ReflectionOf.Me

James Nash presents the Single Serving Wine Glass. Perfect for picnics and wild parties, each sealed disposable wine glass comes filled with six ounces of red, white or rosé that look good enough to drink at a fancy dinner party.

Go ahead, litter! These edible, flavored and naturally biodegradable gelatinous drinking cups actually contain organisms that nurture the growth of grasses and plants. So you have two choices: a)eat it or b) toss it! It’s a win-win situation, really. While they’re just a concept for now,I'm sure it won’t be too long before something similar hits the shelves.

It might seem strange to quaff your brewskis from a pouch like this, but its maker says it'll taste a whole lot better. The CarboPouch by the Beverage Pouch Group is designed for artisan beermakers, letting them fill you up a six pack to go on-site, making it so the smaller brewers don't need to buy any cumbersome beer-filling assembly line contraptions to ply their hand-made wares.

The best part is the "organoleptic film structure" that doesn't change the taste of the beer at all. The slightly flexible pouch gives the beer room to fizz, and it's easy to fill with the cap on the bottom. Don't expect beer from the majors to sell like this, but this could be a big plus for local beer craftsmen.

Via Beverage Pouch Group

Today I was really thinking on a Starbucks coffee. I did some research and read more about their concept of designing and their team work. Actually Starbucks has two groups of designers as follow, the global creative team that handles advertising and marketing material, products presentation and packaging,  the store design group witch is responsible for the furniture, fittings and layout of the stores. At the creative group they have graphic designers together with technical and packaging specialists. Some of the team also bring fine art and illustration skills to the mix so that is probably why they have such a good range of products. Check it out.

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If you're looking for wine for yourself, want to try something new and want to increase the odds of finding a bottle you'll like, just follow these simple directions. Start by asking these questions:

1.      "How much do I want to spend?"

2.      "Do I want red or white, and which varietals do I already know I like?"

3.      "Is it to be served with food or to be consumed by itself?

The quality of a wine depends on the quality of the grapes. The quality of the grapes is based on the natural environment - topography, climate, soil and site. During ripening the acid levels in the grapes drop allowing a balanced wine to develop. Then the grapes are harvested either mechanically or by hand and taken to the wineries where where they are crushed, fermented, allowed to mature in wooden barrels or stainless steel containers before being bottled.

Step 1:

Sight, smell, taste and touch are the four important factors that decide the quality of a wine. In wine jargon, the terms used are "appearance", "nose" and "palate". Palate includes both taste and touch.

Step 2:

SMELL : The term "Aroma" is used for fresh wine and the term "bouquet" is used for older, less fresh and more complex wines. The intensity of smell - the more intense, the better quality.
TASTE : The tongue can only taste compounds that are sweet, sour (or acidic), salty and bitter. The rest is determined by the sense of smell.

TOUCH : The key elements we need to look for in wine - alcohol, body, tannin and texture. Alcohol gives weight and body that is essential to the full experience of tasting and drinking wine.

Step 3:

Acidity-  Sugar- Bitterness ( Occasionally)- Tannin (in red wines)- Alcohol- Weight- Mouthful & Mousse (in sparkling wine)- Intensity of fruit flavor

All of these components should be in balance. When the balance is achieved the wine can be described as being harmonious.

Finally:

JUDGING WINE QUALITY :

Intensity of flavor- Balance- Length- Complexity

The most important factor that one should look into while choosing a good wine is to find a wine pairing up with your meal. Everyone wants to enjoy a good food paired with good wine !

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Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cereals the most common of which is malted barley, although wheat, corn, and rice are also widely used. Most beer is flavoured with hops, which add bitterness and act as a natural preservative, though other flavourings such as herbs or fruit may occasionally be included. Alcoholic beverages distilled after fermentation or fermented from non-starch sources such as grape juice (wine) or honey (mead) are not classified as beer.

I want to make a top ten list of commercial brands of beer, I need your help, tell me your favorite beer:))

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from beer

Ayran or airan  is a drink made of yoghurt and water, popular in Turkey, and other parts of the Balkans, the Middle East. Ayran is a mixture of yoghurt, water, and salt. It is thought to have originated as a way of preserving yogurt by adding salt.

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In Mexico, tequila is drunk straight, without salt and lime. It is popular in some regions to drink fine tequila with a side of sangrita a sweet, sour and spicy drink typically made from orange juice, grenadine (or tomato juice) and hot chilies. Equal-sized shots of tequila and sangrita are sipped alternately, without salt or lime.

Outside Mexico, a single shot of tequila is often served with salt and a slice of lime. This is called "tequila cruda" and is sometimes referred to as "training wheels," "lick-sip-suck," or "lick-shoot-suck" (referring to the way in which the combination of ingredients is imbibed). The drinker moistens the back of their hand below the index finger (usually by licking) and pours on the salt. Then the salt is licked off the hand, the tequila is then drunk and the fruit slice is quickly bitten. It is common for groups of drinkers to do this simultaneously. Drinking tequila in this way is often erroneously called a Tequila Slammer, but this is a mixed tequila and carbonated drink. Though the traditional Mexican shot is straight tequila, lime is the fruit of choice when a chaser must be used It is believed that the salt lessens the "burn" of the tequila and the sour fruit balances and enhances the flavor. In Germany and some other countries, tequila oro (gold) is often consumed with cinnamon before and slices of orange after, while tequila blanco (silver) is consumed with salt and lime. Finally, as with other popular liquors, there exist a number of shot-related drinking games and "stunt" drinks such as body shots and the tequila stuntman.

from tequila

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Jack Daniel's is a brand of Tennessee whiskey that is among the world's best-selling liquors and is known for its square bottles and black label. Jack Daniel's is consumed in shots, neat, on the rocks, and as an ingredient in dozens of cocktails. It has been prominently featured in movies, songs, and even novels, and is strongly linked to rock and roll, country music. The brand is produced in Lynchburg, Tennessee by Jack Daniel Distillery, which has been owned by the Brown-Forman beverage company since 1956.

from whisky

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Learning how to taste wines is a straightforward adventure that will deepen your appreciation for both wines and winemakers. Look, smell, taste - starting with your basic senses and expanding from there you will learn how to taste wines like the pros in no time! Keep in mind that you can smell thousands of unique scents, but your taste perception is limited to salty, sweet, sour and bitter. It is the combination of smell and taste that allows you to discern flavor.

Here's How:

1. Look: Check out the Color and Clarity.Pour a glass of wine into a suitable wine glass. Then take a good look at the wine. Tilt the glass away from you and check out the color of the wine from the rim edges to the middle of the glass (it's helpful to have a white background - either paper, napkin or a white tablecloth). What color is it? Look beyond red, white or blush. If it's a red wine is the color maroon, purple, ruby, garnet, red, brick or even brownish? If it's a white wine is it clear, pale yellow, straw-like, light green, golden, amber or brown in appearance?

1. Still Looking. Move on to the wine's opacity. Is the wine watery or dark, translucent or opaque, dull or brilliant, cloudy or clear? Can you see sediment? Tilt your glass a bit, give it a little swirl - look again, is there sediment, bits of cork or any other floaters? An older red wine will be more translucent than younger red wines.
2. Smell: Our sense of smell is critical in properly analyzing a glass of wine. To get a good impression of your wine's aroma, gently swirl your glass (this helps vaporize some of the wine's alcohol and release more of its natural aromas) and then take a quick whiff to gain a first impression.
3. Still Smelling. Now stick your nose down into the glass and take a deep inhale through your nose. What are your second impressions? Do you smell oak, berry, flowers, vanilla or citrus? A wine's aroma is an excellent indicator of its quality and unique characteristics. Gently swirl the wine and let the aromas mix and mingle, and sniff again.
4. Taste:Finally, take a taste. Start with a small sip and let it roll around your tongue. There are three stages of taste: the Attack phase, the Evolution phase and the Finish.
5. The Attack Phase, is the initial impression that the wine makes on your palate. The Attack is comprised of four pieces of the wine puzzle: alcohol content, tannin levels, acidity and residual sugar. These four puzzle pieces display initial sensations on the palate. Ideally these components will be well-balanced one piece will not be more prominent than the others. These four pieces do not display a specific flavor per se, they meld together to offer impressions in intensity and complexity, soft or firm, light or heavy, crisp or creamy, sweet or dry, but not necessarily true flavors like fruit or spice.
6. The Evolution Phase is next, also called the mid-palate or middle range phase, this is the wine's actual taste on the palate. In this phase you are looking to discern the flavor profile of the wine. If it's a red wine you may start noting fruit – berry, plum, prune or fig; perhaps some spice – pepper, clove, cinnamon, or maybe a woody flavor like oak, cedar, or a detectable smokiness. If you are in the Evolution Phase of a white wine you may taste apple, pear, tropical or citrus fruits, or the taste may be more floral in nature or consist of honey, butter, herbs or a bit of earthiness.
7. The Finish is appropriately labeled as the final phase. The wine's finish is how long the flavor impression lasts after it is swallowed. This is where the wine culminates, where the aftertaste comes into play. Did it last several seconds? Was it light-bodied (like water) or full-bodied (like the consistency of milk)? Can you taste the remnant of the wine on the back of your mouth and throat? Do you want another sip or was the wine too bitter at the end? What was your last flavor impression – fruit, butter, oak? Does the taste persist or is it short-lived?
8. After you have taken the time to taste your wine, you might record some of your impressions. Did you like the wine overall? Was it sweet, sour or bitter? How was the wine's acidity? Was it well balanced? Does it taste better with cheese, bread or a heavy meal? Will you buy it again? If so, jot the wine's name, producer and vintage year down for future reference.

from winebasic