Contemplating Cocktails with Keith

Did you know that Johnny Appleseed was a drunk?
But first Metro Melik goes off on a tangent about a real life Jack Sprat situation. Keith gets things back on track as to why Johnny Appleseed went around the land planting cider apple trees. Let's start in 1698 with William Laird in New Jersey who started making apple whiskey that eventually became applejack.
Cider apples are necessary for applejack.
This episode has a lo...

Keith considers this mezcal's other half to be tequila. With mezcal and tequila we discuss the circle of life.
Tequila comes from blue agave of cactus.

Chihuahua Mountains are where blue agave grows. The name threw off Melik and trying to do math shows. The first recorded distillation of tequila happened in 1666.

Weird story from Melik talking a little bit about his dance history. Strippers were involved kind of. Then there is ...

What is amaro?

But of course there's a Melik sidebar that happens first. He talks about date night that had an enjoyable meal.

Amaro has a simple meaning of bitter. It is a bitter liqueur. Grappa based spirit that has herbs, spices, botanicals added to it that is reduced from a 'brandy' to an amaro. This is a followup of "booze can be medicine". A lot of amaros were made to be medicinal. "Holistic medicine is that amaro is...

In this happy meandering episode:
Keith is happy to be a bicycle rider in the middle of the Mitten, Lansing Michigan.
The drink is the vehicle for two passionate people to share good stories. This episode will have stories circling around the spirit of moonshine. This moonshine story begins with the Whiskey Rebellion.
Think about how different production, purchasing goods, and consuming goods have changed over the last ...

Warning: Melik curses a few times in this episode.

Clear, flavorless spirit distilled from cereal grains and an often misunderstood spirit. Ideally vodka has no flavor. Vodka is the diminutive of voda is "water" in several Slavic languages, similarly to uisquibah which is Gaelic for water of life. There's a lot of misconceptions about the distillation process in general that are discussed in this episode. Basically vodka is gluten ...

A spirit that's origin that dates back to the 14th century is absinthe. It has as storied and colorful history that is connected to people like Hemingway, Voltaire, Rimbaud, Picasso, Van Gogh, and Poe. There are as many misconceptions about absinthe as there are stories. And yes we do have a cocktail for you in this episode.
Metro Melik shares his early childhood experiences that included his reading choices in grade school. Th...

Thanks for making it through the gin episode. Here's one about Aqua Vitae which is very similar but different.
Keith talks about his Swedish friend that introduced him to the aqua vitae spirit and a Swedish traditional Friday meals.
This is a journey of a spirit with the caraway savory flavor.

Keith talks a discovery from his grandmother that completely changes his paradigm.

Open your palate - "You're not accepting...

[there are some curse words in this episode]
Keith and Melik are still formulating the names of the show as we explore the world of gin. They realize that gin is a polarizing spirit but they encourage you to take a listen to this episode. You'll educate yourself on the spirit and may find a way to enjoy it. Keith talks about his bicycle riding journey that will lead up to him participating in the 2019 DALMAC. The Dick

It's a new spirit of the Western World. A Chinese sorghum spirit, baijiu. There's a little bit of storytelling wrapped around this Chinese spirit. Keith spent some time living in China and shares what he learned about the culture of being a host and a guest. Baijiu is a versatile spirit that can replace another spirit in your favorite cocktail. Baijiu is celebrated on World Baijiu Day, check out www.worldbaijiuday.com

Baij...

In this episode we discuss brandy and how it's made. Also different versions including  Armagnac, cognac, american brandies, and fruit brandies. Keith delves a bit into American brandies. Adding a little pepper to the episode we take a visit the store Wonder Women Estate Sales in Lansing's Old Town. One more thing. Don't sleep on Hennessy. There's a deep history with that particular cognac. And finally we share a recipe that y...