The cheerful House Dean of Ware and anthropology faculty member, Belgian native Utsav Schurmans, swears by the vin de noix. This translates roughly to nut wine, or more specifically green walnut wine. According to Schurmans, it is “a French southwest regional product in which macerated green walnuts are soaked in wine.” He's even made it before and has some in his Ware apartment. The taste is “thick and sweet, with a very rich and spicy flavor.” Since the flavors are warm and reminiscent of winter, the drink is usually enjoyed during cold weather. (Sorry, Utsav, if during the winter months we come knocking on your door for some homemade walnut wine).
Faculty fellow and Slavic languages professor Kevin Platt praises the classic gin and tonic, but he also enjoys “playing with the cocktail" by adding fresh Meyer lemons. For a more complex cocktail, his go–to is the Negroni. Traditionally served on the rocks and in an old fashioned glass garnished with an orange peel, the Negroni cocktail is made with one part gin, one part vermouth rosso (aromatized fortified wine), and one part bitters, traditionally Campari.
Despite being forever branded as the alcoholic advisee, I was able to shed some light on physics professor Masao Sako’s drinks of choice. Masao’s preference is for no frills: “I’m not a cocktail person. I like to keep it simple—wine—especially a good bottle of red—or beer.” However, he did mention that his first go–to cocktail would be the classic gin and lime.
Former bartender, Budhhist monk and current professor of religious studies Justin McDaniel shared two popular inventions of his, the Uncommon Cold and the Broken Resolution. The Uncommon Cold is made with Drambuie (a specialty Scottish malt whiskey), Widow Jane Bourbon, meade, lemon, honey, St. Germain (a French liqueur made from elderberry flowers), homemade falernum (spiced Caribbean syrup), rhubarb bitters, candied ginger and an Angelique Absinthe wash, served on the rocks. The Broken Resolution, as its name suggests, is a decadent mix of Green Chartreuse (a French liqueur made by Carthusian monks using 130 herbs, plants and flowers), Armagnac (a French brandy), Strega (an Italian liqueur), Killepitsch (a German spirit), simple syrup, Burnt Cherry sugar, bitters and Lemon hart 151 (a dark Guyanan rum) as a float, served neat. As for his regular drink of choice, Justin prefers the classics— “my favorite simple drink is either Sazerac or Rhum Agricole, straight.”
