50 Shots of America–Kansas

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Over the Rainbow

Over the Rainbow

Toto, I think we ARE in Kansas this week, the 34th state in this glorious nation!

Look, Toto, at those dear, dear fields of wheat, sorghum and sunflowers.

And over there, why those are some of the wagon ruts still engraved on our prairie from the Sante Fe Trail (1820 to 1881), can you imagine?

Oh, in that direction we could go to Dodge City, where men such as Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp kept the peace in those lawless Wild West days.

You know, Toto, my ruby slippers are just a little uncomfortable after all this traveling, what do you say about following the I-70 over to Topeka and the headquarters of Payless for a quick shopping trip?

Whew! It’s sure good to be home, Toto. I hope Auntie Em has some lemonade ready, I could use a tall drink after visiting the Hutchinson Salt Mines. Or maybe something a wee bit stronger?

Over the Rainbow

1 oz Limoncello
1/2 oz Beer
1/2 oz Tonic Water

Combine Limoncello and Beer over ice and shake like a twister in a trailer park. Pour in Tonic Water and swirl to chill before straining into the waiting cordial glass.

This is my twist on a hard lemonade and can definitely give those packaged drink a run for their money–even Todd liked it (and he generally doesn’t like my beer cocktails), said it was “surprisingly refreshing.” Don’t have any Limoncello on hand? In as few as 4 days you can, according to my recent experiments infusing this particular flavor. We used the 12-week (and it blended beautifully) version but I’m sure the 4-day as well as the imported stuff will work just fine.

Drinking at home is so much better, Toto, none of that 10% drink tax to worry about! (And thank heavens we don’t live in one of the 29 dry counties!)

with apologies to L Frank Baum (but only a few, as his Kansas descriptions were based on his time in South Dakota)

50 Shots of America–Wisconsin

Sips
Pretzel Dip

Pretzel Dip

On May 29, 1848,  Wisconsin brought our state-count up to a nice, even 30. Known as the Badger State, it might surprise some to learn that name didn’t come from the bustling fur trade of the early-settled territory but of the miners (whose industry replaced pelts in the economy’s hierarchy) that had the badger-like habit of seeking shelter in holes they’d dug.

We’re not entirely sure what the name Wisconsin means (though we know it’s not ‘people who where foam cheese on their head’) but one possible etymology concentrates on its red rocks, like those found in the Wisconsin Dells. I wonder, then, is that why Republican States (founded in Ripon, Wisconsin, on March 20, 1854) are painted red on political maps?

America’s Dairyland is actually not the total agrarian state that such a name conveys. It became dairy-central because early agriculture was pursued to the detriment of the land. While it’s regained some of it’s croplands and the forests, the service industry plays a far larger part in the state these days while still leading the nation in cheese production (2nd in the US for milk and butter).

Pretzel Dip

1 oz Wisconsin Ale
1 oz Cranberry Juice
1 tsp Brown Mustard

Combine over ice and shake like a Barbie(1) and a troll(2) riding a Harley(3) around the center ring(4). Strain into a chilled cordial glass and sip.

Breweries are big in Milwaukee and the state is a major producer of cranberries (among other crops). This drink may sound strange (Todd certainly thought I was stretching it a bit) but it’s totally drinkable and does remind me of a big. soft pretzel dipped into berry-laced stone-ground mustard. Give it a shot before you judge it unfairly, and remember that it usually takes 2 sips before you get the full flavor of a drink.

The other references are as follows:

  1. Barbie-creator Barbie Millicent Roberts is from Willows, Wisconsin.
  2. Mount Horeb, Wisconsin is, apparently, the Troll Capital of the World. It’s also home to the Mustard Museum which houses over 2300 specimens of mustard.
  3. Harley Davidson Motorcycles are headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
  4. Ringling Brothers Circus got it’s first show in Baraboo, Wisconsin, in 1884.

And, hey, as we head into Labor Day weekend, if you’re in the neighborhood of Prairie du Sac check out the State Cow Chip Throwing Contest.

50 Shots of America–Missouri

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Meet Me at the Fair

Meet Me at the Fair

Now, if you were paying attention last week when Maine was added to the Union as part of the Missouri Compromise, then you’re probably not surprised that the Show-Me state is taking it’s place as #24 at the bar this week!

And speaking of that nick-name (unofficial–they don’t have an official one!), what does it mean?

While no one is 100% sure, the strong favorites are

  • the requirement of workers being shown, rather than told, how to do a particular job (lots of immigrants, maybe a language barrier thing, too); or
  • a speech by Congressman Vandiver in 1899 where he basically said “frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I’m from Missouri, and you have got to show me.”

Basically, actions speak louder than words, in Missouri.

So let’s just head over to the cocktail shaker, shall we?

Meet Me at the Fair

1 Tea bag
1 bottle German beer
1/2 oz Honey
1/2 oz Irish cream

Cold-steep the tea bag in the beer a minimum of 20 minutes. Combine 1 oz of the tea-beer, the honey and Irish cream over ice and shake it like your mixing up some instant pancakes. Strain into a small sugar cone and drink it before the cone dissolves.

The explanation:

The name comes from the song (and movie of the same name) Meet Me In St. Louis and refers to the 1904 World’s Fair that saw the creation of iced tea (don’t worry, southerners, Missouri was considered part of the South when it joined the union) and the ice cream cone. The two largest ancestral groups in Missouri are German and Irish and the state maintains some of the most lenient alcohol regulations in the country. Finally, there was a border dispute between Missouri and Iowa over an area known as the Honey Lands–the main casualty of which was a stand of 3 bee-hive holding trees; the state insect is the honey bee.

Oh, and the pancake reference? Aunt Jemima pancake mix was the first of it’s kind, invented in St Joseph in 1889.

50 Shots of America–Vermont

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Chef JennaBear, Vermont Teddy Bear Co

Chef JennaBear, Vermont Teddy Bear Co

So, what do you think of when you think Vermont?

Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream?

Vermont Teddy Bear Company?

Vermont Maple Syrup?

Or all of the above?

Vermont is the 14th state of the US, the first added to the Union after the original 13 ratified the Constitution. Original fought over by the French and British, the Treaty of Paris settled that issue with government going to Britain only to have the colonies of New York and New Hampshire arguing over certain land grants. This angered certain townsfolk and they basically said, forget this, we’re our own nation. And so they stayed until 1791 when they were accepted into the Union.

Since then they’ve carved out their place in the US economy as the top maple syrup producer, the home of the companies mentioned above as well as IBM and King Arthur Flower, and a leading manufacturer of specialty foods. They also happen to rank first in the country for the number of craft breweries per capita.

Another interesting tidbit? If you happen to be traveling through to to Vermont and plan to purchase alcohol you might have a bit of trouble. See, only those with Vermont licenses or a special Liquor ID can purchase bottles of alcohol! You can still order a drink at a bar, but no package store will sell to you without it!

On to the Drink! I knew I had to do something with the maple syrup, I just didn’t know which direction. Add in the craft beer market and the dairy industry and, tada!

The Short Stack

1 oz Honey Wheat Pale Ale
1/4 oz Butterscotch Schnapps
1/4 oz Maple Syrup

Combine all ingredients over ice and shake like your shushing down one of the many ski slopes in the Green Mountain State. Strain into a cordial glass.

This drink tastes remarkably like a short stack of buttermilk pancakes with maple syrup, only without all that pesky cooking or chewing.

50 Shots of America–North Carolina

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Poor North Carolina–it’s turn came during my week-when-nothing-got-done and then was further complicated by a serious case of cocktail block (much like writer’s block but instead of staring at a blank page you gaze at an unused bar). But, good things come to those who wait…

North Carolina, the Tar Heel State, was the 12th state to ratify the US Constitution on November 21, 1789. Another one of our original 13, it had it’s share of rocky starts before the colony really got it’s feet on the ground. One early attempt at settlement, the Roanoke Colony, disappeared without a trace and it’s still not clear what happened. They did get to record the first English birth in the New World, a Miss Virginia Dare, but like the rest of her fellow colonists her life is unknown. I considered creating a cocktail, the Truth or Dare, but it, too, wandered into the ether before taking root.

The Wright Brothers put Kitty Hawk on the map when they managed the first manned, powered heavier-than-air flight in 1903 (hence one of the state’s mottoes: First in Flight). Even though I’ve lost most of my fear of flying (I still get a little antsy on take-off and landing) I had mixed feelings about making a take-off (hah!) of the classic Aviator cocktail.

It’s not every state that has their own designated Carnivorous Plant, now is it? (They may, in fact, be the only one–cursory searches failed to find another.) Turns out the Venus Fly Trap is native to the Carolinas, specifically an area approximately 60-75 miles around Wilmington, NC. This, coupled with the plant’s resemblance to a slice of watermelon (the theme of two of their official state festivals, despite being the #1 producer of sweet potatoes in the US) finally put me on the path to a potential cocktail.

But wait! Despite an idea that took much experimentation (totally ruining my got-it-in-one streak from previous states, by the way) I have achieved an homage to a wonderful delicacy for which we can all thank Vernon Rudolph of Winston-Salem:

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing the wonder that is the pillowy, hot, yeast-raised doughnut goodness fresh from the glazing curtain you just haven’t lived. I remember taking a field trip in elementary school and getting to see how they made the doughnuts, the pale wheels of dough bobbing their way through the hot oil and then traveling on a conveyor belt through the glaze and, oh, mmm, mmph…

*pardon me while I drool*

Now, then! Creating the alcoholic equivalent of this decadence was not easy. It took 3 batches of experiments over 2 nights and I was just about to give up and go another direction when, discouraged, I switched gears to making some beer biscuits to go with the soup simmering on the stove when the first round of inspiration struck.

You could have knocked me over with a bottle cap.

Of course! I was looking for that distinct yeasty flavor and what better way to get that but from a yeasty beverage! While some may cringe at the thought, the results were encouraging but far from perfect. Part of it was the beer I was using (I only had Heineken on hand) and then we just couldn’t get it sweet enough. I tossed in some of the nutmeg sugar syrup I had on hand but, again, it just wasn’t right.

The next morning in the inspiration chamber (aka, the shower) the missing piece snapped into place. After a trip to the store and some more experiments we humbly present the following:

The Glazed Doughnut

2 oz Honey Wheat beer*
1 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/2 oz Butterscotch Schnapps
1/4 oz Vanilla Vodka

Combine over ice in a sturdy mixing glass and shake as if the fryer’s broken and the pre-church crowd is about to descend. Strain into 2 small cordial glasses (or 1 martini glass) and steel yourself for the oncoming rush.

Using a different beer definitely helped but the condensed milk was the clincher: it added a richness that milk + sugar syrup couldn’t match. The vanilla vodka, on the other hand, managed to smooth out the schnapps just enough when we found that lessening the schnapps made the beer too bossy but leaving it untamed took away from the yeast.

I could totally see this customized with a splash of chocolate or raspberry liqueur, too, for the specialty doughnut of your choice.

*I used Leinenkugel’s Honey Weiss, a Pale Wheat Ale, and it seemed to do quite well for this application. If you’ve got more beer smarts than I and know of others that might work well in this sort of drink, by all means, let me know in the comments!