What do I do with this Grappa?

December 12, 2004 9:22 PM

A friend who just job back from Italy gave me a really nice bottle of Grappa as a present. Last time I had any was 10 years ago and back then alcohol was something I drank because it made me walk funny and helped me get laid. What do I do with this alcohol? Stick it in the freezer and drink it straight?
posted by aspo to food & drink (14 comments total)

I love grappa, but I've never had it in any other way than neat. I ordered it in a restaurant once, and I don't remember even being asked it I wanted ice.

It tastes great (just like sucking through a trumpet, I always say) right out of the bottle. I think sticking it in the freezer would dumb the taste.
posted by interrobang at 9:25 PM on December 12, 2004

helped me get laid..... What do I do with this alcohol?

DRINK IT!!!
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:25 PM on December 12, 2004 [1 favorite]

Keep it in the fridge and drink it straight or over crushed ice. Grappa makes a nice post dinner digestif.
posted by sophie at 9:31 PM on December 12, 2004

Grappa is some nasty stuff. It has a very firewater taste and is not as refined as many other liguors. If you don't drink, Grappa will taste like rubbing alcohol.
posted by monkeyman at 9:40 PM on December 12, 2004

not as refined?! grappa is wonderful. there are so many different varieties, and some are indeed harsher than others, just like good scotch or tequila. you don't need to chill it, and you can drink it straight. you can also mix it with fruit juices (try pomegranate or blood orange or something with a bit of tart flavor) and enjoy it. it can be an acquired taste, but definitely worth acquiring.
posted by judith at 10:03 PM on December 12, 2004

I tried grappa for the first time yesterday. It was served to me in a special glass - it held about 1 shot worth of liquid, but it had a very narrow top that ballooned into a wider bowl near the stem. Presumably that is to reduce the amount of distilled-alcohol vapor you have to inhale as you sip your grappa. It is pretty strong and you will probably need to develop a taste for it. I found it to be somewhat like learning to appreciate Scotch in that respect.
posted by rhiannon at 10:07 PM on December 12, 2004

I was served grappa in a restaurant in a thin, flutey shot glass. I thought it tasted like engine fuel, but I'm a bit of a heathen alcohol-wise.
posted by onlyconnect at 10:12 PM on December 12, 2004

Grappa tastes like something you'd need an alien digestive-system and palette to appreciate at first, but don't let that stop you. If I could afford it, it'd be the only thing I drank.
posted by interrobang at 10:19 PM on December 12, 2004

Please don't do anything to it. Drink it straight and warm.
posted by leecifer at 12:47 AM on December 13, 2004

The way tradition dictates is drinking straight, at room temperature, in shot-sized portions.

Accepted (and recommended) accessories are a cup of strong espresso and a glass of water. Pouring the grappa directly into the espresso is ok. Pouring the grappa into the remains of sugar and coffee after drinking the espresso is also ok.

If you taste it and decide you are not going to finish the bottle, you can try the ladies' way of drinking it (again, according to tradition): pour the grappa into a jar filled with cherries and let it sit for at least 6 months. The grappa will get a nice scent and color; while the consumption of three cherries soaked soaked this way will fill any afternoon with laughs. Other fruits are OK too, but cherries really combine well.

One last thought for grappa-lovers: have you ever tried champagne grappa? Mine comes out of Catalonia in Spain and it is every bit as good as it sounds.
posted by magullo at 1:35 AM on December 13, 2004

In Italy, espresso with a shot of grappa is sometimes known as "caffe corretto" - corrected coffee. They're absolutely right to call it that.
posted by Luther Blissett at 6:07 AM on December 13, 2004

I always drank it neat, and enjoyed it best as a digestivo. It's just the thing to go with an after-dinner cigar, if you're into that.
posted by misteraitch at 7:01 AM on December 13, 2004

You do know that grappa is the crap left over after grapes are turned into wine, yes?
posted by waldo at 8:05 AM on December 13, 2004

we prefer to think of it as the pure distilled essence of the grape remaining after all the wine bits are removed.
posted by judith at 8:32 AM on December 13, 2004