Attention Clear Lake: We have craft cocktails!

Clear Lake just got its first Prohibition-era, speakeasy-style bar for craft cocktails. Preamble Lounge and Craft House in Webster is open now, with a grand opening celebration planned for April 1. I stopped by this evening for a drink and was very happy with what I found - and even happier that it's 5 minutes from my house.

Located in an unassuming strip center between 2 movie theaters -- the Cinemark on one side and the NASA Dollar Cinema on the other -- Preamble has a classy modern-industrial interior to rival anything inside the loop.

More importantly, the cocktails are really good. I tried the Garden Gimlet (a basil-infused gimlet that was perfectly not-too-sweet) and the Bee's Knees (made with local honey and lavender). Both were delicious, although the gimlet was my favorite. I also got to preview the house red wine, which has a good balance of fruitiness, acidity, and oak, moderate tannins, and should please many palates and complement a variety of foods. Speaking of food, the menu is still in the testing phases, but should be rolled out soon.  The beer taps are stocked with a variety of local craft fare.

Preamble has a dress code on Thursday through Sunday evenings (casual all other times). I think it's cool that they've added this touch to recreate the more glamorous feel of a bygone era. I'll be interested to see how it works for them, since I'm not aware of any other bar that does it. They currently have a well-curated Pandora station playing, but live music of all types is on the agenda.

I'm excited to welcome Preamble to the neighborhood, and excited that our Clear Lake horizons are expanding!

Houston has a Distillery!

I recently toured Houston's first distillery and sampled some locally made spirits! Yellow Rose Distilling launched in 2012 and produces 4 kinds of whiskey and a vodka (plus a few other fun things in limited quantities). They are available for sale in Texas and 9 other states. Tours and tastings are offered every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and are a fun way to spend an evening. The tours are relaxed and informative with a tasting afterwards, and there's a comfortable bar to relax in before and after the tour.

Yellow Rose's whiskeys are made from organic Texas corn with rye and barley from a variety of sources. This is the food-grade grain storage room...

The fermentation takes place in open-topped tanks, then the result is distilled in this pot still.

After distillation, the whiskey is clear (and strong!).

By law, the whiskey must be aged in new American oak.  You can see the charring on the inside of the barrels. The oak aging contributes color and flavor.

We visited the bottling line...

Then on to tasting!

Yellow Rose produces Blended Whiskey, Outlaw Bourbon, Straight Rye Whiskey, and Double Barrel Bourbon Whiskey. As a wine person, the Double Barrel was the most interesting to me. To make Double Barrel, they age the bourbon a second time in barrels that have been used for Cabernet Sauvignon. This adds red wine aroma to the whiskey and fruitiness to the taste. These are the Cabernet barrels in action:

Yellow Rose also does some fun things with maple syrup. First, they send their used whiskey barrels to Vermont, where a maple syrup producer ages his maple syrup in them. The syrup takes on a whiskey flavor without any alcohol. (Yellow Rose sells this maple syrup in their tasting room.) Then, after the syrup has been bottled, those same barrels are sent back to Yellow Rose, where they are filled once again with Straight Rye Whiskey. The end result - Maple Rye - is a delicious, maple-flavored whiskey.

I'm excited that Houston has its own distillery, and I highly recommend that you take a tour. You'll have fun and taste some great Houston whiskey.

Texas Kneecaps (with Bonus Lesson on Semi-Generic Labeling!)

I recently came across a cocktail recipe for a “Kneecap” at The Kitchn, one of my favorite cooking sites.  The drink is simple: equal parts bourbon and ruby Port, shaken over ice.  Lately my go-to bourbon is Lone Star 1835 Texas Bourbon (available from Spec’s for $27 per 750 ml bottle).  I picked up the Haak Texas Port to go with it ($18 per 750 ml bottle), so I could make a 100% Texan Kneecap!  

The Texas Kneecap is definitely a drink for bourbon (or whiskey) fans, and it's strong.  The Port adds sweetness and fruitiness which combines well with the caramel notes in the bourbon.  I threw in an ice cube because I was too lazy to shake it properly.  I am obviously not a cocktail purist. 

But, you may ask, doesn’t bourbon come from Kentucky?  And doesn’t Port come from Portugal?  And for that matter, why are some bottles labeled “California Champagne” when Champagne is in France?  I’m glad you asked!  The answer, in a (hyphenated) word, is “semi-generic.”  We’re about to traverse some dry, legal territory, so I recommend you pour yourself a Texas Kneecap before proceeding.  

U.S. wine label regulations divide geographical names into 3 categories:  generic, semi-generic, and non-generic:  

• Generic means that in the past the name referred to a place, but now refers to a style of wine.  A generic name can refer to any wine of that style, no matter where the wine is from.  (Vermouth is one of these.)
• Semi-generic means the name refers to a specific place, but the name is so closely associated with a particular style of wine that producers from anywhere are allowed to use the name to refer to the style.  However, if the wine doesn’t come from the place the name refers to, another regional name MUST be placed in front of the semi-generic name.  (Hence Port comes from Portugal, but we can have a “Texas Port.”  This is also how we get “California Champagne.”)
• Non-generic means that the name can ONLY be used to refer to wine from that place, and does not refer to a wine style.  (Bordeaux wine can only come from the Bordeaux region of France.)

Here are some examples:

* The U.S., per European Union request, has agreed to work to change the status of EU semi-generic names to non-generic.  If/when the law is changed, new labels will only be able to use these names in reference to these specific wine regions.  However, producers outside these regions who used the names (legally) as semi-generic on their labels prior to a certain date would be “grandfathered” and able to continue using the name, providing that no other wording on the label changed.

Clear as mud?  If you're a masochist and want to read the full law, click here.  These regulations apply to wine.  Bourbon has its own set of regulations, but for now let’s stick to the 2 most important ones:  1)  it must come from the U.S. and 2)  the grain used to make it must be at least 51% corn.

Now you understand the basics of generic vs. semi-generic geographical names on wine labels!  I think you deserve another Texas Kneecap.

Lillet (because you need good aperitifs in your life)

I've been meaning to try Lillet for ages.  I finally did, and I'm mad at myself for not doing it sooner.  Lillet (or Lillet Blanc) is a French aperitif wine (meaning it's traditionally drunk before a meal) from Bordeaux, France.  It's blended from 85% Bordeaux wine and 15% sweet liqueur made with orange peels.  The wine portion is made from the traditional white Bordeaux grapes - Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Muscadelle.  (There's also a Lillet Rouge made from red grapes and a Lillet Rose, but the white or blanc is the traditional version.)

Lillet is not as sweet as dessert wine.  You won't find the sweetness overpowering or cloying, because it has plenty of acid for balance.  It tastes much like a white Bordeaux, with the citrusy, grassy, herbal notes of the Sauvignon Blanc, the honeyed-peach qualities of Semillon, and the grapey-ness of Muscadelle.  Then imagine adding more orange flavors, more sweetness, and more alcohol (up to 17% abv).  A standard 750 ml bottle is $20, so Lillet is not cheap.  But as you drink a few ounces over ice in the traditional French way, you will find it money well spent.  In America Lillet is more commonly used as a cocktail or dessert ingredient.  Here are more ways to drink (or eat) Lillet.

COCKTAILS:
I tested nearly all the Lillet cocktail recipes I could find and wrote down my impressions.  My favorites were the ones that played off the flavors already present in the Lillet - citrus, peach/apricot, and herbs - and the one with the lavender syrup, because I'm a lavender freak.  These cocktails should be shaken and/or served over ice.

Vesper - James Bond ordered this drink in Casino Royale.  If you like martinis, you'll like this.

• 3 oz gin
• 1 oz vodka
• 1/2 oz Lillet

Incognito - I like this.  It has the flavors of apricot and Lillet, made stronger by the brandy.  Sweet but not overly so.

• 1 oz brandy
• 2 oz Lillet
• 1/3 oz (2 tsp) apricot brandy
• dash of bitters

Twentieth Century - Gin, Lillet, and citrus combine beautifully, but I don’t like the chocolate here.  That’s a personal preference - chocolate + herbal + citrus isn't my thing.  If you like orange flavored chocolates, you’ll like this more than I do.  Sweet, but not like candy, quite tart.

• 1 2/3 oz gin
• 2/3 oz Lillet
• 2/3 oz white creme de cacao
• 1/3 oz fresh lemon juice

Hoopla - Good, lots of citrus and not too sweet.

• 1 oz brandy
• 2/3 oz (4 tsp) Cointreau
• 2/3 oz Lillet
• 2/3 oz fresh lemon juice

Corpse Reviver #2 - I haven't tried this one yet, but I'm sure I would like it.  As I mentioned above, gin + citrus + Lillet is a great combination.  The licorice flavor of the absinthe would complement the herbal notes in the Lillet.

• 3/4 ounce gin
• 3/4 ounce lemon juice
• 3/4 ounce Cointreau (or triple sec)
• 3/4 ounce Lillet
• 1 dash absinthe

Old Etonian - Very nice, but strong, and you'd better like gin.  I went a tad heavy on the crème de noyaux because I like it.

• 1.5 oz. gin
• 1.5 oz. Lillet
• 2 dashes orange bitters
• 2 dashes crème de noyaux

The Wheesky - Tastes mostly like whisky, but the Lillet adds a nice fruitiness and a touch of sweetness.  You need to be a whiskey fan for this one.

• 1 part Lillet 
• 2 parts Irish whiskey
• dash or 2 of lemon juice

Gin-Lillet-Lemonade - The names describes this well.  Like strong lemonade with gin and Lillet.  I'm tempted to play with the proportions and try a version with slightly less gin and lemon.

• 1.5 oz gin
• 0.5 oz Lillet 
• 0.5 oz lemon juice 
• 0.5 oz simple syrup
• 2-3 drops of citrus bitters

Lavender Lemonade with Lillet (from Design Sponge) - The night I tried to make this I happened to be out of both vodka and my first-choice substitute, which would have been gin.  I was really annoyed too, because I had made lavender syrup specially for this.  Not to be deterred, I tried a version with whiskey, which was delicious.  All the flavors balanced into sweet, flowery, citrus, whiskey yumminess.  I still want to try it with vodka some time.  I'm certain it would be delicious.

• 1.5 oz vodka 
• 1.5 oz Lillet Blanc
• 1 oz lavender syrup **
• 1 oz lemon juice
• 2 oz chilled soda water

** There's a recipe for lavender syrup at the link above.  If you love the flavor of lavender like I do, consider doubling the amount of lavender in the recipe.

DESSERTS:

Lillet Buttermilk Shake (from 101cookbooks.com)

• 2 cups / 1 pint vanilla ice cream (or creme fraiche ice cream)
• 1/3 cup / 80 ml Lillet
• 1/3 cup / 80 ml buttermilk

Martha Stewart's Peach-Raspberry Clafouti
Recipe at the link above.