How to turn cheap wine into a fancy drink

I like sweet wines, like port. But they are quite hard to find at the duty-free shop, where I usually get my alcohol, so I was happy to come across this recipe for ipocras. It’s great for turning dry wines into something easier to drink. Of course, you shouldn’t do this to an expensive bottle of wine.

I didn’t have a bottle around for this, so I bought a cheap red one (you can also use white) from the supermarket for around RM50. 150ml of it went to a recipe for pears cooked in red wine. The rest was perfect for this, minus one glass for immediate drinking to make space for the ingredients:

350g caster sugar   |  half a cinnamon stick   |   10g fresh ginger   |   9 cloves   |   6 peppercorns   |   1 nutmeg, crushed   |  1 sprig of rosemary

Just put everything into the bottle and invert it a few times until the sugar is mixed around. The ipocras is ready to drink in 24 hours. Pour it over a coffee filter or tea strainer to catch the spices. Do turn the bottle every now and then if you’re keeping it for longer. Ipocras makes a nice end to a meal, and an impressive contribution for a home party. “I made this wine!”

Shopping list: Red or white wine, rosemary, fresh ginger, nutmeg

From the pantry: Caster sugar, clove, cinnamon stick, pepercorns

Can I do it?: If you’re not drunk, yes

Hardware: Funnel to pour in the sugar and chopstick to push the sugar through (or make your own paper cone)

Credit: A Recipe Book in the Tudor Fashion for the Entertainment of Visitors and Pupils to The Queen’s Great Standing in  the Forest of Epping near London (yes, that’s the full title)

Easy Peasy Ginger Beer

Halal. No beer in here.

When your friends come over, forget the cordials, carbonated drinks and Yeo’s box drinks. Instead, impress them with this. It’s a happy drink, with a little bit of fizz, sunshine and freshness.

Shopping list: fresh ginger, muscovado sugar (I used normal sugar), lemons, soda water or sparkling mineral water, fresh mint

Hardware: grater (for the ginger), peeler (for the lemon rind), pestle or rolling pin (to bash the ginger, sugar and rind)

Can I do it?: Like Jamie says, it’s easy peasy!

Credit: Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver

Heineken Smoothie

Add some zing to your breakfast!

I’m not a big fan of beer. You’ll only find a beer in my hand at the office O Bar party. But that’s only because there’s nothing else to drink, and I have nothing else to do with my hands. But this, my dear friends, is one beer I’ll gladly drink.

I first heard about the Heineken smoothie from colleagues who have been to Heineken’s Breakfast Club. Since drinking in the morning makes you look like an alcoholic, those folks from Heineken and the Breakfast Club found a way to make it look harmless. Mix it with a fruit blend. So, while everyone’s thinking, “My, what a healthy drink you’re having,” you’re actually drinking beer at 8am. Heh heh!

The smoothie I made had mango, cucumber and possibly a third fruit I don’t remember. No, I didn’t get drunk. It was some time ago and I didn’t write down what I used. I think the trick is to get fruits with a smooth texture, like mango or banana. You can probably add something with a little more twang, like kiwi or orange, but just a little, because you don’t want them to overpower the beer. Like cocktails, you just got to experiment.

P.S. That half-boiled eggs in the background of the picture, it wasn’t my breakfast. It was my dinner.

Shopping list: beer and fruits

Hardware: blender

Can I do this?: Are you kidding me? You know how to use a blender, right?

Credits: Heineken and the Breakfast Club