The Sun Also Rises

The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

    It was only a matter of time before I got to Hemingway, and I'm sure I'll be returning to his work in future posts.  Ernest Hemingway was a man who possessed almost as much talent for drinking as he did for writing, and the characters from his stories tend to imbibe regularly.  (If my memory serves me correctly, about half of A Farewell to Arms is dedicated of descriptions of vermouth.  I could be exaggerating.)
   
    In his 1926 novel, The Sun Also Rises, Hemingway introduces us to Jake Barns, a American newspaper correspondent who lives and works in Paris.  Jake hangs around with a group of wealthy expatriates, including the Lady Brett Ashley, whom he loves.  Unfortunately, an injury obtained during his service in World War I has rendered Jake impotent, and Brett is not willing to make that kind of sacrifice for a relationship.  What's a disillusioned guy to do?  Drink, for starters. 


    The first part of the book takes place in Paris, where the characters spend most of their time getting tight on absinthe, champagne, and fine a l'eau (brandy and soda) at the numerous bars and cafes they visit.  When the setting changes to Spain in the second part of the book, so do the drinking habits of the characters.  In between fishing trips and bull fights, Jake and his friends enjoy Anis del Mono and plenty of local wine.

    As you can see, there were a lot of possibilities for this week's drink pairing.  In the end I went with one of my favorites, the Jack Rose, a classic sour that features apple brandy, citrus, and grenadine.  Jake drinks a couple of Jack Rose's after Brett stands him up.    

"At five o’clock I was in the Hotel Crillon waiting for Brett. She was not there, so I sat down and wrote some letters. They were not very good letters but I hoped their being on Crillon stationery would help them. Brett did not turn up, so about quarter to six I went down to the bar and had a Jack Rose with George the barman."

    The Jack Rose is traditionally made with Laird's Applejack, an American apple brandy.  The modern version of Applejack, however, is only 35% Apple Brandy, with the rest being neutral grain spirit.  Use the bonded version if you can find it.  Both lemon and lime juice can be found in vintage recipes, so use whichever you have on hand.  I've tried both versions (multiple times...for science) and found that I prefer the lemon juice version, just slightly.  Most commercial grenadine is really just high fructose corn syrup and red dye, so find a brand you trust or make your own. 

Jack Rose

2 oz Laird's Straight Apple Brandy
1 oz lemon juice
3/4 oz grenadine*

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

*To make grenadine, combine equal parts sugar and pomegranate juice in a sauce pan.  Heat on low heat until the sugar is dissolved.  Bottle and refrigerate. 

The Russian Tea Room Cookbook

The Russian Tea Room Cookbook by Faith Stewart-Gordon and Nika Hazelton

 

  The Russian Tea Room is a glamorous restaurant located just steps from Carnegie Hall in Manhattan.  When the establishment opened in 1927 it served as gathering place for Russian expatriates.  It has since gone on to become a world famous restaurant.  The Tea Room--with its red booths, green walls, and gold accents--has been featured in movies like The Sweet Smell of Success and When Harry Met Sally, as well as episodes of Sex In the City and Louie.  

  This cookbook (published in 1981 and now out of print, but easy to find online) features a history of the Tea Room and recipes for Russian specialties such as Stroganoff, Musaka, and Chicken Kiev.  The dessert section is one of the largest in the book, with pastry recipes and notes on how to serve tea and coffee.  The drinks section features recipes for vodka drinks that, frankly, sound pretty gross--and not very traditional.  I opted for ice-cold shots of Russian vodka.  The book gives this sage advice:

  

"Russians never drink without eating or eat without drinking--and the numerous toasts given and drunk down neatly in thimble-sized glass are always accompanied by food, usually from an enormous zakuska table full of hot and cold hors d' oeuvers."

  Since I'm forgoing a cocktail recipe this week, I will leave you with my version of Hot Borscht that I adapted from the cookbook.  I made a couple of small changes to make it vegan, as I am wont to do, and it was delicious.

Hot Borscht

6 cups vegetable broth

1 cup tomato sauce

1 1/2 cups shredded purple cabbage

3/4 cups thinly sliced celery

3/4 cups shredded carrots

3/4 cups thinly sliced onions

1 teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 cups grated raw beets

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

1/4 cup miced fresh dill week

non-dairy sour cream

Pour broth into large pot.  Add tomato sauce, cabbage, celery, carrots, and onions.  Bring to boil and turn heat to low.  Simmer, covered, about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.  Stir in sugar and beets.  Simmer, covered, for 10 more minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in vinegar.  Ladle soup into a tureen or individual soup bowls and sprinkle with the dill.  Serve hot with sour cream.