Distilled Quotations

"Brandy, n. A cordial composed of one part thunder-and-lightning, one part remorse, two parts bloody murder, one part death-hell-and-the-grave and four parts clarified Satan." - Ambrose Bierce

An Angelic Wine

Today I walked into a Whole Foods store before going to a Mass at Florida Atlantic University, and I've been dieting and staying from my first love, the brown bubbly, know to the mortal world as beer  (how I miss your frothy flavor) and  I decided to take up a healthier, red-blooded, fruit, and happened to turn down the aisle where these dark, earthen, glassy, bottles of this mysterious liquid filled the metallic garden, and went immediately to the Napa region (because, as my father says, you can never go wrong with Napa). After spending some delightful moments, scanning the hedges of wine, I came across a  marked off bottle of a wine named after the Angelic Doctor of the Church himself, Saint Thomas Aquinas. The bottle was created by the Vintners known as “Don Sebastiani & Son” Winery.  So I bought the bottle ($16.99 on sale) and took it home with me.

 I said my prayers for the evening and opened the bottle, and then posted on facebook that I had just bought a curious bottle of wine, named after a very Catholic, Doctor of the Church, and then heard a knock on my collegial door. Opening it, I found a class mate (we will call him Augustine for anonymity) and he just noticed that I posted a very interesting thing on facebook (56 seconds ago), and asked if he could take part in the festivities. Who am I to reject a friend in partaking of the goodness of the vine, so I said of course and welcomed him in to my humble abode.

The bottle I had opened about 15 minutes before, to allow time for oxygen to enter into the wine’s blood stream. After pulling out the cork, I looked at it to see how much the wine had bled into the cork, and saw it was a thing of beauty. This cork not only was in scripted with a quote by the Angelic Doctor "For it is written that wine makes glad the heart of man" but it had the letter A – in a font of script, that would have made the Scarlet Letter seamstress herself (Heather Prynne) extremely proud! But the bottom of the Cork was what was exceptionally fascinating. The wine marker on the cork had infused only slightly, making it look as though it had been turned into a signet-ring marker. It was something striking to behold, and I couldn’t help but stare at its masterful craftsmanship. I wanted to turn it into a ring and say that any letter, whose wax would be sealed with its mark, would be marked as an indelible mark would be to the soul. Breathtaking and beauty would be only simpleton words to add to such a site.

 The wine was then poured, and at first taste, did not seem to be much. It was surprisingly smooth for a Cabernet, and the flavor was that of a very soft port, but velvety smooth. Plum, black cherry, and  truffle were on the palate, and there was a light after taste that appeased the sense. That was the first glass and a half.

45 minutes to an hour later, the nature of the wine changed completely. Smelling the notes of the wine, one couldn't help but think of a deliciously chocolate covered truffle, whose taste was rich, exciting, and defiantly not chastely. It was an aroma of pure love, with hints of lust and coffee. When taking a sip, the texture had changed from something thin in value, to thick and smooth, almost like a red-velvet cushion, contouring to the touch, that beautifully frames a couch which it lays upon.

The taste was rich and exciting. Like separating a long kiss from a forbidden lover. It was a luscious, bolder, thicker in flavor, the flavor as that which one enjoys while biting into a juicy nectarine. A nectarine that had been crossbred with a plum, a pomegranate and some black cherries. Asking Augustine his thoughts he exclaimed, “It’s like walking through a dark, exotic, rose garden on Mid-summer nights eve.” So go out and buy it, and maybe Titania, Queen of the Summer faye will grace you with her presence!

St. Benedict's Beer

St. Arnold of Metz once said, “From man’s sweat and God’s love, beer came into the world.” Indeed the fruit of the grain has flowed and frothed from many a pint, throughout the world. To keep with the tradition of beer creation, a brewery has come back into the public eye, from a lush and ancient town at the bottom of a mountain, whose prayerful walls and quiet stirrings, remain to this day, the center of the Benedictine Order. The peaceful city of Nursia, from where the great sibling-saints (Benedict and Scholastic) hale, a new scent has sent this gently city stirring. 

The brewery of this ancient monastery "carries with it hundreds of years of history. It rests tranquilly within the walls of the monastery that date back a millennium and is crowned at the entrance with a fresco of the Blessed Virgin Mary upon grains of barley. From ancient times, monks have understood that their vision of life must be shared with society by means of earthly experiences; otherwise it becomes closed off and isolated from the world.

In the course of monastic history, Benedictine monks have given witness to the presence of God in the world in many ways.  First of all, through their daily rhythm of prayer, monks have sought to remind themselves and the entire world that the only way to true happiness must have the God of salvation at its center.  A vision of the world without God will always leave us empty and incomplete.

But from ancient times, monks have understood that this vision of life must be shared with society by means of earthly experiences, otherwise it becomes closed off and isolated from the world.  Monks have implemented this view in the liturgy, with the singing of Gregorian Chant, the use of incense, and the use of bells—things which involve all of man’s senses, as well as in the area of study, seeking to enlighten the farthest reaches of the human intellect, and finally in work aimed at bringing forth the fruits of the earth which nourish the human body.  In all of these undertakings, monks have never ceased to sanctify material things in order to make them paths that lead to God." (Brewery )

The monastery has created two styles of beer, a light and buoyant blond and a reflective darker beer, rich in color and deep in flavor. Not as light as a blond, but not as heavy as a stout. 

One pilgrim reflects upon his journey to these hallowed halls and describes it in the following. "To start: pecorino slices drizzled with local honey infused with elder berries. Then: pasta with summer truffles shaved generously onto the plate. For the main meal, a roast wild boar with roasted local root vegetables. Bottles of the local mineral water and, following on our new friend’s example, the house red wine washed it all down.

 
When it was time for dessert, our Belgian friend eschewed the sweets and invited us to join him for a plate of figs and a couple of large bottles of Birra Nursia Extra up on the outdoor terrace of the restaurant. Figs and dark Belgian-style beer made fresh by the monks just steps away while Diana the hunter rose in the southern sky, talk about alignment!" Truly a taste of heaven. 

Sidecar: The Back to School Cocktail.

It’s that time of year when the heat begins to settle down and the axis of the earth begins to turn away from the direct rays of the sun. Lady Autumn begins her dress fitting for her walk along the earth in a few short weeks. But more on these Autumnal drinks later. In reality, it is that time when intellectual activity is placed into full swing and students as well as teachers begin to wake their brains up from the slumber of summer.  But after a hard, days work, most children go home to Hot Chocolate after a long hard day, to those students of higher learning (and most teachers) they can go home to a smooth, crisp drink called: The Sidecar.  

The Sidecar is a sour drink. Sours were quite popular during the golden age of cocktails in the early 1900's and were a simple mix of base spirit, sour (primarily lemon), and a touch of sweetness.  It is a drink which history brings out of the World War I era. The ingredients, though simple, are very rich and elegant. Served in a Cocktail glass, rimmed with sugar (if your sweeter kind of person), it has a crisp beginning, smooth finish, with lingering notes of oranges. Be careful drinking this stylish-concoction, for it is a head turner and should be sipped, while talking about things of higher intellectual pursuits. It also goes well in the hands of very well-dressed, persons. 

Recipe:

1 1/2 oz Cognac

1 oz Cointreau

1/2 oz lemon juice

Lemon twist for garnish

Sugar for rimming (optional)

Shake well (with ice for a crisper experience) and strain into a prepared cocktail glass. Garnish with Lemon Twist.