SC - Dry Site Issues

[Ingus Moen]

> Other than the obvious "precook" option, there are a couple things you 
> might do to alleviate the site authorities.
> 
> 1)A week or so before the event, go buy a bottle of Ocean Spray grape 
> juice.  Drink it, then put the wine in the grape juice bottle (white 
> grape juice for white wine, red for red, of course...) and take the 
wine 
> to the event in the grape juice jar.  Get apple juice to put beer in.
> 
> 2)If they're REALLY sticky about it and you're REALLY worried, then 
boil 
> the wine and/or beer at home for 10-20 minutes.  In that time, all the 
> alcohol should have evaporated, but will still keep the flavor of the 
> given spirit.  Let it cool, and pour it into the grape juice/apple 
juice 
> jar (see #1).
> 
> One other aside....non-alcoholic beer has alcohol in it....a VERY 
SMALL 
> AMOUNT but it's there, so if they're cool with non-al beer, they 
should 
> have no problem with #2.

Now, these are just my opinions but:

  Option number one seems very dishonest to me.  If they have 
specified that it is a DRY site, then you should obey their rules if 
you want to use the site in the future.

  Option number two is just plain wrong.  I'm sorry, but alcohol 
doesn't evaporate (not to the degree that you imply).

I generally substitute white or red grape juice for wines, and I 
don't pick recipes that require beer.  Although I certainly can't 
tell you not to use alcohol, you might want to go the pre-cook route 
wherever possible if you do use it.

And to beat a VERY dead horse (please don't hit me for it), don't 
forget to list the alcohol in the ingredients list you post -- non 
alcoholic beer still has enough alcohol in it to make me sick for 
days, and to make those of us with religious objections very unhappy.

Claricia Nyetgale

Milady Claricia,

As to the purportion (is that even a word--purportion?) of dishonesty, I 
made no statement that these were in any way the moral high or 
lowgrounds, merely that these were ways to deal with the situation.  I 
can easily tell the difference in taste, for example, between Beef 
Stroganoff cooked with red wine and Beef Stroganoff cooked with grape 
juice (for the record, I prefer the wine).  The sole reason of switching 
jars is so that there will be no wine bottle in the trash, leading the 
governing party to think that there was consumption of alcohol for its 
own sake.  Of course, this is not the way to be a role model, but then 
the polls state that as long as the job appears to be getting done that 
morals don't matter (Uh-oh, politics is creeping in...better get to the 
next point).

AS to the second, *I'M* sorry, but when one boils a bottle of wine or 
several bottles of beer (one will evaporate completely in that length of 
time) in a large skillet for several minutes, one reduces the liquid and 
boils off the alcohol.  It is pure chemistry.  If I had said "bring it 
to a boil", then I could have agreed that some will stay behind, but 
boiling for a prolonged period (not rolling, else you will scorch it 
into goo, but up to boil and simmering at that temp for the pre-ascribed 
10-20), it will reduce down and be non-al.

And to the third point, that one we are in agreement.  Thank you for the 
reminder to ALWAYS mention the use of alcohol in dishes (for allergies 
AND religious purposes).  Good call.  That point cannot be made often 
enough.  I'll shield you from the tomatoes being thrown and you keep 
jumping on it.

Regards, 
Ingus

______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
============================================================================

To be removed from the SCA-Cooks mailing list, please send a message to
Majordomo at Ansteorra.ORG with the message body of "unsubscribe SCA-Cooks".

============================================================================