LCBO Food and Drink Holiday 2016

BASICS  MAKE ROOM FOR BRANDY

Versatility is the hallmark of a renowned Italian brandy made from Trebbiano grapes—Vecchia Romagna ( LCBO 286807, $25.75). This is a dry, elegant, lightweight spirit with a pleasing hint of bitter herbs behind the clean, fruity first impression. It was first distilled in Bologna in 1820 by a Frenchman from the Cognac region called Jean Bouton, though he soon changed his name to Giovanni Buton and remained in Italy for the rest of his days. I was introduced to this brandy in an espresso bar in Rome one cold winter morning. All the men standing at the counter were calling for a caffè corretto —a double espresso “corrected” with a nip of Vecchia Romagna. I had seen this done with grappa, but never brandy. Okay. When in Rome… It was delightful. Since then, I’ve seen that unmistakable triangular bottle all around the world, in bars and people’s kitchens or in pride of place in their liquor cabinets. It’s a brandy that’s good enough (and enough of a bargain) to serve in a dozen different ways. How to Correct your Caffè * Enhance your espresso the Roman way !

A Little Extra Something Brandy isn’t nearly such a local favourite in Portugal as it is in Spain but the best-seller is Macieira Royal brandy ( LCBO 82537, $30.95). First made in 1885, it was the brain- child of Jose Guilherme Macieira, who had studied winemaking in Cognac. He had the interesting notion of adding a little forti- fied grape juice to his brandy—like a dos- age of white port—before aging it in small barrels of oak and chestnut. The recipe hasn’t changed. Produced in the Estremad- ura region and using local wines, it’s a very smooth brandy with aromas and flavours that remind me of toffee, raisins, honey and apricot. That addition of the fortified juice brings a measure of sweetness as well as subtle anise spice notes that comple- ment the vanilla from the oak barrels. How to drink it? Portuguese friends of mine like it best in a tall glass with ice and soda water—that is, when they’re not using it to marinate fresh pineapple which they then smother with rich yellow egg custard. But it also has enough complexity to sip from a brandy snifter after dinner when its big round body seems to fill your palate.

SILK AND CITRUS

THE METAXITO recipe on page 240

Metaxas is the Greek word for a silk merchant and when Spyros Metaxa created his spirit in 1888, he wanted it to be the silkiest, smoothest drink in the world—good Greek brandy mixed with an elixir of sweet Muscat wine, rose pet- als and other botanicals. This Mojito-inspired cocktail lets the fragrance of Metaxa Seven Star ( LCBO 116038, $29.95) emerge in all its floral, caramelly glory.

82  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2016