Golf titlist helps make Ballantine's limited blend

The taste of a particular Scotch whisky is a jealously guarded thing, with the master distiller/blender making the real decisions at most distilleries.

At Ballantine's, which is marking its 180th anniversary this year, a joint effort between Sandy Hyslop, the brand's fifth master blender, and Graeme McDowell (right), winner of the inaugural Ballantine’s Championship golf tournament last year. The blend was created at Ballantine’s production site in Dumbarton, Scotland.

The unique 35-year-old Scotch is the result of the first time in company history anyone outside the company’s expert team has collaborated with a master blender.

If you want to latch on to a bottle of the historic whisky, called Ballantine's Championship Blend, you may have to pull some strings. Only 15 bottles will be made due to the scarcity of the whiskies contained in the blend. One person assured of receiving a bottle is whoever wins this year's Ballantine’s Championship which will taker place next month in Korea.

"This is a first not only for Ballantine’s but across the entire Chivas Brothers portfolio," Hyslop said. "It is one of the rarest blends I’ve ever created and contains some of the oldest samples from our inventory of over six million casks of ageing whisky. For example, we included two very old grain whiskies from Strathclyde and Dumbarton, the latter distillery no longer in production. Although the age stated on the bottle is 35 years, there are older whiskies contained in the blend."

Following a private master class, Hyslop drew on his expertise and cherished stocks to select the finest and rarest whiskies for McDowell to sample. McDowell then created a unique blend under Hyslop’s guidance that reflected his individual taste and strong preferences for sweet, lighter flavors.

The 2009 Ballantine’s Championship will have a field of 156 players. McDowell, of Northern Ireland, will be back to defend his title against the likes of former Masters champion Fred Couples and top-notch golfers Ernie Els and Colin Montgomerie.

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When in Mexico, viva la Cazuela!

April L. Dowd photo
TLAQUEPAQUE, Mexico -- Straight tequilas, whether blanco, reposoda or añejo.

Margaritas, traditional or various fruit flavors.

Typical Mexican beverages, and wonderful drinks all. But what if you're looking for something very neighborhood specific?

I was, while in Mexico last week, and I found it at the El Patio restaurant in this artisan-dominated suburb of Guadalajara — the community’s own drink, called the Cazuela, that is a wonderfully refreshing potion, particularly for hot days like the 85-degree one I was experiencing.

The Cazuela gets its name from the earthenware bowl in which it is served.

It's made with ginger ale or Squirt -- the lowly soft drink so favored as a mixer in Mexico, blanco tequila and squeezes of wedges of orange, lime, lemon and mango, with pieces of the fruits competing with ice cubes for room in the bowl.

This punch-like mixture is, like so many other drinks, subject to the preferences of whoever is making them. Back in 1995, when Mexican food was just beginning its current U.S. uptick beyond some Southern border communities, the much-honored cookbook author Fonda San Miguel ("Tequila! Cooking with the Spirit of Mexico") was invited to serve a lush ethnic meal at the James Beard House in New York.

The Cazuela punch she served with it was a much more complex recipe that included watermelon, pineapple, oranges, grapefruit, carambola (star fruit), lemons, silver tequila, gold tequila and citrus-flavored soda.

Besides the Cazuela drink, the bowl -- which originated in Spain -- also is used to whip up a variety of one-dish meals.

Just two examples: A classic Cazuela in Puerto Rico includes sweet potatoes, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and star anise. In Chile, a common Cazuela involves chicken or beef with potatoes and vegetables in an herbed stock.

You can get the precise recipe for Fonda San Miguel's Cazuela punch here. And, Stephanie Stiavetti's "Kitchen Window" column on NPR.org offers an interesting take on how to use the earthenware vessel in a posting titled "Travels With My Cazuela."

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