Bellini - (cocktail)

We've recently tried Peach Nectar and a Spanish sparkling wine (cava). The classic cocktail known as the Bellini is nothing more than a mix of these two beverages. Well, that isn't entirely true. Let me explain.

To make a real deal Bellini, you need a fresh peach. A fresh white peach that you pit, but not peel. Cut it into cubes, add it to a blender with a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice and a teaspoon of simple syrup (sugar and water heated together to make a syrup). Blend those ingredients together and pour a couple of ounces into a champagne flute. Top it off with a dry sparkling wine and, voila, you have a Bellini.

I cheated. The recipe for peach nectar is peaches, water, sugar, and lemon juice. Sounds familiar to the paragraph above, no? So, I used a couple of ounces of the Hero Peach Nectar from my one liter bottle and then some of the Segura Viudas Brut Reserva to top it off. Far simpler. Perhaps not as complex or tasty, but I don't have to wash the blender. And, this peach nectar isn't made with white peaches. No problem, though, yellow peaches taste just as good.

According to The Bar Guide by Williams-Sonoma, the Bellini was created by Harry Cipriani in 1948. Here's why the peach color is important. Harry operated Harry's Bar in Venice, Italy. He liked the artist Jacopo Bellini. Apparently, the color of this concoction reminded him of some of the pinks used in Bellini's paintings. So he named the drink after the artist.

Presentation/Appearance - 5/10 It looks like a cloudy orange juice (or a Mimosa because of the flute.)

Nose/Aroma - 5/10 Neither wine nor fruit sallies forth to be smelled. Kind of boring.

Taste/Flavor - 8/10 Wow, this is better than a Mimosa. Sparkling peach, sweet and dry, the two beverages complement each other to the point where one ends as the other begins, before the overlap and reverse roles. Complex and tasty.

Finish/Satisfaction - 9/10 Satisfying is the appropriate word. This should be a weekend brunch staple when peaches are in season. This would serve as a fine aperitif for breakfast, but the fruity sweetness would also add to the culinary experience. Make the sparkling wine is bone dry, though. A sweet wine would tip the balance toward dessert flavors.

Overall - 7.7/10 This has become one of my favorite wine-based cocktails. I'll have to try the traditional recipe and also mix the nectars with different wines. This cava with this nectar make a drink that is superior to either beverage alone.

What sort of brunch cocktails do you prefer? Spicy Bloody Marys? Mimosas? Screwdrivers?

Segura Viudas Brut Reserva

The sparkling wines of Spain are known as cava.

This cava, the Brut Reserva from Segura Viudas, is made from traditional Spanish grape varieties: Macabeo, Parellada, and Xarel-lo. This particular wine, designated brut should be nice and dry.

Cavas must be made with a secondary fermentation in the bottle. This is what makes the wine bubbly. The inexpensive method of simply injecting CO2 into a still wine is not allowed if the winemaker wants to call their product a cava.

Despite being made like traditional Champagnes, cavas remain relatively inexpensive. This can't be because of the taste. Cavas are generally crispy and delicious. Must be a failure of marketing.

Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 Simple, classic label, vigorous pop from the cork, and lots of gunsmoke emanating from the bottle. Violent medium-sized bubbling on the pour that builds a huge white head and then falls flat quickly. The wine stays active though, settling into a fountain of tiny bubbles rising from the center of the flute. You can see this in the photo.

Nose/Aroma - 6/10 Cut flowers, without the perfume. Nothing substantial.

Taste/Flavor - 7/10 This is, indeed, dry. Crispy, very active bubbling on the tongue. This is the way a cava should taste. Light bodied, good acidity, very refreshing.

Finish/Satisfaction - 7/10 This definitely lingers on the tongue. The bubbles seem to push the wine around the palatee. Long finish, somewhat acidic, but not tart.

Overall - 6.85/10 Satisfying and above average. If this had smaller bubbles and a creamier mouthfeel it would have scored much higher.

I like cavas, but I also enjoy sparkling wines from Italy and the United States. Of course, I love champagnes, too, but the price point for those always seems a little crazy to me. This wine sold for about $10 to $12. Quite reasonable. I'd love to hear any sparkling wine recommendations you might have.

Hero Peach Nectar

I love peaches.

Hero is a Swiss company with a North American presence in Ocala, FL. They sell a variety of inexpensive nectars that can be found in many grocery stores.

I love peaches.

And so, today, we're reviewing the Peach Nectar from Hero. We'll also be trying the Peach Nectar in a modified classic cocktail later on.

The label says that this nectar is a product of Spain. As if to bring that point home, nearly everything on the label is bilingual. I know the Spanish words for apple and banana. Now I know the word for peaches: melocoton, with an accent on the last "o".

This one liter (33.8 oz) glass bottle should be thoroughly chilled and thoroughly shaken before pouring. The nectar is at least 50% peach. It is made with pureed peaches, water, sugar, and lemon juice. No added flavors, no added colors. It is not made from concentrate either. The nectar has been pasteurized, but otherwise no preservatives.

Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 You probably can't see it in the photo, but the tall glass bottle has a marbled pattern in the wider base to protect against slipping. There is a definite tradeoff between a tall bottle and a wide bottle. I prefer the former based on my refrigerator configuration. The nectar looks like a liquid peach.

Nose/Aroma - 6/10 The nectar smells almost like a slice of peach, but, likely because of the sugar and lemon juice, it has a Gerber baby food scent to it.

Taste - 7/10 There is no denying the peach. Not too sweet, but with a full mouthfeel. Very tasty without being cloying. This nectar must have many uses besides serving as a simple beverage.

Finish/Satisfaction - 8/10 I like the way this finishes. The aftertaste is like eating the fruit. Drink it cold, though. As it warms the acidity from the lemon juice can take hold.

Overall - 7.15/10 A nice alternative to fruit juice. If you enjoy peaches, and they're out of season (starting about now), a glass of peach nectar might just tide you over.

I'm looking forward to trying the other Hero nectars. Will the banana nectar bring back vivid baby food memories?

Adina Natural Highs Hazelnut Hook Up

The Adina website is a bit busy, it is full of information and giveaways and an aggressive sense of community and purpose. They have a fantastic monkey logo and a slogan - 'Drink No Evil!' Yet, the Hazlenut Hook Up can doesn't have the logo anywhere on it. And it has the more tepid slogan - 'Feel Good - Do Good'. Ah, well, that doesn't matter. This is the PW's first energy drink!

The Hazlenut Hook Up is a coffee-based drink best served chilled. The Colombian coffee and evaporated cane sugar are both organic and fair trade certified. I'm hoping the dairy cows were treated humanely, but nothing is mentioned on container concerning bovine welfare.

Surely, there must be an ingredient besides coffee, milk, and sugar that sets this drink apart from a cup of Joe. There is. It contains natural hazlenut flavor and guarana; the latter delivering even more caffeine than coffee.

Presentation/Appearance - 6/10 Nothing special here. A simple 8 oz (240 ml) can with text highlighting the fair trade and naturalness of the beverage. Without detailed explanation, the contents are declared the "antioxidant equivalent of 4 servings of fruit" as measured by the USDA. However, we know that coffee, like tea, contains antioxidants.

Nose/Aroma - 6/10 The sugar is easy enough to detect, along with the nuttiness of the hazlenut flavoring. I had expectations of a more significant coffee aroma, but it never materialized. This tells me that we're about to taste something sweet versus bitter.

Taste/Flavor - 6/10 And sweet is what we mainly have here. The purpose of this drink is to provide a non-evil way of delivering caffeine to the body in a harmless, if not especially pleasing way. Nothing bad here, but nothing exciting. Except for my pulse...which we'll cover in a moment.

Finish/Satisfaction - 8/10 The drink delivers on its energy promise. Perhaps I am unused to caffeine, but I can feel the surge. The coffee flavor does linger after the sugar and hazlenut have left, which makes this feel more like an iced coffee experience than an awful energy drink session. (As we'll see in future Potable World entries, we're not a huge fan of sweet tart tasting sugar blasts.)

Overall - 6.6/10 Tasty energy drink with a solid mix of sugar and coffee flavors. The guarana doesn't add much to the flavor, which works for me in this drink. The hazlenut flavors are plenty here. Somewhat expensive at $1.99 per can, but a visit to the website will bring you access to 2-for-1 coupons. Print them and use them. They have other flavors, too, plus fruit & herb drinks and some sweet latte/espresso offerings.

Hey, hey, I think I have a caffeine buzz. My hair is tingling. What's your favorite energy drink?

Hansen's Signature Vanilla Creme Soda

The Hansen Beverage Company is a maker of juices, natural sodas, and energy drinks. Hubert Hansen and his sons started juices to Hollywood back in the 1930s. By the 1970s, they were making natural sodas, too, including ginger ale, grapefruit, cherry vanilla, and root beer among others.

A few years ago, they made a "super premium" line of sodas they dubbed the Signature Series. The Vanilla Creme, reviewed here, was joined by Ginger Beer, Orange Creme, and Sarsparilla. The Potable World will get to those if we can.

Most Hansen's sodas are canned. The Signature Series is presented in 12 oz (355 ml) bottles with a twist-off cap. I know this one will be sweet, so let's get going.

Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 Serving in the beer bottle is a nice touch for a soft drink. The soda itself is crystal clear with a pale sand tint.

Nose/Aroma - 7/10 Sugar and honey dominate the smell. The carbonation adds a cleanliness, while the vanilla adds a cake frosting scent that makes the mouth water.

Taste - 8/10 So, one could complain that this isn't especially creamy, like say, Virgil's Root Beer. But that only means that this is first and foremost a soda. It is carbonated water with an excellently balanced flavor of vanilla. So, I am not complaining. The honey does add some fullness, but the point here is the presentation of the vanilla blend on a bed of bubbly carbonation. It gives this sweet (ah, blessed cane sugar) drink a dryness that helps it actually quench a thirst.

Finish/Satisfaction - 7/10 This goes down very easy, but it has strong enough flavors to leave a taste of sugary vanilla in your mouth. My only complaint is that when it warms up a bit, the honey becomes more prominent. I know the honey is added to fill out the beverage, but I wish it were a bit more subdued.

Overall - 7.5/10 Hansen's has a winner with this bottled soda. I need to find the others in this series, if they are still available. Anyone had the Sarsparilla?

2005 Cabernet Sauvignon - Rutherford, California

A couple of years ago, Costco, the big discount store that competes with Wal-Mart's Sam's Club, started selling wine and spirits under their Kirkland label. Where I live, only the wine is available at the local stores. We have yet to buy a wine that has disappointed us.

To be sure, Costco doesn't own a vineyard or a winery. They contract with winemakers all over the world, they aren't just limited to California and their home turf in the Pacific Northwest.

This wine, a Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley Rutherford, was purchased earlier this summer. The price points on these wines are quite reasonable. This was less than $15. According to the label, you can cellar this and enjoy to 2012. (This link might be short-lived. Go to costco.com for more info.)

The maker of this wine is the Adler Fels Winery, owned by the Adams Wine Group.

Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 Kirkland has a consistent label appearance, making their private label easy to spot in stores. The wine itself is a gorgeous dark garnet, not opaque, but with a purple sunset translucence on the edges of the liquid. Very appealing.

Smell/Odor/Aroma - 6/10 The nose is alcohol soaked raisins, a little burn on the nose hairs. Makes you think that this will be young and harsh. Fruit scents can't seem to top the boozy viny nature of the nose.

Taste/Flavor - 7/10 Spicy, light plums start it all but they quickly give way to some mild tannic flavors. There is the alcohol presence to the fore again, but it complements the tannic acids. The finish is lengthy.

Finish/Satisfaction - 7/10 I already said the finish was lengthy. The mouthfeel is full, hot spiciness lingers on the tongue. This is a comfortable, as in plush, cabernet, that is easy to drink, but never simple.

Overall - 6.85/10 A solid wine that is great value if you can find it at Costco. Drink some now and store some for later. We paired this with sirloin from Polyface Farms and were not disappointed.

Has anyone had the other Kirkland wines? We like the Australian Shiraz. I also enjoyed the Port. We have a Chateauneuf-du-Pape waiting in the wings.

I'm also curious about the scotches they've offered in partnership with Macallan.

Oolong Shot

Oolong Shot is a blue tea, as in, not green or black. This tea, according to the can, is semi-oxidized. It's darker than green, but lighter than black tea.

Dr. Andrew Weil is a big proponent of the Ito En brands of teas. His image appears on the cans and on the website.

This is a simple ready-to-drink (RTD) tea, made of purified water, oolong tea and some added vitamin C (ascorbic acid.) You get 130% of your daily value of vitamin C in a 6.4 oz (190ml) can. You also get 40 mg of caffeine. That's bit more than a 12 oz Coke, but about half of a typical coffee.

Like the merlot juice from earlier, the big marketing push here is for a healthy dose of anti-oxidants. In this case, polyphenols. Studies continue to determine the efficacy of ingesting polyphenols on human health. Can it hurt? I don't know.

I do know that this little can of tea cost $1.07. Not bad, but it is mainly water. At $21.40 a gallon, I'm expecting something special.

Presentation/Appearance - 6/10 Nothing

special in the appearance. This is a dark gold, nearly brown translucent tea. Clear, pretty, not homely. I served this in a rocks glass because I did not have a see-through coffee mug. I will remedy this situation shortly.

Smell/Odor/Aroma - 7/10 Earthy, just the way you would expect. There is something spiritual about this odor. It brings back memories the way grass, cinnamon, or hickory smoke do. It smells of autumn as leaves fall and rot. It smells of spring, when the earth is turned for planting. I should stop before I write an embarrassing poem. I've had other teas, fresh brewed that present this aroma more strongly. But for an RTD tea in a can, this is impressive. Spouse says it smells "dusty"...different noses, no?

Taste/Flavor - 5/10 The can was labeled best before April 21, 2010. I have no idea when it was canned. The earthly oolong flavor is there. The water is plain and simple, but I detect a metallic taste. I'm not enough of an expert on tea to know if this is natural for the particular leaf, or is this part of being canned in steel.

Finish/Satisfaction - 5/10 The metallic taste dominates the finish. The bitterness is even and would be near perfect is the steely finish wasn't in the way.

Overall - 5.35/10 This is not terrible by any means, but there are better tasting teas out there. Think of the Oolong Shot as a convenience tea, rather than a staple. It is worth spending the extra time heating water and brewing your own.

I'm going to continue to review Ito En beverages, including their other RTD tea: Sencho Shot.

Anyone have any recommended teas in a can?