#wine tasting for beginners

[wineglasses-1]

How Should You Pair Snacks During Wine Tasting?

The right pairing of snacks with wine will really make the tasting experience great. Choose plain crackers or bread to clean your palate between sips. This is a neutral snack so that the flavors of the wine will be at focus. Cheeses and fruits can also complement specific wines if you want to experiment.

Avoid very spicy or salty snacks because they might overpower the wine. The goal is to let the wine shine. Snack pairing thoughtfully allows you to enjoy each sip without distraction. It's a simple way to elevate your wine-tasting session and discover which combinations work best for your taste. To know more visit us!

[winemastery]

Camino del Angel Cabernet Sauvignon - worth buying? (Episode 412)

[cultkinkcoven]

Super easy and cheap devotional acts for beginners.

A nice cup and some clean, fresh, water on the altar can often be all you need for daily offerings

Grow a plant on your altar, use your weekly watering as a devotional act. Hermes is currently helping my peace lily grow :)

Draw their sigil on your nails and then paint over them with nail polish that matches their color correspondences.

If you can’t acquire alcohol for your deities (wine, vodka etc) because you’re too young, white vinegar also works. The quality we’re looking for is the purification aspect. White vinegar is natural, antibacterial and never goes bad. You can leave it on your altar until it evaporates if you want.

If you work with a deity involved with self love like Aphrodite, investing a little more time into your skin care and scent can be very rewarding. Nothing super boujie, it can be as simple as getting some nice smelling lotion at the dollar store.

Food and water offerings don’t have to be external, especially if you’re in the broom closet and don’t have an altar. Reserve the first bite of your meal for your deity. Savour its taste while you think about them. Pour yourself a crisp glass of cold water and guzzle it as a devotional act.

Use a washable or dry erase marker to draw sigils on your shower wall for bath rituals. It’ll come right off when you’re done.

Tea bags are just bags of dried herbs. You can use these as offerings or draw sigils on them and burn them for witchcraft. No one is ever suspicious about a little tea. Adding a tea bag to your water offerings also gives them an extra kick.

A couple dollars at the thrift store will take you a long way. I love thrifting items because they’re usually well loved. I especially like thrifting spirituality books that past practitioners have written in. Sometimes my deities communicate with me through the books that are available on any given day. If I was just talking to Leviathan about the power of water and I see a book about Hydromancy, I know that he’s sending me a sign. Like, 90% of the books Lucifer has sent me popped up at the thrift store. Most expensive one was $7.99. (and I tag swapped it for 2.99 😊 thanks, Hermes-

and on this note, literally steal. Not from small local thrift stores, but I mean this with my whole chest, steal from Value Village. If you can sneakily swap a tag and get something for cheaper literally do it. Value Village gets all their inventory for free I literally do not care. Corporate thrift stores don’t deserve rights. I steal from Value Village as a devotional act to Hermes 😊 lmao )

If you don’t have money to spend on really nice paintings and posters of your deities for your altar, start buying books about them. It’s a double win. A book about Greek religion will certainly have multiple beautiful sculptures and paintings of Aphrodite that I can cut out and put on my wall. A book about angels might have a cool painting of Lucifer. Books about Goddesses, ancient religions, anthropology, astrology etc. You get the opportunity to learn, and if it’s a book you don’t particularly care too much for, you can take it apart for imagery. People ask me all the time where I got all of my paintings and pictures from. BOOKS.

Does your deity have a kind of complicated sigil that you love but you also kinda hate redrawing every other day? Sorry Cerberus (Naberius) I love you but that sigil is so complicated babe.

Learn how to block print! It’s very simple. You get a block of linoleum (usually pretty cheap, I think mine were like $5) , some ink (~$10), and a carving tool (varies depending), and make a sigil stamp! All you gotta do is draw your sigil and carve it out nicely one time. You can still bless it and imbue it with your energy, and you can easily put it on prayers, talismans etc.

Chalk is your best friend. Use it to draw sigils on the floor or wall that can easily be wiped away. You can imbue special chalk and use it for casting circles if you don’t like the mess of salt.

[steponupbabe]

Boyfriend Material ♡

Pairing: Kang daesung x Fem!reader

Summary: Kang Daesung as your boyfriend!

warnings: non, just some fluff🩷

───────── ༺♡༻ ────────

| Daesung is very clingy. the boy follows your around like a lost puppy, he loves to be near you. holding you, arm around your shoulder or wrapped around your waist. he loves his girl and wants to show it off.

| Daesung is alwaaaays posting you. like i said loves to show u off lol. whether it’s a cute coffee date pic or you in some old pijamas building legos with him he will ALWAYS post u.

| Daesung loves to cook for you. and his food is amazing. loves to just randomly suprise you with amazing meals.

| Daesung always gets you the sweetest gifts. he’s always buying you things you don’t need like a new dress or some fancy purse. you always tell him that he doesn’t have to but he loves to spoil u.

| Daesung always plans out the cutest dates, picnics, theme parks, cute little cafes, Wine tastings, you name it. your love life is basically a pinterest board.

| Daesung buys you stuffed animals like they’re going out of style. He’s gotten you so many that some of them are on his bed because you have nowhere to put them in your home.

| Daesung loves to cuddle. loves it. on the couch, in a plane, backstage before one of his concerts. it doesn’t matter where you two are he will find away to snuggle you.

| Daesung definitely got you into legos. when you first when to his place you were amazed at all the little creations he showed you. the Eiffel Tower, a boat, a football stadium. the next time you came over he got you two a little beginner set to build, and he hooked you ever since.

| Daesung loves movie nights. every week he’ll invite you over with way too many snacks, three different movies and 12 different types of drinks to try. What can you say the boy gets carried away

“jagi! guess what! i found red velvet boba! it’s amazing ” you giggle at his enthusiasm “dae, where did you find red velvet boba?”

───────── ༺♡༻ ────────

A/n: i finally did it yall are u proud of me 🥹 writers block was my downfall and i’ve been sick but i hope yall enjoy it! sorry if it’s short :/

[carlos-in-glasses]

I've finished knitting my second jumper! It's the Step-by-Step Sweater by Florence Miller - and is perfect for beginners like me. There's also a YouTube tutorial that runs through the whole process. I absolutely loved working on this and am so pleased with the result. I learned how to knit a jumper in the round, do raglan increases and German short row shaping, which wasn't anywhere near as complex as I thought it would be. The yarn is Sirdar's jewelspun. (Although in the video I helpfully pronounce it as Sidar, which is in fact the name of a restaurant I won a voucher for during a raffle at a wine tasting like a HUGE YUPPIE. But I'm exhausted and making all sorts of weird litttle mistakes.)

Anyway! I can't believe this is a thing that exists! Definitely my favourite thing made so far. I think the next thing I knit will be some knee warmers for my mum, which she has requested in dark green! But I'm excited to knit more jumpers that maybe include some new stitches to learn.

[spacefruitpress]

We definitely have some selections for you!

Check out our back catalogue @ spacefruitpress.com

i need more gay love stories y’all. just read if we were villains and am absolutely living for that. any recommendations? gay fiction, gay fantasy, gay dark academia .. (this includes lesbian, bisexual, etc ..) pls <3

[planet4546b]

all mirages cast real shadows.

kentucky route zero, 2013-2020/georgia o'keeffe, twilight canyon, lake powell, utah, 1964, todd webb/the archive of alternate endings, lindsey drager/house of leaves, mark z. danielewski/sunset, matthew cusick/letters from the hole, everything everything/the museum at purgatory, nick bantock/kentucky route zero, 2013-2020/andrei tarkovsky on the set of the sacrifice, unknown/heart: the city beneath, grant howitt and christopher taylor/the forgetting room, nick bantock/urge to mean (anything) ii, leo wijnhoven/in the dream house, carmen maria machado/kentucky route zero, 2013-2020/the beginner's guide, 2015/underdark: plein air paintings from caves, tomas honz/colossal cave adventure, willie crowther and don woods/season: a letter to the future, 2023/software greatman, everything everything/invisible cities, italo calvino/annihilation, jeff van der meer/the beginners guide, 2015/where the water tastes like wine, 2018/the unfortunates, b.s. johnson/house of leaves, mark z. danielewski/the painting that includes all paintings, richard siken/waiting for godot, samuel beckett

[invinciblerodent]

Baldur's Gate 3's Potato Chowder - RECIPE

So a few days ago, I found this recipe around the start of act 3, near the kitchen of the Temple of the Open Hand in Rivington:

[Screenshot of recipe as it appears in-game. Exact steps will be transcribed below, within the recipe.]

It looked... honestly very simple and not dissimilar from a Hungarian potato főzelék/stew (which is a very cheap and homely peasant dish I love), so I just made it for lunch today, and guys....

this soup is uh. really fucking good. I tried following it as close to the letter as possible, but since it's quite vague, I did have to improvise a fair bit- but it's very cheap and easy to make, it's warm and comforting while still quite light (there are like. NO spices in there, it's a very European-feeling dish), and I'd say it's surprisingly filling, but it's. It's potatoes, so there's nothing exactly surprising about that.

I tried to write out the recipe in a very beginner-friendly way, so even if you're not super confident in the kitchen, it should be easy to follow! ❤️

Make yourself some video game soup, it's awesome.

INGREDIENTS:

(For about 6 servings)

A roughly egg-sized lump of lard (This can be subtituted with a different cooking fat if you'd like, but I recommend sticking with lard, as it adds a nice flavor, and it's kind of the staple fat for these peasant stews.)

Potatoes (I used just under two pounds)

Half of a medium leek

Small yellow onion (or half of a larger one)

2 cloves garlic

Roughly 1/2 to 1 cup white cooking wine (optional, substitute given in recipe)

Vegetable stock (or chicken- or beef stock, or water)

2-3 tbsp all purpose flour

Salt to taste

1/2 cup of sour cream/créme fraiche (optional)

Shredded cheese and/or croutons to serve (optional)

(Recipe with transcriptions and exact steps under the cut!)

(This is basically all there is in this. Honestly.)

STEPS:

"1. Put your lard in a pot- a chunky one, mind. When it stops being lard and starts being hot lard, add any good-smelling veggies (leeks, garlics, onions) that you've chopped all thin. Please salt this so it doesn't taste of nothing."

This first step is pretty self-explanatory. I sliced the white part of he leek thinly, cubed my onion, and minced my two large cloves of garlic. In the lard melted in as chunky a pot as I've got (make sure it's not non-stick!!!), I sauteed first the leek and the onion with a big pinch of salt, and once the onion was translucent, the leek soft, and they've released some liquid (around 3-5 minutes on medium-low heat), I added the garlic, and cooked it until fragrant.

"2. When it's soft and good-smelling, chuck in any flour you've got and stir the mixture so it don't burn (note for me - it's very important not to burn it, emphasize)"

"2.5. PLEASE DO NOT LET IT BURN THAT'D BE RUBBISH"

Now we make a roux by adding just enough flour to the mixture that it starts sticking together, and looks fairly dry, but no part of the flour remains powdery. (This was about 3 tbsp for me, but since this process goes quick, I did eyeball it).

It's important to keep stirring, as this can and does stick to the bottom of a pot, but it will determine the thickness of the final soup, deepen its flavor, and give it a nice, creamy consistency. I made mine fairly blonde (light tan in color, cooked just past long enough to dissipate any raw flour smell), but it can go to a fairly dark, caramel color before burning if you'd like the flavor to be a bit deeper. (This should only take a couple minutes.)

Please do be careful- it the roux burns, that flavor will be impossible to get rid of, so.... yeah, it would be rubbish.

"3. If you're fancy and have wine (or have a generously stocked temple wine cellar nearby) add a bit of it now and cook it off. When it's done, add some wedged potatoes and a lot more liquid (not wine this time or you'll have a headache in the morning)."

We now deglaze the bottom of the pot with the wine: after pouring it in, with the wooden spoon, we scrape up any stuck pieces of flour or aromatics that there might be on the bottom.

(Note: If you don't have wine, or would prefer not to use alcohol for any reason, a neat trick is to mix about 1 tbsp of white wine vinegar and 1 tsp of granulted sugar into a cup of water, and use this mixture as a substitute for 1 cup of white wine. In most recipes, the wine's main purpose is to add acidity as well as sweetness to the dish- this trick aims to replicate those qualities, and tastes very similar in the end result. I use it often in almost anything that calls for white wine if I happen to not have any at hand. But do make sure to taste beforehand, it's very easy to go too heavy on the vinegar! It should taste sour, but not so much that it's unpalatable.)

Then, I rinsed my cubed potatoes (though the text calls for wedges, those often don't cook quite evenly!) with water to get rid of the excess starch, added them to the pot, and then covered them in vegetable stock. You can use chicken- or beef stock (which would make the soup a bit richer, heavier) or water (if you want it lighter) as well- in this last case you might need to add more salt than you'd think. (Make sure to taste- it should be flavorful, but not salty! Bouillon cubes and premade stocks often have a very high salt content, so if using that, you might find you don't need to add any.)

(It sohuld look something like this.)

"4. Cook for half an hour or so til the potatoes are nice and tender, and mash some of 'em up in the liquid. If you've got any cow products - cheese, milk and the like - add them now for extra delicious results."

From when the mixture starts to boil, it should take about 25-35 minutes of simmering on low heat, covered, for the potatoes to soften- you can test doneness by sticking a fork in one of the pieces, or gently pushing one against the edge of the pot with your wooden spoon. It should give easily at light pressure with both methods.

I then put the sour cream/créme fraiche in a heat-safe container (a mug will do perfectly), and ladled a bit of the hot cooking liquid on top of it, mixing it thoroughly- both to thin it out, and bring the temperatures closer to each other, which should help avoid any curdling. Stirring constantly, I then add the cream mixture to the soup in a thin, slow stream. (Any mildly acidic, creamy dairy product should work here- though I do think yogurt might be a bit too sour, if using that I would probably omit the wine.)

Then, as everything is done cooking and the cream is distributed evenly with no curds, I turn the heat off for safety, and using a very traditional, very fantasy, not at all anachronistic immersion blender, I blitz the entire thing for roughly 30 seconds. You can of course blend it less for more chunks (or remove some cooked potato bits before blending to add them back later), or even longer for a smoother consistency, but I did like that about that much blending left only a few, small chunks of nicely cooked potato in the otherwise smooth and creamy result.

I served with shredded Port Salut cheese and croutons on top- but this is of course optional, and I think just some nice, crusty bread would also work wonderfully!

Go make yourself a video game soup!!!!!!! It's so easy and good!!!!!!!

[wineglasses-1]

Wine Tasting Tips: A Beginner’s Guide to Savoring Every Sip

The art of wine tasting helps you appreciate the beverage more. In a well-lit setting, begin by examining the color and purity of the wine. Take a deep inhale after gently swirling the glass to unleash the perfume. Sip carefully during the tasting process to allow the wine to coat your palate. Take note of its aftertaste, acidity, and tastes. Pair your wine with complementary foods to elevate the experience. Remember, wine tasting is subjective, so trust your preferences and enjoy the journey of discovering what suits your taste.

[copperbadge]

you mentioned being a supertaster, do you like wine? I went to a wine tasting thing for 3 weeks having never tried wine before. Everybody there waxed poetic about all the fruit and wood and leather they could taste in the wine. I was smelling everything they described and more and was very excited to take my first sip and nearly spit it out cartoon style. All I taste is pure alcohol. But I can smell all the details.

I tried many, many varieties of red and white wine over those 3 weeks. They all tasted like slightly different types of sweet vomit. The organizer thought I might be a supertaster. Or maybe it's an acquired taste.

If you've tried wine, what does it taste like to you?

Well, supertasting has a wide variety of ways it can manifest -- some people are more sensitive to sweet or bitter, some people can discern multiple flavors in a drink or dish while others just get one dominant flavor. Like one person might be able to get all kinds of flavors from a glass of wine as a supertaster, while others like you might only get "alcohol".

For me it's complicated by the fact that I didn't drink at all until I was in my mid-twenties, and also the fact that red wine for me usually results in a stabbing headache within about half an hour of drinking it. There are people who aren't supertasters who have a flavor sensitivity to tannin, so for some people wine really is just "bitter fruit juice" -- I think I described it once as "fruit-flavored paint thinner". Because I'm sensitive to tannins the bitter flavor is mostly what I get, even in white wine; or for example, with beer I usually only get hops flavor. But I also don't get the smells you get -- wine smells sickly and nauseating to me, I think in part because I know it tastes bad.

So, there are a few options -- one is that it might just be a taste you haven't acquired yet, two is that you might have a sensitivity to tannins without being a supertaster, and three is that you might be a supertaster with that particular sensitivity. There are tests you can do to see if you're a supertaster -- if you google "supertaster test strips" you should find several companies selling them. That's how mine was confirmed.

The fact you get the nice smells without the nice flavors suggests to me that it's more likely to be a tannin sensitivity, but given white wine also didn't taste good, when it's much lower in tannins, I don't want to state it assuredly. I'm not an expert when it comes to tannin sensitivity (there's a pretty good beginner's article here about flavor sensitivity as opposed to tannin allergy) but one of the reasons high-tannin wines are paired with fatty foods is that fat coats the mouth and lowers the astringency of the tannins. So if you just want to see if it's the tannins bothering you, flavorwise, next time you have a chance to sip some wine, try sipping some, then rolling some fat around in your mouth before taking a second sip. Take a small spoonful of olive oil, or a pat of butter, and roll it around with the tongue so it coats your tongue, the roof of your mouth, and your cheeks, then spit out whatever's left or swallow it so that you don't have a mouthful of fat. If the wine tastes better (not necessarily good, just not as awful) after a second sip, it's possibly the tannins.

In any case, good luck! And if you want to learn more my supertaster tag may be of use. :)

[chanothy]

Light Shinning in the Blue Mirror

Episode five

previous | all | next

At first, Lono didn’t seem in the mood, but… When he started cooking, he becomes a serious Lono. He seemed to be working wit his usual serious expression. Delicious looking dishes are benign prepared one after another. I will stay by Lono’s side and support him as much as i can.

[Lono, is this presentation okay?]

LONO :: Yes! Thank you Aruji-sama!

LONO :: Now it looks great! Now the question is, do you like the taste?

[Lono’s cooking is fine]

LONO :: I hope so. It seems that nobles has much more refined plates than commoners like me

LONO :: To think that i would cook for such a rude person… to be honest, i wasn’t motivated at first

[But you never give up]

LONO :: Yeah.. that is a matter of pride for me as a chef

LONO :: After all, eating delicious food is important!

LONO :: If he was full in a good mood… he might become more approachable

LONO :: If you get enough nutrition, you might even have the energy to go outside

LONO :: Hehe.. and to tell you the truth..

LONO :: Today’s meal wasn’t made for that nobleman… I made it for my Aruji-sama

[For me?]

LONO :: Yes! Because it’s better to have the feeling, “i want to make this for someone special”

LONO :: Because it makes me feel happy too.

LONO :: I hope that your physical and mental health will improve and that you will feel more energetic. I did some research into these ingredients and menu items.

LONO :: Apparently red meat is good for relieving stress! Also fermented foods, dairy products, nuts and wen it come to fruit, bananas are good.

LONO :: So, today menu is,,, broccoli cheese soup, nut and tomato salad…

LONO :: Red meat steak…. And for desert, we have banana pudding!

LONO :: Hehehe, ot be honest, i’d like to eat it right now, Aruji-sama

LONO :: But it would be a hassle to keep the nobleman waiting. I’ll comeback later to enjoy some freshly made food!

[Thank you, Lono]

LONO :: No no! We are the ones who should be thanking you.

LONO :: This time, i was able to realize once again just how blessed i am in my everyday life.

LONO :: Even if it’s the same dish… the satisfaction can be so different on whose face you imagine eating it.

LONO :: The feeling of being able to be of use to the butlers and Aruji-sama makes me so happy.

[Sounds like Lono]

LONO :: Well… that's all i can do

LONO :: So, in order to put Aruji-sama’s heart at ease… we decided to encourage you in any way we could

LONO :: Of course, completing grequests is important, but what’s more important is the health of the client.

[Thank you, Lono]

LONO :: Hehe… sorry for the long talk. The delicious food will get cold soon.

LONO :: Well then…. Shall i deliver the food to Mr.Miller?

LONO :: I’m sure he’ll complain about something. But i’ll just smile and bear it

LONO :: …But i’ll take a bottle of chili peppers with me just in case

[Oh that’s right]

We put the food on a cart and roll it into the Dinning room. In the Dining room Nac and the others had already arranged the tableware and prepared the wine

And when everything was ready, i politely summoned Mr.Miller

Miller Mansion DInning Room

MILLER :: Hmm…! It’s ot quite bad

MILLER :: It’s impressive for a lowly demon butler, i commend you.

LONO :: Ha ha ha… thank you

MILLER :: Also, this wine taste good. Where is it from?

LUCAS :: Yes, it is an 8 year old toblis

LUCAS :: Today we have this brand Mr.Miller… it is perfect for connoisseurs

MILLER :: I see… That was a good idea

MILLER :: I like it, i’ll buy about 100 boxes of the same wine!

LUCAS :: Hehe… i understand

MU :: ….Huh? I think Miller-sama just became an adult…

MU :: are such people accustomed to drinking wine?

NAC :: heh, of course not

NAC :: What Lucas has prepared is… an inexpensive wine that is easy to drink even fro beginners

NAC :: Of course, i won’t tell him that

[That’s right]

LONO :: I see.. So in short.., he’s just trying to show off

MILLER :: Hey there! Did you say something?

LONO :: No, nothing

LONO :: By the way… is it time for desert

MILLER :: Desert… oh well

MILLER :: But… you have to be able to judge those things based on your Aruji-sama’s facial expressions, right?

MILLER :: A first class butler is one who anticipated what his Aruji-sama wants before they evne asks. That point still remains.

LONO :: …. I will do my best….

LONO :: ..Phew, hold on, hold on..

Lono was holding a bottle of chili peppers in one hand… Even afterwards he continued to treat Miller with forced polite hospitality.

After a while

MILLER :: Huh… it was surprisingly delicious

LUCAS :: I’m glad you were satisfied, Mr.Miller

LUCAS :: After your meal.. How about taking a walk in the garden to work off your hunger?

LUCAS :: The sunshine is warm today… it’s perfect for a walk.

MILLER :: Hmph!... won’t fall for that Lucas!

MILLER :: There’s no need to go out to the garden, just walking around the mansion is good enough!

MILLER :: After all, my mansion is spacious!

LONO :: … “My mansion”... isn’t it just an inheritance from your parents that came rolling in?

MILLER :: Hey you there! Did you essay something?

LONO :: No, nothing

LONO:: But.. don’t you get bored staying in the mansion all the time?

LONO :: Theres plenty of fun things to do outside, including tons pf delicious food and drinks.

MILLER :: Hmp.. what are you talking about? You can get delicious food and alcohol without leaving the mansion ru…

MILLER :: You guys have just proven that.

NAC :: Yes, and it seems like he’s just going to indulge even more

MILLER :: Alright, I decided! In the future, i plan to invite top chefs from all over the country

MILLER :: I have plenty of money. Yes, i’ll hire a sommelier

LONO :: … this is not good. It’s like he has no intension of leaving the mansion

NAC :: Yes, and it look like he’s going to indulge even more.

NAC :: If you indulge in this kind of debauchery… it won’t be good for you.

MU :: Hmm… Why is he so reluctant to go outside!

LUCAS :: …Mr.Miller. I understand how you may find social interaction bothersome.

LUCAS :: Sir Finley, head of the Grosvennor family, has always been fed up with the flattery of those around him

LUCAS :: However, being born into a noble family… it's inevitable to socialize with those around you

LUCAS :: To reassure Sir Finley…. Would you please return to social life as before?

LUCAS :: Sir Finley is worried about you Mr.Miller

MILLER :: Hmm.. i think what my uncle is worried about is the reputation of the Grosvennor family

MILLER :: So were my parents. Ther family name and reputation always came first…

MILLER :: I was raised to always be concerned about how others see me… I never paid any attention to my own feelings.

MILLER :: Everytime is ee myself in the mirror. I feel like my parents were constantly watching me

MILLER :: But my parents are long dead now. I have nothing tying me down now.

MILLER :: Deep inside the mansion, out of reach of other people’s eyes… i’ll do my best to live my life however i like.

LUCAS :: Mr.Miller…..

[sloppysequinz]

Baby’s first house party, part I

Imagine going to a party—your very first one since you can legally drink! You’re giddy and ecstatic, you’ve been so good and not drunk more than a glass of wine with family until now, but now there’s no reason not to. You want to cut loose.

You don’t really know anyone besides the host who invited you, but the house is packed and the music is bumping. There’s a table full of bottles of booze and random soda for mixing or chasing. You grab a red cup and scribble your name and then you hesitate. You don’t know what anything is or how to mix it or what to drink.

From behind you, you hear a laugh. You turn to see a tall woman watching you. Her own red cup is full. Her low cut tank top shows off a body that makes you blush. You don’t recognize her, she’s definitely older than you but you couldn’t say by how much. She smiles warmly. “First time?”

You nod, face still warm, but she doesn’t mock you. “That’s so fun! Everyone only gets one first time. Want me to show you the ropes?” You want to nod but you hesitate. Sending your trepidation, she reaches out and pats your head reassuringly. “Dont worry, I can tell you’re pretty new to this. I’ll keep an eye on you and make sure you don’t overdo it. Ok?”

Reassured, you nod again. She giggles and claps gleefully, bustling up to the table next to you. “Ok, let’s start with mixed drinks, nothing fancy, it’s just a house party. Vodka with sprite or lemonade is great for beginners.” She grabs a plastic handle of vodka and pours into the cup you’re holding. “The line at the bottom of the cup is one shot so you can kinda use that to visualize how strong your drink is. Do you wanna start slow or dive right in?”

“Uhm…I wanna cut loose.” You confess. She cocks her head and grins.

“Feisty! I like it! We’ll start with a double then~” she pours a generous amount of vodka into your cup, then grabs a liter of sprite to fill up the rest of the cup. “Mine’s vanilla vodka and grapefruit soda,” she says, winking conspiratorially as she tops off her own cup. “Sweet and easy to drink, but you should learn how the liquors taste before trying flavored stuff so you know what you like.”

Now that you’re armed with full cups, she holds hers up to you. “Cheers!” You clink plastic cups and she tips hers back, drinking deeply. You take a careful sip of yours…and oh my gosh! It just tastes like soda! You were worried it would taste gross but it doesn’t at all. You drink greedily. The strange woman is watching you over her cup, eyes sparkling.

“Wow honey, I can tell you’re gonna be good at this. Want another?” You nod and she pours more into your cup. As she does, you feel the first drink start to hit. The blood rushes to your head and groin, you feel happy and loose and giggly. You can’t help but stare at your new friends chest as she hands your cup back. Booze really does lower your inhibitions, you think, only mildly embarrassed.

As you start your next double, you hear a commotion on the other side of the room. “Oh my god!” Cries your new friend. “Here’s something newbies have to learn!” She grabs your arm and pulls you towards the far side of the party. Your feet get a little mixed up and you both giggle at the stumble. You’re flushed and glowing under the attention of this woman as she pulls you deeper into the party.

[mariacallous]

If there is one Ashkenazi food that’s synonymous with “Jewish holidays” it’s brisket. The Ashkenazic tradition of cooking brisket likely dates back to the 1600s, when the cut of meat was used for corned beef as a preservation method. When German and Czechoslovakian Jews began to immigrate to the United States in the 19th century, they brought this traditional dish with them and helped popularize it.

Why did brisket take a stronghold on the Ashkenazi table? Aside from its deliciousness, historically, brisket was a cheaper cut of meat due to its toughness. It requires low and slow cooking to become tender, which is a style of preparation ideal for kosher homes where food must be made in advance of the holiday itself, or can be kept on a low flame for a long stretch of time. Relatively affordable and large in size, brisket remains an ideal make-ahead dish, it freezes beautifully and amply serves a crowd. 

Some brisket recipes demand for the inclusion of cola, and others feature tangy ketchup as an essential ingredient. This version embraces classic sweet, savory and sour elements, with bold red wine, a touch of cola for sweetness, tomatoes for acidity and peppery paprika. You can modify the spices to your liking, skip the cola if desired, but the wine (and enough liquid) is essential for the success of this homey holiday dish. While brisket can feel intimidating to beginner home cooks, we swear it’s one of the easiest, most forgiving dishes. The most important step is to braise your brisket until it becomes soft and tender; you may need to keep it in the oven for longer than the recipe indicates, as each cut of meat can require slightly different cooking times. We highly recommend making this a day in advance of serving – brisket always tastes best the next day. Even better, freeze your brisket days or weeks in advance, and reheat it in a crockpot or covered in the oven when ready to serve.

Scroll down for our classic Passover brisket recipe, or watch the video below:

[ruvviks]

🎻🎶🔺🍸 and 🤓!

jeannie asks!

🎻 VIOLIN — does your oc play any instruments? what is their skill level (beginner/intermediate/advanced/virtuoso/etc)?

answered here!

🎶 MUSICAL NOTES — what type of music does your oc like? do they listen to music very often?

answered here!

🔺 RED TRIANGLE POINTED UP — does your oc know how to use any weapons?

she does! jeannie is a very skilled fighter and knows her way around blades and light firearms, so think revolvers and pistols mostly. her focus lies on quick combat that is over quickly and isn't all-destructive; she tries to prevent it altogether as much as possible, but if there's no other way out she tries to keep it as contained as possible to prevent unnecessary bloodshed

🍸 COCKTAIL GLASS — what is your oc's favorite alcoholic drink, if they can drink?

jeannie is a lightweight and can't handle a lot of alcohol, but her drink of choice is generally a good red wine :] she can confidently drink that without getting incredibly drunk and she likes the taste of it too. hard liquors are only reserved for when she's trying to get really drunk to forget something; when she's out with friends for dinner she may have a fun cocktail instead, but she's only ever allowed to have one because otherwise she'll be on the floor for the rest of the evening

🤓 SMILING FACE WITH GLASSES — is your oc chatty or quiet? are they at ease in social situations, or are they more shy?

answered here!

[saillend]

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