Happy 2020

Happy New Year everybody!!!
Thank you for your support throughout the year. I wish you all the best in 2020. Cheers, Santé, Cin cin, Proost, Prosit, Salute, Salud!

Champagne by Moët & Chandon.

La Dolce Vita is... an aperitivo italiano

You guys know I love "La Dolce Vita"! Italians really know how to turn an everyday situation into a party. Especially when it comes to pre-dinner drinks and appetizers... I mean, it doesn't get much better than this! The cherry on the cake is the name.... ""aperitivo".

Want to see more of La Dolce Vita?
Check out one of my previous blogs:
https://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.com/2015/02/la-dolce-vita-is-boat-trip-to-blue.html
https://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.com/2018/08/la-dolce-vita-is-watching-sunset-in.html

Happy Blue Monday!

Yes... it's Blue Monday again... supposedly the most depressing day of the year. It's of course an invention of a PR agency (for Sky Travel, in 2005), but they do have a point. The holiday season is over, those New Year's resolutions are not so easy to fulfill, the weather is cold and rainy and it will still take a long time before spring will arrive. So here's some blue inspiration... to make you dream of summer and happier days! Happy Blue Monday!

For some more blue inspiration, please continue here:
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2015/01/happy-blue-monday.html
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2014/01/another-blue-monday.html
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2014/03/dreaming-in-blue.html

Chilcano cocktails

Following the popularity of the Peruvian cuisine, Pisco sour has become a famous cocktail. Another cocktail from Peru that is not as well known yet is Chilcano. Chilcano is made with pisco, ginger ale, a few drops of bitters and some ice cubes. And I have to admit... I like it even better than pisco sour, Peru's national drink.

The primary ingredient in chilcano is (just like in pisco sour), pisco, a brandy similar to italian grappa. But it's lighter, fresher. My first and best chilcano ever, was at restaurant Mayta in Lima and it was prepared by bartender Renzo Amaya. He has won several awards for making the best cocktails based on pisco.

To mix a chilcano, you can also use pisco infusions, called "macerados" (second photo), made with fruit, leaves or roots. I especially loved the ones made with mango, camu camu and goldenberry. Although it will never taste as good as in Peru, I tried to make chilcanos at home.... and they turned out pretty well if I may say so myself (last photo). Salud!

Read more about Mayta here:
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2015/04/restaurant-mayta-lima-peru.html

La Dolce Vita is... drinking an aperitivo in the mountains

La Dolce Vita is drinking an "aperitivo" in the mountains! Whether it's an Aperol Spritz, or an alcohol free San Bitter... it's pure bliss to me!
I'm curious, what does la Dolce Vita mean to you?

Photo taken in Val Venosta - Vinschgau, Italy.

Want to get more of that Dolce Vita feeling? Please continue here:
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2015/02/la-dolce-vita-is-boat-trip-to-blue.html

Florida has the best...

Today was officially the first day of spring, but it’s so terribly cold… To me it really feels like it’s still winter. In fact, I’m still wearing my winter coat and trying to eat as much fruit and vegetables as I can! Including grapefruit from Florida. Did you know that this particular type of grapefruit is sweeter than the others? And that characteristic makes it perfect for smoothies, cocktails and salads!

A little while ago I went to a workshop at the fabulous Markthal in Rotterdam (at De Wereld van Smaak), where a nutritionist, a chef and a mixologist taught me everything there is to know about grapefruit. Especially the Florida grapefuit. I didn’t know either, but it really has a totally different taste than other types & it contains vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium and dietary fiber… just what I need right now!

We made a mocktail (or virgin cocktail, if you like) with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, tonic water, elderflower syrup, 3 slices of cucumber, a few mint leaves, some ice cubes and dried rose buds.... it was so delicious! And I did not miss the alcohol in the cocktail at all! The cherry on the cake was the goodiebag I got to take home... filled with lots of Florida grapefruits and even a blender, to make smoothies at home!

For more information please visit:
Florida Grapefruit http://www.floridacitrus.org/grapefruit 

Markthal Rotterdam http://markthalrotterdam.nl

De Wereld van Smaak http://www.dewereldvansmaak.nl

Photos without logo courtesy of Golin for Florida Department of Citrus.

Johnnie Walker Blue Label Party

Last week I attended the Johnnie Walker Blue Label cocktail party at the Conservatorium Hotel in Amsterdam. I am not a whisky drinker, so I didn't really know what to expect. Well... they sure knew how to surprise me! There was a presentation of the new Johnnie Walker film "The Gentleman's Wager II" with Jude Law, Giancarlo Giannini and Zhao Wei. There's no lady who wants to pass up on a movie with Jude Law, right? It even got better when I found out the movie was shot in Italy! It certainly looked like "La Dolce Vita" to me!

In fact, Johnnie Walker's marvellous Blue Label is equivalent of La Dolce Vita. This very precious blend is made from some of Scotland’s rarest and most exceptional Scotch Whiskies. Only one in every ten thousand casks is considered good enough to be included in the Blue Label blend! The Johnnie Walker ambassadors gave a brief presentation about the Blue Label and then the whisky tasting could begin. Of course I have had whisky before... but this one was mindblowing!!! Pure, as well as mixed in a cocktail.

The cocktail that was served, was the Gentleman's Wager. Delicious I must say! Want to try it at home? Here's the recipe:

45 ml Johnnie Walker Blue Label whisky
10 ml Pedro Ximénez sherry
5 ml Poire Williams eau de vie
2 dashes of Peychaud's (or Angostura) bitters
Plenty of ice cubes
Some orange zest

Stir well, pour into a tumbler full of fresh ice, squeeze the orange zest a little into the tumbler and rub the peel around the rim of the glass. Cheers!

Besides the drinks, there were delicious canapés, by the chef of the Conservatorium Hotel, Schilo van Coevorden, that matched the Johnnie Walker Blue Label whisky perfectly. Of course we all know wine and food pairing... but how about matching whisky and chocolate? Simply divine....
I know what I will put on my wishlist this Christmas!

The best part of the evening -sorry Jude- was when we all got a personalised bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label...!

Photos (without logo) courtesy of Johnnie Walker.