold would still be insulated... Read more →
I get questions, a lot of questions. Questions in email, from Facebook, from Twitter, from Instagram, via text. I usually answer them, when I can! But, I am finally asking myself, why don't I at least paste the questions and answers into blog posts, as similar questions tend to come... Read more →
It's a welcome exception to the hundreds of National Mimosa Day and other generic pitches about liquor I receive to get an email from someone who wants to talk technical details of production, and this post comes from one of them. Gerald Rowland of Rowland Cellars and more relevantly Coit... Read more →
Today's post comes from the work of reader Richard Newell. We'll call it the "canned water" technique for improving ice clarity. We know that the cloudiness in ice comes mostly from trapped air and impurities, which usually are pushed to the center of an ice cube when it freezes. The... Read more →