Even if you don’t get to enjoy a three-month hiatus from work during the summer, the season is still rife with festive opportunities. From barbecues and cocktail parties to family reunions, it seems like every weekend brings a different social function. And while it’s certainly fun to go to a friend’s house and not have to worry about investing in food or cleaning up the mess, you should occasionally take on the responsibility yourself and host your own fete.
When you do, be sure that you have made of the proper preparations before hand. Compose a list well in advance to ensure you have enough food, drinks and entertainment. Cleanup is easier and there tends to be less of a mess if you can keep the party outdoors, but always be prepared for adverse weather conditions; that means keeping a supply of drink coasters and carpet cleaner on hand at all times in case the party has to move indoors.
Caviar connoisseurs would freely admit that the dish’s presentation is just as important as its taste. As is the case with all high-end food stuffs, caviar is meant to appeal to the eyes just as much as the palate. If you’re hosting a dinner party and salmon caviar is on the hors d’oeuvre menu, don’t skimp on presentation. You should use your creative talents to set up a striking display.
The caviar should be removed from the refrigerator approximately 10 minutes before service and allowed to stand at room temperature. Then remove the lid and place the bowl or container on a bed of ice. Most caviar spoons are light in color and fashioned out of bone, which enhances the overall ambiance of the experience. Metal utensils work just fine, but they don’t provide the same light-dark contrast as bone. While you may be concentrating on the caviar, don’t neglect to put out fine glassware as well.
In recent years, there has been a plethora of sushi establishments opening in my community, and with good reason. Despite there being a sushi restaurant on virtually every street corner, the lines at these eateries still go out of the door on a Friday or Saturday night. Tired of the long waits and exorbitant prices, I have recently endeavored to learn how to create my own sushi.
Admittedly, my first few attempts were feeble at best. However, after some trial-and-error, I have become adept at making the basics like maki and nigiri. I’ve even done some experimenting and developed a few of my own original dishes. This weekend I am going to invite a few friends over to serve as guinea pigs for my raw cuisine, and I’ll probably breakout a couple of my traditional sake sets to ensure the party is a success.
Not everyone has the time or inclination to create the social event of the season. When you invite friends to your house, you just want to enjoy their company without the hassle of trying to impress. With proper serveware and glass barware your problem is solved. Even simple food comes out elegant and seemingly labored upon for hours. It lends the professional touch that will get oohs and aahs from your guests.
Complete your dinner with stylish serving bowls and platters; no more chipped and broken pieces. Because of this, this serveware should not only be reserved for guests. They can be used for daily meals as well.
The image on the top and the numbers below are for a formal dinner place setting.
1. Napkin
2. Fish Fork
3. Dinner or Main Course Fork
4. Salad Fork
5. Soup Bowl & Plate
6. Dinner Plate
7. Dinner Knife
8. Fish Knife
9. Soup Spoon
10. Bread & Butter Plate
11. Butter Knife
12. Dessert Spoon and Cake - Dessert Fork
13. Sterling Water Goblet
14. Red Wine Glass
15. White Wine Glass
What is a party without booze? Wine plays a central role in any festive occasion. Wine has transcended geography and culture. Dignitaries, presidents, and leaders drink to seal a friendship. Colleagues open a bottle of wine to celebrate a promotion, or a job well done. Families gather and drink wine during the holidays.
It is no surprise that wine accessories gifts are a hit year-round. A glass thermometer, air-tight bottle stoppers, a drip ring, and a corkscrew are some examples of useful wine accessories. Now that wine tasting parties are becoming popular, these accessories will come in handy.
If you have had your own bar for years, you probably have a variety of barware including swizzle sticks, decorative toothpicks and martini shakers. However, for those just beginning to create their collection of bar accessories, there are a few essentials that no bartender can go without. Obviously there is the various glass and stemware, but this collection can be built over time.
The one thing no bar can be without it a quality corkscrew. When selecting corkscrews for your bar, be sure that they also include a bottle opener. It is also a good idea to purchase a reusable bottle stopper so that you can reseal bottles of wine and keep them fresh.
I’ve been lucky enough to live on Lake Huron for most of my adult life. There are many benefits to having a lakeside residence, but one stands out above all others. Several times each summer, I throw epic parties on the beach. My friends and I lug the grill down onto the sand and we set up a bunch of tables. And the temporary bar is the crowning glory.
Since I’m happily married, I like to let my single friends handle the bar. As I’ve often pointed out, women are often impressed with a man who knows what he’s doing. With that in mind, you should never serve beer in a wine glass, or put an elaborate girly drink in a tumbler. This might seem like a small detail, but you’d be surprised how much a discerning drinker cares about minor touches. If I’m staking my party-throwing reputation on a particular soiree, I like to make sure everything goes off without a hitch.
A cocktail shaker is a container, usually made of metal, used with a lid and strainer to mix alcoholic drinks. Some cocktail shakers use a glass cup for part of the mixing as well. There are three main types of cocktail shaker: the cobbler shaker, the pitcher-shaker and the Boston shaker.
The cobbler shaker is a simple cocktail shaker that one sees in many homes as well as some bars. It contains the tumbler body itself, a lid that seals tightly and usually contains a built-in strainer, and a cap to cover the strainer opening. A cobbler shaker is very easy to use — one simply adds ingredients, covers, shakes and pours. Because of the small size of the built-in strainer, pouring drinks through a cobbler cocktail shaker can take some time, which is why this type of shaker is not often used in high-traffic bars.
The pitcher shaker is essentially the same as the cobbler shaker, but rather than having a distinct tumbler, it uses a pitcher body as the tumbler. The advantage of a pitcher shaker is that cocktails may be prepared en masse and the pitcher may be left on a table for guests to serve themselves. The pitcher shape makes these shakers more awkward to use than the standard cobbler shaker, however, which has caused them to lose popularity in the last few decades.
The Boston shaker is a simpler type of cocktail shaker, and is preferred in most bars because of the speed with which drinks may be mixed and poured. It consists of a metal tumbler and a smaller glass tumbler, with an optional strainer that is not attached to the tumblers themselves. Many bars and individuals use a pint glass in place of the glass tumbler, making this in essence a one-piece cocktail shaker. Using a Boston shaker is slightly more difficult than using a cobbler shaker, but not by much — ingredients are added, the glass tumbler is placed facing the metal tumbler and slapped to seal it, then shaken vigorously and poured through a strainer if no ice is desired.
In addition to the type of cocktail shaker, the quality of material is also an important consideration. Stainless metal tumblers are the preferred, with some cheaper nickel-plated tumblers also representing a good value. Some antique cocktail shakers are made of glass, and a number of reproductions of these glass shakers may be found.
Many novel shapes are available in cocktail shakers — penguin shakers, fire hydrants, bullets and many other fun and whimsical shapes abound. There are cocktail shakers that play music, have built in stirrers, are adorned with ornate decorations and do virtually anything else you can conceive of. Ultimately, the most important thing to look for in a cocktail shaker is a price range you can afford and a manufacturer you trust. The concept of the cocktail shaker is a simple one, and it is difficult to go very wrong with a first purchase.
Now that August has arrived, it’s time to come to terms with the fact that summer is indeed a fleeting phenomenon. It won’t be long before we put away our summer wheat beers and sangria in exchange for headier amber ales and spiced cider. As the seasons change, so do our drinks of choice. In liquor stores across the country, you’ll begin to notice the arrival of an entirely new crop of seasonal beverages.
In just a few months’ time, beer drinkers will be itching to attend Oktoberfest celebrations. The original festival is held each in late September in Munich, Germany, but smaller, equally boisterous parties take place all across America as well. In order to get the most out of your Oktoberfest experience, you’ll want to drink like the Germans do. That means quaffing beer from a pewter tankard or a gargantuan beer stein.