Après Ski with G.H. Mumm & Hygge Life

I grew up in Colorado, spending much of my youth in the mountains.  I had skis strapped to my feet from the age of two (my first ski days were when I was 6 months old, in a pack on my dad's back, which is illegal now but a brag worthy claim of kids from the 80s who grew up in the mountains), and every weekend was spent outside enjoying the sun, the mountains, and good friends.  It was really the best way to grow up.

Last year, my husband and I moved back to Colorado (although it seems like I am on more airplanes than I am home these days), but it has been a welcome change from life in New York City.  It has also been a massive cultural shift. 

New Yorkers spend their weekends brunching, sipping mimosas, followed by shopping (a dangerous combination if you ask me). Skiers have much different imbibing habits, which include waking up early to get on the lift (the first chair if there is new snow), skiing through lunch, and then enjoying Après in the late afternoon.  A quick run to the car to change out of your ski boots and into comfy snow boots is a necessary move before settling into an afternoon of Après snacks and libations.  The best après tipple is always champagne, best served from a freshly sabered bottle and surrounded with friends.

For this Après sesh I partnered with G.H. Mumm Champagne and invited Alexandra and Koen from Vail's Hygge Life shop, as well as our photographer friends Ali Vagnini and Matt Kennedy to help us pop some bottles and kick the 2017/18 ski season off right.  Alexandra and Koen specialize in furs, and pretty much everything cozy, and they brought major Hygge vibes with them.  Koen even wore a vintage fur that belonged to his grandfather, a perfect accessory for anyone sabering a bottle of champagne on top of a mountain!!

It was a fun afternoon enjoying G.H. Mumm Champagne, nibbling on cheese and charcutarie and hanging with friends.  Our 9 month old puppy, Bowie, made a guest appearance as well as my forever dapper husband, Zac.

I hope this photo story inspires you to get out on the mountain for a great ski day and an even better après afternoon, because I know it got me very excited for winter!  

Saber Master, Koen

Photography: Ali Vagnini & Matt Kennedy

Creative Direction: Emily Arden Wells, Gastronomsita

Glassware: Lehmann Glass Jamesse Prestige Grand Champagne

Champagne:  G.H. Mumm Champagne

Sunnies: Thierry Lasry

Red Coat: Fjallraven

Hygge Coziness (furs, gold bottle holders, black fur mittens & styling): Hygge Life

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of G.H. Mumm Champagne. All opinions are 100% mine. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible.

Cocktail Friendsgiving with G.H. Mumm Champagne

This year I'm starting a new tradition - Cocktail Friendsgiving on Thanksgiving Eve.  It's a perfect night to get together with some of your favorite people, drink a few cocktails, pop a few bottles of bubbly, with the luxury of having the entire next day to nurse your hangover with turkey, gravy, and football.  Genius, I say.

Just like any Friendsgiving, my boozy version is based on the flavors of a thanksgiving meal; sweet, savory, and autumnal.

Start the evening out with an aperitif, a glass of cold G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Champagne.  There is truly nothing better than a glass of champagne at the beginning of cocktail hour; bright, effervescent, with flavors of peach, pineapple, apricot, honey, and vanilla caramel.  Nothing.  Better.

For extra holiday flair, make a wine bucket out of frozen cranberries, a beautiful display that plays double duty by keeping your bubbly cold!  Don't forget to make a new one for Thanksgiving - it will be sure to earn you extra points at the dinner table!

For the first cocktail I'm serving an herbaceous cocktail made with Träkál (an apple and pear brandy based spirit infused with the essential oils of herbs, berries, and botanicals found only in Patagonia), triple sec, Peychaud's Bitters, and topped with champagne.  Träkál has a unique flavors of anise, mint, red summer berries, sage, lemon, orange, and a bright spicy finish - it's incredibly savory - and all those bright fruity flavors of the spirit pair beautifully with the fruit forward flavors of the champagne.  Garnish this cocktail with apple slices and a sprig or two of fresh herbs to compliment the cocktail.

Magellanin
Created by Gastronomista

1 oz Träkál
1/2 oz Triple Sec
Top with G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Champagne
4 dashes Peychaud's Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a low ball glass with fresh ice.  Garnish with apple slices and fresh herbs.

The second course is based on a cocktail I had many years ago, a cocktail created by the one and only David Wondrich.  The cocktail is called the Corn Goddess, and was one of those cocktails that blew my mind early on in my booze blogging days, it was sweet yet savory, and was made with unexpected ingredients - tomatoes and corn.  Yes, you read that right, corn.  I modified the recipe a little bit by adding a bit of fresh chili to the recipe to give it a bit of kick - just add more or less chili to the mix based on your preference for spice. And of course, top it off with a bit of Champagne, because Friendsgiving.

Chicomecoatl
Modified by Gastronomista

1 oz Gin
1-1/2 oz Campari
2 T Fresh Corn Kernels
2 Cherry Tomatoes Cut in Half
1/4 Sliced Chili Pepper
Top with G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Champagne

In a cocktail tin muddle the corn, tomatoes and chili pepper.  Add gin, Campari, and ice, and shake until chilled.  Strain into a cocktail coupe, top with champagne and garnish with a fresh sage leaf.

My final course in my cocktail Friendsgiving is a simple champagne cocktail made with cranberry bitters and topped with sugared fresh cranberries.  (Pro Tip: candied cranberries are insanely delicious and addictive.  Make a whole bag and set them out for snacking).  I wanted to make a cocktail that had the bright, sweet flavors of cranberry without being too syrupy, something that would taste fresh at the end of this cocktail flight.

Cranberry Champagne Cocktail
Created by Gastronomista

1 small sugar cube
10 dashes Cranberry Bitters
4 oz G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Champagne

Thoroughly coat a sugar cube with Cranberry Bitters, and place at the bottom of a champagne flute.  Top with Champagne, add a few fresh cranberries, and rest a cocktail pick with three sugared cranberries on the top of the glass.

Sugared Cranberries
Recipe from My Recipes.com

2 Cups Fresh Cranberries
2 Cups White Sugar
2 Cups Water
1 Cup Superfine Sugar

Heat sugar and water in a pot until the sugar has dissolved.  Let cool.  In a non-reactive container combine fresh cranberries with the simple syrup, and place in the refrigerator overnight.  The next day, roll the cranberries in sugar and let dry for one hour.

Finish off the evening with a few more glasses of champagne, takeout (because who wants to cook the night before Thanksgiving?!), and a few laughs before you have to be on good behavior for Aunt Mildred.

Styling Notes:

Champagne: G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon
Champagne Flutes: Lehmann Glass Jamesse Prestige
Cocktail Coupes: Ralph Lauren
Low Ball Glasses: CB2
Mixing Glass: Analogue Merchantile
Jigger & Mixing Spoon: Parched Penguin
Vase: ACV
Coasters: Ikea
Ice Mold: Crate & Barrel

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of G.H. Mumm. All opinions are 100% mine.

Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible. 

Where There Is Smoke There is Fire, A Champagne Story

I have been thinking about color lately, how we perceive color not only with our eyes, but with other senses as well.  Many super tasters describe flavors in colors, in textures, or in other contextual analogies - all of which are descriptions that help our brains understand the experience of tasting and imbibing. 

What if we challenged ourselves to taste in hyper-environment - an immersive environment designed to accentuate the flavors of a liquid?  Would this hyper-environment influence the way we taste?  Could it increase our pleasure and enjoyment? 

If we think about flavor as a color, we can then visualize or illustrate those layers of flavor through saturation of hue and the transparency of those hues.  I wanted these images to portray this idea of layering - the layering of flavor, the layering of color.

I collaborated with Victoria Wright for this shoot - an incredibly talented photographer who beautifully captures a dreamy feeling of calm and serenity into all of her photos.  She was, as always, a pleasure to collaborate with.  We took to the desert with a case of champagne and a box of smoke bombs to explore these ideas of color, layers, and ultimately, flavor. 

We partnered with the prestigious champagne house, G.H. Mumm Champagne, a house founded in 1827 known for their exquisite cuvee.  Each cocktail is starts with the idea of a simple champagne cocktail made with homemade syrups of exotic flavors saturated colors.  Mumm is a perfect champagne to use in cocktails because it mixes well, its flavors jive well with the bright, fresh flavors in all of these cocktails.

I hope you enjoy this series as much as we enjoyed making it. 

Green

1 oz Kiwi Syrup

4 oz G.H. Mumm Champagne

Blue

1 Sugar Cube

4 dashes Angostura

10 Blue Butterfly Tea Flowers, Whole

4 oz G.H. Mumm Champagne

Purple

2 oz Gin

1/4 oz Crème de Violette

3/4 oz Simple Syrup

3/4 oz Lime Juice

3 oz G.H. Mumm Champagne

Red

1 oz Prickly Pear Syrup

4 oz G.H. Mumm Champagn

Yellow

1-1/2 oz Pineapple Puree

1-1/2 oz Blended Rum

3/4 oz Lime

3/4 oz Mint Simple Syrup

3 oz G.H. Mumm Champagne

Photography: Victoria Wright
Creative Direction: Emily Arden Wells, Gastronomsita
Glassware: Waterford Mixology Coupes, Viski Raye Glasses, Lehmann Glass Jamesse Prestige Grand Champagne
Champagne:  G.H. Mumm Champagne
Nails: Base Coat, Denver
Yellow & Red Dress: Asos
Sunnies: Karen Walker

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of G.H. Mumm. All opinions are 100% mine.

Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible.