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Food

The Uncommon Life

Mixtape Mixed Drinks: Manhattan Cocktail Recipe

September 11, 2013

The Manhattan is a classic New York cocktail, so of course it inspired a playlist of classic New York songs. The Manhattan’s a sophisticated drink that evokes images of the city it’s named after during the Mad Men era. (Don Draper typically drinks an old fashioned, but we could see him drinking this as well.)

The drink can be made with Bourbon or Rye–my Manhattan is made with Bourbon.

Manhattan Cocktail Recipe | UncommonGoods

Sipping a Mahattan in a Mixtape Glass can put you in a New York state of mind, no matter your location.

The Drink:
2 parts bourbon to 1 part sweet vermouth
1-2 Dash bitters
Maraschino cherry (optional)

Place ice in a cocktail shaker and then add bourbon, sweet vermouth and bitters. Shake and pour (strained) into a chilled glass or pour over ice. Top with a cherry (optional).

The Playlist:
1. Incident on 57th Street-Bruce Springsteen
2. Spanish Harlem-Ben E. King
3. Positively 4th Street-Bob Dylan
4. Take the A Train-Duke Ellington
5. New York State of Mind-Billy Joel
6. New York City Serenade-Bruce Springsteen

The Uncommon Life

Mixtape Mixed Drinks: Sweet and Lowdown Cocktail Recipe

September 10, 2013

I enlisted a little help from my husband Nathan to make my drink-inspired playlist, since we created this drink together and he’s the music lover!

We call this drink the “Sweet and Lowdown” after the Woody Allen movie. (It has lots of great music!)

Sweet and Lowdown Cocktail Recipe

The Sweet and Lowdown (in our Mixtape Glass)is a citrus masterpiece inspired by cinema

The Drink:
1-2 oz gin (Depending on how strong you like it.)
1-2 oz grapefruit juice
Splash of triple sec or cointreau
Splash of soda
1-2 lime wedges
2-3 basil leaves, julienned, leave 1 whole

Muddle the julienned basil, 1 lime wedge and triple sec in the bottom of your glass. Fill glass with ice. Add gin, juice, and top with soda. Garnish with another lime and a basil leaf if desired. Turn on the music playlist below, relax, and enjoy!

Variations – Substitute mint or rosemary for the basil.

The Playlist:
1. Minor Swing–Django Reinhardt
2. Diga Diga Doo–Artie Shaw
3. Tain’t What You Do–Mildred Bailey
4. Si, Paloma–Sun Kil Moon
5. Swing Low, Sweet Cadillac–Dizzy Gillespie
6. Django–Grant Green
7. Two To Tango–Bing Crosby & Rosemary Clooney

The Uncommon Life

Celebrating International Shipping with our 6 Favorite Foods from Around the World

July 26, 2013

We’re always getting questions from fans of our products from around the world wondering when they’ll be able to make purchases and have them shipped from our home in Brooklyn to their homes outside of the United States. For a few years, the answer was “we’re working on it.” It took some time to work out the details, but it’s important to us to be able to get our goods across the pond (any pond) to those who want them. Now, we’re thrilled to announce that international shipping is finally here!

Our team is super excited to share our designs around the globe, so we had to do something fun to celebrate. In honor of the special occasion, team members brought foods from their favorite countries. Some brought dishes to represent their heritage, some contributed the cuisine of lands they’d like to visit, and others made the choice simply based on the food’s deliciousness!

international_foods

Our HR team made our international foods potluck even more special by decorating our break room and busting out a Scratch Map to mark the places from where our food “traveled.”

decorations

We loved devouring these tasty treats, so while we’re spreading the word about our new shipping options we decided to share the love and spread the recipes for our favorite potluck foods.

chokabollar

Alisha, or Director of Purchasing rolled up some scrumptious Swedish chocolate balls, AKA Chokladbollar.

lefse
Sarah, our Senior Product Development Associate, also contributed a Scandinavian favorite, Lefse.

eggplant

HR Manager Mindy whipped up a batch of fantastic Eggplant Caponata.

hamentashen

Transportation Manager Victoria (who worked hard to make international shipping happen!) supplied us with a big batch of Hamentashen.

macaroni

Summer Analytics Intern Andrew got in on the fun with his homemade Haitian-style Macaroni Au Gratin.

strawberry_shortcake

And the last delicious dish in our roundup of festive foods from near and far, Senior Merchandising Manager Heather’s strawberry shortcake was the icing on the cake. Actually, her cake was complete with homemade whipped cream, which made it extra delectable.

These are just a few of our favorites from the celebration. What’s your favorite international food?

The Uncommon Life

Our Homemade Beer Tasting Brew-haha

June 13, 2013

Some believe that Plato said, “It was a wise man who invented beer.” While Plato probably never actually said that, and we don’t know who exactly came up with the ingenious idea to turn cereal into booze, we do know how to make beer. Or I should say, we learned, thanks to our exclusive Craft a Brew Beer Brewing Kits.

To make sure our educational experience was comprehensive, we decided to test each of our new home brew flavors by comparing them during an in-office beer tasting; but first, we had to wrangle some brewers.

The Brewers

Warehouse Operations Coordinator Bradley cooked up a batch of Southern Bourbon Stout, Product Development Associate Sarah celebrated her home state with the Texas Chipotle Amber, Marketing Analyst Kira revisited beer making by giving the West Coast IPA a try, and Marketing Analyst Matt tapped into his inner lumberjack by bottling some Vermont Maple Porter.

The goal was to keep this competition fair and balanced, but Brad did make an attempt to pick up some bonus points by adding a personal touch to his finished product. Kira went another route and, knowing that the way to a beer judge’s heart is through the stomach, brought some homemade pretzels. (She insists that these were for the purpose of palate cleansing between sips, and were no way intended as a bribe.)

There is also some suspicion that two of the contestants may have been in cahoots.

While it wasn’t too hard to get the brewers on board, recruiting judges was almost too easy. (Apparently, people jump at product testing opportunities when they involve delicious adult beverages.)

The Judges

Copywriter Stephanie, Director of Marketing Brian, and Systems Administrator Paul agreed to sample the goods.

With beer flavor checklists in hand, the judges tried each carbonated creation. Here are some beer basics discovered during the tasting.

West Coast IPA
Kira’s brewing tip: “Be Tall. It’s hard to pour things!” You have to place the strainer on top of a funnel on top of the carboy, so a step stool (or a short table) may be required to help shorter folks make beer with ease.

Judges’ Notes: Stephanie said “it definitely smells like an IPA,” but upon tasting said that this IPA “isn’t super hoppy.” She commented on notes of “citrus” and described the flavor as “75 degrees and sunny.” The beer was served cold, though. Just for clarification, the IPA could be described as tasting like a summer’s day.

Brian agreed that the beer “tastes like California,” and said that it may be a good choice for someone who doesn’t love IPAs, since it’s not too “IPA-ie.”

Texas Chipotle Amber
Sarah’s Brewing Tip: “It’s a weekend project, because it does take a while to set up.”

Judges’ Notes: Brian called this brew “ridiculously good,” “smokey and spicy,” and “interesting.” Paul agreed with the interesting comment, and added that it was “fresh,” and had “a hook…not a gimmick.”

Stephanie also called out the unique spiciness of the beer, and said she was a fan of the “big, bold Texas flavor.”

Southern Bourbon Stout
Bradley’s Brewing Tip: “Malt, grains, and patience.” He also reminded us that his kit took a little longer to brew, on account of the extra step of soaking oak chips in bourbon to infuse the beer.

Judges’ Notes: Paul was near-ecstatic about the subtle, unexpected sweetness of this stout. He described it as “almost like eating cookie dough.” Brian agreed that it was sweeter than expected, but said that though the smell was intense, like a “shot of vanilla,” the actual taste held a “multitude of flavors.”

The judges agreed that the bourbon taste was there, but it wasn’t overpowering.

Vermont Maple Porter

Matt’s Brewing Tip: “Read the instructions before you start, and make sure to sanitize everything.” Matt’s tip came about after a bit of a brewing faux pas. It turns out, that his inner lumberjack was actually neglected–he forgot to add the maple syrup.

Judges’ Notes: “It’s hard to judge accurately without the syrup,” said Stephanie. But, despite the porter’s syrup-less-ness, she called it “creamy,” “very malty,” and “smooth drinking.”

Brian didn’t appreciate the deviation from the recipe. “Matt’s renegade style often gets him in trouble,” he said. “This is another example of that.”

Paul was also unhappy with the not-maple porter, and decided to add some syrup after the fact. This improvisation is not recommended.

When the flights were finally empty, the judges all agreed on a favorite. While the Bourbon stout was a close second and “equally as good [taste-wise as the winner],” according to Brian, the champion was the Texas Chipotle Amber, which is “more memorable.”

Sarah took home the prize (which is the knowledge that she chose the beer kit the judges liked best) and all involved in our brew-haha finished the remaining spicy chipotle, (sans) maple porter, subtly sweet stout, and refreshing IPA.

Gift Guides

Gift Lab: How to Stay Chill & Kick Back Cold Ones

June 11, 2013

Research
I was already familiar with the Corkcicle, but was excited to hear of the introduction of the Chillsner— a stainless steel tool you freeze and then put in your beer, juice, or soda.

Hypothesis
My hope is that my beverage remains cold, even if I get distracted playing video games.

Experiment
I have to admit I was a little skeptical about using the Chillsner. Also I was a little nervous my lips would get stuck to it, due to the Chillsner’s time in the freezer. So on the first night, I put the product in the freezer for an hour. (The instructions call for 45 minutes.) I took it out and stuck it in the bottle, but not following the instructions, I spilled some of my beer because I didn’t take a sip first. Stupid physics.

The first attempt worked pretty well, even though I purposely put the Chillsner in a warm beer, and it cooled it pretty quickly. Yum.

The next night, the Chillsner had been in the freezer for 24 hours. My lips still didn’t get stuck. Also I made sure not to spill my beer. It kept my chilled beer chilled as I nursed it for an hour and a half. Normally I don’t take this long to drink a beer, but sacrifices must be made in the name of science.

Conclusion
Overall, I was pleased. My beer stayed cold for much longer than I was used to. I look forward to using the Chillsner this summer.

Gift Guides

Gift Lab: A Pocketful of Convenience

January 30, 2013

Background Research
The Pocket Utensil Set is an exciting new addition to UncommonGoods’ collection. In the world of utensils, I had only experienced traditional silverware, plasticware, and chopsticks until now. This new option could open up an entirely new realm of utensils for me.

Hypothesis
Since I dislike the feel and overall experience of plasticware, and I often find myself in situations where plastic is the only option, I predict that always having stainless steel flatware on hand will improve the way I enjoy meals every single day. I predict that I will be much happier always having this option available to me.

Experiment
I began by examining the packaging. It’s quite simple, and leaves minimal waste. (Good for the environment, which is always a plus for me.) The back of the packaging has simple directions for separating the device in two.

My friend’s dog Max watched as I learned how to split it in half. This was really easy to do. (It’s also very easy to re-assemble).

When I first set out, I wanted to use the pocket utensil is every possible scenario until my experiment was done. I took it everywhere I went. In some situations, such as when having dinner at a friend’s home, where a table is set and so forth, it really made no sense to pull out my own silverware, so I figured I would refrain. However, I found it most useful when my roommates have left all the silverware dirty in the sink, and I didn’t want to dig for a dirty fork to wash, and then subsequently, use. I now ALWAYS have a clean fork, knife, and spoon available to me!

The feeling of using the pocket utensil is much nicer than the plastic variety; however, there are a few things I’d like to point out. The fork, spoon, and knife are scaled down a bit. Which makes them still useful, and, of course, portable–but it is harder to grab a bunch of spaghetti on this smaller fork than with a larger, traditional one.

The spoon is most certainly not for soup, but it is fine for cereal or any food where it makes sense to have a smaller amount in each spoonful. It’s great how easily you can separate the fork/bottle opener end from the spoon/knife side. If you had a meal that requires a spoon, fork, and knife all at the same time, you may find yourself rushing to the kitchen to wash off the knife and spoon alternately, as needed. This could be a bit annoying, but luckily most meals do not require that many utensils.

The Pocket Utensil is cool-looking, portable, and useful. It definitely improved those meals where I would have had to wash my silverware right before eating, or where I would have had to use wasteful, flimsy plasticware.

Conclusion
My hypothesis was proven to be true. I enjoyed meals with the Pocket Utensil far more than without. The only real ideal situation is to always have traditional silverware ready, clean, and available to you, no matter what. When you can’t have that, the Pocket Utensil is a brilliant alternative.

Gift Guides

Uncommon Gifts for The Mixologist

December 3, 2012

Even the most complex cocktail is no match for The Mixologist. Armed with a bottle of booze, ice, and a splash of soda, this brave bartender helps you battle thirst, then celebrate your victory with a toast. With a penchant for the perfect pour and a reputation for really shaking things up, a true mix master may have enough swizzle sticks and tiny umbrellas to get through last call, but they’re always in the mood for new drink-worthy designs. These giftable goods are perfect companions to their well-crafted concoctions, so why not give one a shot?


The 7 Deadly Sins Glasses / Bar10der / Wood Bow Tie / Lemon Press Squeezer / Splash Martini Glasses / Himalayan Salt Tequila Glasses / Molecular Mixology Kit–Mojito / Cocktail Dice with Shaker

Gift Guides

Uncommon Gifts for the Eternal Hostess

November 30, 2012

Her home is always immaculate; her fridge, fully stocked. She’s prepared for out-of-town guests, visiting neighbors, and no-notice pop-ins. There hasn’t been a holiday for which she couldn’t plan the perfect party. And, showers–bridal or baby–she’s ready with cute games and an even cuter cake. She is the Eternal Hostess. She may not need much, but she’s always looking for that extra special something to add just the right touch to any get-together. This holiday season, show her that you appreciate her hospitality with one of these handsome housewares that she’ll be proud to display at her next shindig.

Wine Pairing Towel Set / Aerating Wine Glasses / Recycled Windowpane Candle Holders / Place Card Stamp / Teardrop Serving Boards / Holiday Wine Box / Bird Project Soap / Upcycled Music Score Ornaments