Eve's Wine 101

Sazerac (Recipe 4 of 4 using Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal)

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While I waited for my last cocktail made with Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal I learned three things.

One, from bar manager Kyle Ackley, was that cocktails, like wine, are living breathing things.  Of course, I knew that ice dilutes a drink, but what I didn’t know was that a drink can change as it just stands in your glass.  This one below, made with the Demerara sugar cube (also new for me), was going to become less strong as the sugar continued to dilute in the cocktail.

The second thing I learned, and this came from Gan Chian Mei, the International Ambassador for Rémy Martin, was that in China Cognac is drunk before, during and after dinner.  I was grateful for that knowledge as my tasting had come to a close and the one last thing I learned: I wasn’t just pouring my Cognac into a snifter after over-stuffing myself at dinner any more.

Sazerac

2 oz. Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal

1 Demerara sugar cube

3 dashes of Peychaud’s bitters

2 dashes of Angostura bitters

directions: Muddle the sugar and bitters, then add the Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal and ice. Stir and strain into a chilled Absinthe rinsed rocks glass.  Twist a lemon peel over the surface and discard.  (Adapted from William Boothby’s World Drinks and How to Mix Them, 1908.)

Mint Julep (Recipe 3 of 4 using Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal)

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I could have sipped this mint julep all day.  I believe that the VP of Public Relations, George M. Rudenauer, told me that Cognac was the liquor originally used to make mint juleps…I didn’t care, from now on this was the way I wanted mine made.  Refreshing before or after a meal, or dang it to heck, all by its lonesome, it was that good.

2 oz. Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal

8 sprigs mint

1/2 oz. of simple syrup

directions: put mint and sugar with a dash of water in mixing glass.  Add shaved ice and cognac.  Shake until frosted and pour all into rocks glass, garnish with a mint sprig.

The Spicy Basil Sidecar (Recipe 1 of 4 using Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal)

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For the next four weeks our Wednesday recipes will feature cocktails made with Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal that I recently sampled during an educational and comparative tasting.  I was wowed by the experience, some of you may even remember my tweets that day, and wanted to share the recipes that were shared with me.

This one was created by Kyle Ackley, the bar manager at the Lexington Social House.

Spicy Basil Sidecar

2oz Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal

75oz fresh lemon juice

75oz Cointreau

1 dash orange bitters

2 dashes Tabasco

4 basil leaves

directions: quick muddle 3 basil leaves in a pint glass, add all ingredients, shake and strain into coupe or martini glass.  Garnish with a fresh basil leaf.
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Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal (Get ready – Eve has a new favorite!)

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Left to right- Sidecar, Autumn Fizz, Sazerac and Mint Julep

I was so taken with the Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal “experience” (Readers can get the cognac-based cocktail recipes on the next four Wednesdays of this website) that I wanted to start this series by giving you some of the information that I learned about Rémy Martin’s Champagne Cognac:

I was invited to  The Ebell of Los Angeles to  join the House of Rémy Martin for an educational and comparative tastings of Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal.   During this one-on-one experience, led by Gan Chian-Mei, Rémy Martin brand ambassador, and renowned local mixologist Josh Harris*, we will discuss the history of Cognac and how it played a role in the first cocktails** developed in the 19th century, conduct a taste comparison between Rémy Martin 1738 and other fine spirits derived from grain (whiskey, bourbon, and rum), as opposed to grapes, as well as showcase traditional and modern cognac cocktails – developed by one of the spirits community’s most celebrated mixologists, PDT’s Jim Meehan (New York) and Harris.

The taste comparison, well, I only sniffed at the other spirits that Kyle poured.  One, the rye, was the only one I wasn’t familiar with.  And, even without tasting, the Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal really stood out from the pack.  Going back for a second taste, and trying to make some brief notes for myself proved difficult, as the four other people at the bar were regaling me in stories about cognac.

Aromas, and the taste that followed it, was filled with hazelnuts, spice and honey.  Undoubtedly, if I were alone, I may have been able to decipher a wee bit more.

*I’m sure I would have loved to met Josh Harris, but for my experience, I was left in the capable hands of Kyle Ackely, bar manager for the Lexington Social House.

**The cocktail recipes, as I mentioned earlier, will be on this site on 11/16, 11/23, 11/30 and 12/7.