[1] Don’t let the summery flowers and lavender label give the wrong impression: This floral gin is a delight for anyone who loves gin botanicals (photo courtesy Hendrick’s Gin).

[2] These ice cube trays make jumbo ice cubes, twice the size of standard cubes (photo courtesy Eparé).

Two Father’s Day gifts we’re giving this year: Hendricks Midsummer Solstice limited release gin, and Eparé jumbo ice cube trays, for the ultimate on-the-rocks experience.
 
 
HENDRICK’S MIDSUMMER SOLSTICE LIMITED EDITION GIN

The latest expression from Hendrick’s Gin, created at the newly-opened Hendrick’s Gin Palace in Girvan, Scotland.

The new expression captures “nature’s flavors and aromas at the peak of summer,” per Master Distiller Lesley Gracie, who also created the original Hendrick’s Gin. “…For this new expression I’ve hand-selected each floral essence to capture this intensity,” she notes.

The packaging (photo #1) features a deep purple bottle with lavender labels. The gin is clear, as always.

But don’t think that summer flowers and lavender labels mean “feminine.”

This is a full-on gin that’s perfect for sippers who enjoy the botanicals in a glass of gin, straight-up or on-the-rocks.

While Hendrick’s has created special cocktails to show off the new gin, we think that the best way to enjoy the uniqueness of any particular expression of spirits is to drink it “as is,” without the layering of other flavors or aromas.

But there are plenty of recipes online, starting with this Midsummer Spritz.

Once the small batch of bottles is gone, it’s gone forever. So in addition to Father’s Day gifts, we picked up an extra couple of bottles; maybe for gifting later on, maybe to remain in our personal stock.

For more information, visit HendricksGin.com.
 
 
EPARÉ JUMBO ICE CUBES

Eparé’s Clear Ice System has created trays for jumbo ice cubes: They’re two inches square!

They’re not just eye-catching: The larger the cube, the slower it melts.

Each ice cube tray makes six cubes (as compared to the traditional dozen regular cubes), $15.99 for a set of two trays.

The ice cube trays have lids, to protect the cubes from migrating aromas and freezer detritus.

Get yours at Empare.com, or at Overstock, Target, Wayfair and other retailers.

You can also use the trays to make:

 
Here are more uses for ice cube trays.

What’s new in sangria?

This clever idea from I|O Godfrey, a rooftop lounge at The Godfrey Hotel in Chicago. (In fact, it’s Chicago’s largest indoor/outdoor rooftop.)

An array of colored ice cubes is made from fresh fruit juices.

After they’re piled high in a tall glass, a blend of Moscato and vodka is poured from a pitcher at the table. The result: food art.

If you’d like to serve it at home, here’s a guide:
 
 
COLORED ICE CUBES

 
What about blue?

For the blue ice cubes, you can use:

 
How fun is this sangria?

Just try it!
 
 
MORE SANGRIA RECIPES

 
 
THE HISTORY OF SANGRIA
 
 
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*This is actually blue simple syrup. Make it and pour it into an ice cube tray.

[1] A rainbow of fruit-flavored ice cubes contribute the fruit juice to this innovative sangria from I|O Godfrey in Chicago (photo © Godfrey Hotel).

[2] A conventional sangria adds fresh fruit to the wine mixture (photo © McCormick).

[3] Many people think of sangria as a red-wine drink, but it is made with white wine and rosé, too (photo © Dante Restaurant | New York City).

[1] Yum, yum: Mediterranean chicken with kalamata olives (both photos courtesy DeLallo).

[2] A more conventional spelling is kalamata (transliterated from the Greek alphabet). Regardless of the spelling, these extra-large, pitted kalamata/calamata olives from DeLallo are great.

June 1st was National Olive Day. This year, it fell on the weekend, when we often don’t publish.

But you won’t mind getting this delicious, easy recipe a couple of days late.

The bright and briny flavor of the Greek kalamata olive stars in this easy-to-prepare chicken entrée.

Accented with slices of tangy lemon and fragrant herbs, this dish gives that classic weeknight chicken dinner a marvelous Mediterranean twist.

Thanks to DeLallo for this recipe.
 
 
RECIPE: MEDITERRANEAN CHICKEN WITH OLIVES

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 400˚F. Combine the lemon juice, olive oil and garlic in a small mixing bowl.

2. MARINATE the chicken breasts in a resealable plastic bag or a deep dish, for 20 minutes. Be sure thee chicken is completely coated. Meanwhile…

3. PREPARE a deep baking dish with a thin layer of olive oil. Arrange the marinated chicken and marinade in the pan with the onion and olives. Sprinkle with fresh herbs and top with lemon slices (photo #1).

4. BAKE for 20-25 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Olives are one of the oldest cultivated foods (here are the oldest cultivated foods).

Although its savory flavor makes many people think of it as a vegetable, it’s actually a fruit—the fruit of the olive tree.

The olive tree is native to the Mediterranean basin. Wild olives were collected by Neolithic peoples as early as the 8th millennium B.C.E.

The wild trees are believed to have originated in Greece, and were first domesticated in one of three places: Asia Minor, the Levant*, or in Mesopotamia (source).

Olive tree cultivation reached Iberia (Spain) and Etruscan Etruria (western Italy) well before the 8th century B.C.E. It spread to southern Gaul (France) in the 7th century B.C.E. Olives were pressed into olive oil by 6000 B.C.E.

The olive tree may be the oldest known cultivated tree in the world. It was cultivated before written language was invented. It was grown in Crete by 3000 B.C.E. and may have been the source of the wealth of the Minoan kingdom.

The Phoenicians spread the olive to the Mediterranean shores of Africa and Southern Europe. Olives have been found in Egyptian tombs from 2000 B.C.E.

The olive arrived in Greece, and then to Rome, where it was carried by Romans to other lands they conquered.

Olives came to the New World with Franciscan missionaries, in late-18th-century California. More recently, it has become a successful commercial crop in the subtropical climates of Australia and New Zealand.

________________

*The Levant was a large area in southwest Asia: south of the Taurus Mountains, with the Mediterranean Sea as the western boundary, and the north Arabian Desert and Mesopotamia in the east. “Levant” is an English term that first appeared in 1497. It originally referred to the “Mediterranean lands east of Italy.” The historical area comprises modern-day Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria. Among other popular foods, Levantine cuisine gave birth to baklava, balafel, kebabs, mezze (including tabbouleh, hummus and baba ghanoush), pita and za’atar, among other dishes that are enjoyed in the U.S. and around the world.

How about a great bottle of rum for Father’s Day? Take a look at Appleton Estate rums, a line so fine that the brand doesn’t even make an unaged white/silver rum*.

Most Americans have only known about rum since Prohibition, but in the Caribbean it’s been around since the 17th century.

It’s light and cheerful, a cool refresher, and a great mixer. It’s also a smooth seducer, but can stoke you with a bit of fire too.

Rum is a liquor of multiple personalities, as it should be: It’s a child of thousands of years of history, and quite a bit of world travel as well.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF RUM

Original wild sugar cane, native to Asia, made the rounds of New Guinea and Polynesia thousands of years ago, stopped off in ancient Persia where Alexander the Great picked it up for western Europe, and made a few stops around the Mediterranean, with the Crusades bringing it to Italy and Spain.

Christopher Columbus laded his ship with the sweet stalks on his second voyage to the New World, dropping them off in the Dominican Republic. Since then, nearly every Caribbean island has cultivated sugar cane and the byproduct of its processed essence, molasses, from which rum is made.

And who better to discover such a happy accident? The slaves brought from Africa to grow and harvest the sugar crops.

Here’s more rum history.
 
 
TYPES OF RUM

While every Caribbean country manufactures its own kind of rum, the end result can be quite distinct, with each region and each country having its own style of blending and aging.

There are numerous styles of rum as well. Here are eight different rum styles.

As with fine wines, sugar cane relies on terroir, weather variables, variety, and water purity. Because Jamaica’s terroir is rich in limestone, the water quality is particularly fine, as limestone is a natural purifier.

During a March visit to Appleton Estate, the oldest and one of the largest producers of rum, we learned that Appleton alone grows some 14 varieties of sugarcane.

Located near Kingston, the heart of Jamaica, conditions are perfect for growing, cooking, fermenting, and aging of what ends up as rum.

Appleton Estate makes 5 expressions of rum, in increasing levels of age, complexity and smoothness (and price, ranging from about $25 to thousands of dollars for the 50-year):

 
A 30-year limited release can still be found in the $500 range. The 50-year Appleton Estate rum, which is an extremely rare release, is about $6,000.

Here’s more about the different types of rum.
 
 
RUM BASICS

There is rum, and then there is rum.
 
White Rum

White rum*, the clear version most of us are familiar with, is the punch-packer. It is labeled “Overproof” because it is 151% proof. If you don’t watch yourself, it’s easy to never know what hit you.

White rum is, however, a terrific mixer in light, lively combinations of fruit juices and nectars, sodas, and lots of ice.

A favorite Jamaican refresher is simply your preferred dose of white rum shaken up with Ting—a slightly not-too-sweet grapefruit soda—and lots of ice (you can buy it on Amazon). It’s cool company on a hot Jamaican evening.

You would be hard put to find a Jamaican home that doesn’t have a bottle of white rum on hand—the country has some savvy uses for it† besides drinking.

 
And whatever you do, never open a new bottle of rum without sprinkling some across the threshold: That’s the devil’s portion. It will keep evil spirits from intruding.
 
Red Rum

At the end of the spectrum are red rums (not in any way related to “The Shining”) that are aging now for Jamaica’s 100th Anniversary of Independence some 50 years from now.

Aging takes place in previously used bourbon barrels that lend color, complexity, depth of flavor, and fire to what starts out as molasses. It is up to a Master Blender (at Appleton, she is the very brilliant Joy Spence, a chemist and designated Master Blender, appointed in 1997).

All rums begin as sugar cane. It’s harvested by machete and stripped of its tough outer layer to reveal a semi-firm, highly sweet pulp.

It’s great for chewing on its own when you need a hit of something sweet—just be sure to discard the pulp. (Cut into batons, the pulp also makes a sweet skewer for “Sugar Cane Shrimp,” made on the grill; or as a stirring stick for a rum cocktail.)

Two pressings extract all of the liquid in each cane. This liquid is distilled with water and fermented but not aged, thus retaining a high alcohol content.

The more complex aspects of rum that you taste in “red rum” come from boiling down the extracted liquid until crystals are formed and the liquid becomes molasses.

The syrupy, rich reduction is then placed in a centrifuge where the sugar crystals separated from the molasses.

The real magic of a delicious rum, though, happens through chemistry when it is distilled.

 
It is now the moment for the Master Blender to go to work, creating the combinations of these essences which, when mixed with filtered water, are ready for the aging process.

[1] Sip rum elegantly from a stemmed glass (all photos courtesy Appleton Estate).

[2] Cut sugar cane and a Piña Colada made with Appleton Signature rum.

[3] Appleton Estate Signature Blend, aged four years.

[4] Appleton Estate Reserve Blend, aged six years.

[5] The beginning of seriously aged rum: Appleton’s 12-years-old.

[6] Appleton Estate 21 Year Old.

[7] If you’re in the chips, go for the king of the crop: Appleton Estate rum aged for 50 years, about $6,000.

At Jamaica’s first-ever Rum Festival last March, which showcased commercial and independent rum makers and their products, we were lucky to meet Jamaica’s ebullient chef, event producer, and caterer, Jacqui Tyson.

We asked her how she likes to use rum in cooking, and she regaled us with some intriguing suggestions for using white rum at home. She is never without rum in her kitchen—she will use it in jerk dishes, or to make curried goat—and calls it the “glue” that brings flavors together.

 
Plan ahead: Friday, August 16th is National Rum Day.
 
 
—Rowann Gilman
________________

*They do produce a line of white rums under the name of Wray & Newphew.

†Consider these uses to be folk medicine.

There’s a lot that’s happening in the nondairy milk space, and most of it is excellent.

This week’s Top Pick is Almond Breeze Almondmilk from Blue Diamond.

Even if you’re perfectly happy with cow’s milk (as we are), you should give it a try.

Some people seek nondairy milks because of lactose intolerance, kosher or vegan diets. But everyone who enjoys milk or milk-based drinks should pull a carton of Almond Breeze from the shelf and check it out.

Almondmilk (we spell it almond milk, but are not about to take on Blue Diamond) can be substituted for dairy milk in cereal, smoothies, tea, hot chocolate, and hot or iced coffee.

You can use almondmilk for cooking (salad dressings, sauces, soups), baking, and pretty much everything that calls for milk or half-and-half, including ice pops and the creamy polenta in photo #3.

If you drink a lot of milk, you’ll save calories, too: At 60 calories per serving, Original Almondmilk has about half the calories of 2% milk.

It’s also higher in nutrition*. Almond Breeze products are an excellent source of calcium and Vitamins D and E, and a good source of vitamin A.

Although the entire line is dairy free, it’s certified OU Dairy†.
 
The products are available nationwide at Publix, Safeway, Target, Walmart and other stores. Here’s a store locator.
 
 
STARTING WITH THE BASICS

How much do people like almond milk? There are 10 SKUs‡ of milk alone; then creamer and specialty drinks.

 
The flavored varieties can be the basis of a float or a shake.
 
 
AND MORE!

If you like the milk, you’ll also like the:

 
 
OUR NEW FAVORITES

Almond Breeze Banana Almondmilk

Made with real bananas, this delectable treat has only 80 calories per cup and zero added sugars (photo #3).

It tastes like a better-for-you banana shake, but you can:

 
Almond Breeze Horchata

A classic creamy Mexican drink, authentica horchata is made with milk, ground rice, cane sugar, cinnamon and vanilla.

Almond Breeze’s horchata is made from almond milk, rice flour, cane sugar, cinnamon and vanilla (photo #4).

It’s an addictively delicious cold drink, with just 110 calories per serving. As we discovered with Banana Almondmilk, we can:

 
 
ALMOND BREEZE RECIPES

Whatever you want to make, whatever meal of the day, check out the Almond Breeze recipes at BlueDiamond.com.

[1] There are 10 flavors of Almond Breeze almondmilk, including both sweetened and unsweetened chocolate (all photos courtesy Blue Diamond/Almond Breeze).

[2] Rich coffee creamers, in Original and Vanilla, have just 10 or 15 calories per serving.

[3] Creamy polenta with beets, baby spinach and roasted chickpeas. Here’s the recipe from Blue Diamond.

[4] Our favorite new Almond Breeze flavor: Banana! It’s so good that it makes you wonder why there isn’t a lot more banana milk around.

[5] Another favorite, Almond Breeze Horchata, is so good that, like Banana, you can have it for dessert. (Or, add rum to either Banana or Horchata for a lower-calorie cocktail.)

*Compared to cow’s milk, almond milk has fewer calories and carbs. While it doesn’t have the natural calcium of cow’s milk, some brands are fortified—check the ingredients. Nor does it have the natural sugar of milk (lactose), making it great for lactose-intolerant people, but also saving everyone else a few grams of sugar. Here’s a comparison chart.

†The dairy designation means that the product was processed on equipment which also produces dairy products. Even though the equipment was washed after the dairy product manufacture, kosher law requires that the nondairy product that follows it be designated as dairy. Here’s a longer discussion.

‡SKU is a retailer term for Stock Keeping Units. In consumer language, a SKU is a flavor or variety. For example, blueberry jam, strawberry jam and raspberry jam from the same manufacturer represent three different SKUs.