Q Kola and Ginger

The family and I got to spend a couple of hours at one of our favourite places again today, Roast Coffeehouse.  It's been too long since we've been!

We noticed some new sodas that we just had to try, Q Drinks.  There were 4 flavours, but we chose two; Kola - Superior Kola, the label tells us, and Ginger - A Superior Ginger Ale.

They come in pretty little bottles, with only 237 ml/8 fl oz rather than the 355 ml/12 fl oz you'd get from a canned drink, and quite a bit more expensive.  I don't remember the price per bottle, but after enviro fees and GST, it came out to just over $4 a bottle.

Ouch.

Aesthetic appeal was definitely something the makers paid attention to.

 Even under the caps.

The Kola bottle even went the extra mile, with a personal message from the company founder.

"Real trees and plants," huh.  As opposed to fake ones?  Looking at the website, one of the things that had me rolling my eyes a bit was their going on about using organic agave instead of "high fructose corn syrup and sugar."  It's always disappointing to me when I see companies playing on people's fears and health fads of the day.  Sugar is sugar is sugar, regardless of the source.  Still, I'm not a fan of super-sugary anything, so the promise of these being not too sweet was encouraging.

So were the ingredient lists.  The Kola lists carbonated water, organic agave, phosphoric acid, extracts of cinnamon, clove, coriander, kola nut, lemon, lime, orange and nutmeg. Caramel.  Caffeine.  The Ginger Ale lists Carbonated Water, organic agave, ginger extract, extracts of lemon juice, coriander, cardamom, capsicum, orange peel, rose oil.  Sounds really interesting!

The Ginger Ale bottle did not include a pretentious little message from the founder.

So, did the sodas live up to their hype?

Almost.

The Ginger Ale was not as overwhelmingly ginger flavoured, nor as ... chunky... as some sodas we've tried.

This is a good thing. 

Unfortunately, it didn't really have much else to make up for it.  We could taste a light phosphoric acid bite and a light ginger flavour, but there really wasn't much of anything else to make it stand out.  It was rather pleasant and light (this from someone who does not actually like ginger ale, nor almost any of the clear sodas).  It was nice.  Other family members who actually do like ginger ale didn't find it particularly appealing.  Nice to try, but not enough to want to buy it again.

It was much the same with the Kola.  Lightly flavoured with the light phosphoric acid bite, it was happily as not-sweet as promised, but... it was really rather boring.  I was hoping to taste more of the spices listed in the ingredients, and I really didn't.

They were both good, but not great.  I'm actually more impressed with the bottle design than I am with what was in them.

When it comes down to it, if I'm going to spend more money to get a more traditional sodas, I'll stick with Boylan for cola and Reed's for ginger.

New years Mulled Wine

The consumption of alcohol on the eve of the new year is a proud, if occasionally disastrous, tradition. Who are we to shun it?
We rang in 2012 with a bottle of some less than stellar white wine purchased at a severely unwelcoming liquor shop moments before it closed, so let's go out with a bit more style this time!
A bit of cross-promotion here, you can take a look at what recipe (or, uh "recipe") we used and the cooking process here, at my Mother's Squidoo article. Doing so might earn her a bit of pocket change, so get to it!

And how does it taste?
Well, neither of the wines that we used were particularly spectacular on their own, but they combine nicely. The dry red cuts the sugar and port well, while the spices round out the flavour and the lemon adds a pleasant kick. The flavours are all very intense and upfront, not a subtle drink in any sense.
That doesn't, surprisingly, extend to its alcoholic qualities. For the sheer amount of liquor in this, I had expected more of a punch and... it's actually pretty mellow in that respect!

Much better warm than when it gets to room-temperature, though. Ech.

A happy new year to you all, and I hope you continue to drink vicariously through us for another one!

Spiced Golden Milk

Not too long ago, someone on my facebook shared a youtube video showing how to make something called Golden Milk.  I'd never heard of it before, but I was quite familiar with the medicinal qualities of turmeric, so it piqued my interest.  It's not something I normally have in my spice cupboard - at least not in quantities for something like this, so I decided to pick some up to give it a try.

Last night, since Spindle was feeling quite ill and I was up late anyhow, I went looking for more information and decided to make some.  This is the recipe I used, except that I made a lot more paste for later use.  Also, I forgot to buy almond oil, so that got skipped completely. 

Spindle was willing to try it and see if it would help settle her stomach.  Or, if not that, prevent dry heaves.  Neither of us knew what to expect when it came to the taste.  We both ended up liking it quite a lot, though I put in more honey then either of us preferred.  To me, it really just tasted like warm milk and honey, except good.  I hate milk as a beverage, so even though I couldn't quite make out the taste of turmeric over the milk and honey, it did make a difference.  Spin felt there was a very mild taste of turmeric, and she really liked it as well.  Sadly, it did not settle her stomach whatsoever, but she enjoyed it enough that she made herself a second cup several hours later, having given up on the idea of sleep entirely.

This morning, I decided to make some more but, as is often the case with me, I immediately had to get funky with the ingredients.  Some of the recipes I'd read included cardamon while others suggested cinnamon.  So I started thinking that a bit of cinnamon would be nice, and I'm sure we have some ground cardamon left, and oh look!  Cloves!

And a new drink was born.

Doesn't that look lovely?

Here's how it was made.

2 cups milk (we use only homogenized milk, but use whatever milk you prefer)
Ground cinnamon, ground cardamon, ground cloves, to taste (I added perhaps 1/4-1/2 tsp of each)
2 tsp honey (or adjust to taste)
1/4 tsp vanilla
3 tsp turmeric paste (or adjust to taste)

Heat the milk to simmer, then stir in the spices and honey.  Just as the milk begins to simmer again, add the vanilla, stir and remove from heat.  Add the turmeric paste and mix well.  Divide into 2 cups and enjoy!

This version has an almost creamy taste to it, and the spices add a nice touch.  Even Spindle, who is still feeling quite sick as I write this, couldn't resist having some and is now (finally!!) getting some sleep.  So maybe it does help settle the stomach a bit after all?  Especially considering that she is mildly lactose intolerant. 

I'm going to have to keep a supply of turmeric paste handy often, as I can see this drink being a regular night cap!

The only down side is that the spices tend to sink to the bottom of the cup, which can be a bit of a shock when you get to the final dregs.  

Health wise, turmeric is well known for its anti-inflammatory properties, so it's often recommended for people with arthritis, joint pain and any other inflammatory pain.  It's also supposed to be good for healthy liver function, lowering cholesterol and regulating blood sugars, as well as being good for the skin and for women's reproductive health.  Cinnamon has its own list of health benefits including helping with the digestion, lowing blood sugars, cholesterol, arthritis and women's reproductive health.  Cardamon is supposed to be good for digestive issues, including treating nausea and cramps, sore throats and some respiratory issues.  It is even supposed to help lower blood pressure.  Cloves, like most "desert" spices, are also good for the digestion.  They have anti-inflammatory properties as well, and as an aromatic, the oil is good for respiratory ailments.  The oil is good for pain as well - I've used it successfully on tooth aches when I couldn't get to a dentist right away. 

So all in all, not only is this a really tasty drink, it's a healthy one as well!