A couple months ago, I decided to make make brandied cherries at home for use in Manhattans, Old-Fashioneds, and Treacles. After six weeks of maceration, they came out great. The “juice” is almost better than the cherries themselves, even though I used a very cheap brandy. I use it in place of simple syrup in all of these drinks.
Speaking of drinking, is everyone excited about “Mad Men” tonight? I’m worried it will get boring with Don Drape on the wagon, the same way “The Wire” got boring when Jimmy McNulty was on the wagon. There’s too much slack for Bunk/Roger Sterling to pick up.
burnspbesq
I’m betting that tonight is the night that Peggy decides (or gets drunk enough) to experiment with her friend from Life magazine.
Greenhouse Guy
New Dexter tonight! Fav show of all time.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq: Lesbyterianism??
Omnes Omnibus
You should try visinata. We occasionally get some from my in-laws. Killer stuff. The cherries aren’t bad either.
DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice.
@Omnes Omnibus:
I wonder if I can get my Romanian friend to bring some back for me.
Joseph Nobles
Sorry, DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice, but I didn’t find a minute of The Wire boring. I was happy for McNulty when he was on the wagon in Season Four. I wanted to shake the life out of him in Season Five.
Wait, Season Four was boring? That focused on the four or five friends growing up together. That was also the season Bubbles finally hit bottom. Jesus God, why Andre Royo didn’t get an Emmy for that season, I’ll never understand.
And Dexter is on the DVR waiting for me to get home. I’m all psyched up.
suzanne
I was supposed to see Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers tonight, but Tom’s sick. Sigh. The waiting is the hardest part.
Omnes Omnibus
@DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice.: If you can, do so. Tuica is also a good booze-basically moonshine. Woohoo. It ends up being bottled in plastic water bottles and the like. I still have one visinata and one tuica in the house.
Omnes Omnibus
@suzanne: I missed a White Stripes concert a few years ago when Jack White broke his hand. It is also the night that became involved with my wife. It would not have happened if Jack White hand not gotten into a fight with the singer for the Von Bondies. Fate, destiny, random occurrence? Anyway, your evening could turn out in interesting ways.
DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice.
@Joseph Nobles:
You’re right, Season Four was still good. But on-the-wagon J-Mac was boring.
Tattoosydney
@Omnes Omnibus:
@DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice.:
Also ginjinha – the Portuguese equivalent. Yum.
Omnes Omnibus
@Tattoosydney: Never had it, but it looks like it is more of less the same thing. I will try it if I can find it.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney:
I’m sold. Wonder what a flight from Seattle to Lisbon is running these days?
Ellie
I’m always excited for Mad Men. I’d like to see a more sober Don. Not boring at all.
I’m afraid that Joan might be pregnant. I hope they don’t go there though, but I’m concerned considering the track record. Peggy: Once with Pete and preggers. Betty: One moment of passion at Dad’s and preggers.
WereBear
@Ellie: Criminy, it was the fifties.
And birth control was illegal in Connecticut until 1964.
Gozer
Excited for Mad Men tonight. I got all my business type stuff done yesterday to have a free day today, but unfortunately Dr. Mrs. Gozer has to do the professor thing and grade papers AND I’m having a wicked bout with allergies.
So I’ll have to contend with the clickety-clack of laptop typing as I enjoy the show (and Boardwalk Empire) in a Sudafed/Benadryl-induced haze.
thefncrow
I don’t watch Mad Men previews, so if the Draper thing is from that, I wouldn’t know. But, barring some sort of hint like that, I don’t think we’re necessarily headed for a totally sober Draper.
Don has been actually starting to put things back together, but they made a very deliberate point of showing him continue to drink, just at a much more reasonable level. Don isn’t Freddy Rumsen, having to completely swear off the booze in order to pull himself out of that. It just seems like it would be a really strange decision to have Don have to go totally clean after we saw Don begin to put the pieces back together while still having a beer here, sharing a bottle of wine at dinner, some scotch there, and so forth.
John W.
DVRing Rubicon (underrated), Mad Men, and Dexter … excited about Boardwalk Empire, Bored to Death, and Eastbound and Down.
Just a crazy good night of TV, and not a second of it on the networks.
Ellie
@WereBear: Eh, true. And there would be worse things in the world than the offspring of Joan and Roger, but Roger divorcing Jane and Dr Greg getting killed in Viet Nam might be too much to hope for.
BB
Wow, the cherries sound great. thanks for giving me the idea for my next round of christmas presents. last year I gave homemade kahlua, and this looks even better.
Camchuck
drunk mcnulty > sober mcnulty
sober draper > drunk draper
tonight I’m expecting angry Betty Draper.
Cat Lady
I just spent the weekend watching Season 3 of The Wire, so keep the spoilers to a minimum, plz. kthx. I know it’s been over for a long time, but not all of us had HBO, and the time it takes to catch up, well, I’m watching as fast as I can. It’s just so amazing, I understand the need to discuss but just, well, be very very vague.
I love this season of MM, but I feel like so much is going in the culture in the background behind the characters outside of the office, I want to see it! More scenes like when Don was dating Midge and they went out to the club in the Village to see friends play. Peggy should be seeing Eric Burdon, or Dylan again – transistor radios should be on more like at the pool when it was the Stones. No Beatles songs yet? Really? Where are the 60s clothes? Beatle haircuts – who’s going to get one first at SCDP? Moar Sixties Please!
Craig
Mad Men is about Don Draper like the Sopranos was about Tony Soprano. But the Wire wasn’t about Jimmy McNulty in the same way – the show was often better when McNulty was a bit player rather than a focal point.
Gordon, The Big Express Engine
@Ellie: Joan will be pregnant and hubby is going to die in Nam. Or in a live round exercise in basic…
Gordon, The Big Express Engine
@Cat Lady: I was at a bar recently and the bartender and I were discussing how awesome The Wire is. One of my colleagues had never seen it and was asking about it. The bartender was really jealous that my colleague had never seen it and would start watching it soon, that he was jealous that she would get to know McNulty, Stringer, Bunk, Bubs for the first time, a feeling he could never have again. He missed the time when he didn’t know them and then got to know them, if that makes any sense. It did to me. What a great show…
Jewish Steel
Props for the Astral Weeks ref.
Not “mad props”. Those are from the 90s and lame. But props, def.
Peter
I just strained a gallon bottle of my Grandfather’s plum brandy from 1988 into clean jars. He grew plums and macerated them in 100 proof vodka. It’s so freaking good; 20+ years on fruit and pit have given it a complex sweetness and unctuousness that are beyond belief. Make extra- it doesn’t go bad.
Cat Lady
OK, Sally and the Beatles, that’s what I’m talking about. Sally’s going to be a screaming girl at Shea Stadium!
Dan
Is “my cherry, cherry wine” an astral weeks reference? Or am I just so obsessed with that album that I tend to see references where none were intended?
Mnemosyne
@Cat Lady:
Beatles songs are SUPER expensive to use, so they’re going to use them very sparingly (assuming they were able to afford them at all).
Heck, music re-use rights in general are insane to get and expensive once you get them, so I’d be impressed if they managed to get more than one Beatles song for the season.
Yutsano
@Mnemosyne: IIRC there’s also some questions to ownership after Michael Jackson died. He had a lot of creditors so it’s possible they’re trying but the exact owners of the song they want to use is either still in question or the owner won’t relinquish.
DougJ is the business and economics editor for Balloon Juice.
@Dan:
Yes, it is! I’m still trying to use “Wait a minute….Yonder comes my lady”.
Nicole
Like Bert Cooper, I am still in mourning for Miss Blankenship.
mclaren
If you like brandied cherries, you’ll love cherry cider. Nectar of the gods. You can order it online.
About $9 for a half-gallon plus shipping from Colorado Cherry Company.
John PM
I think we can all agree that MM was not boring last night. More happened in last night’s episode than had happened in the rest of thr season. For once, the previews accurately showed what would happen. I can’t wait to see how this all plays out.
Xanthippas
I swear, I sometimes think I’m on the wrong blog. Where’s the blog for people who drink cheap wine and are just now getting around to watching the Wire?
The Other Chuck
Don’t let Christine O’Donnell hear about your maceration activities. Next thing you know, you’ll be masticating those cherries!