“A waitress stops by and takes our order for ‘the biggest cheese plate you have for the love of god please just put the cheese in my mouth’ and recommends us some wine” - Hugo Vega and the Dadvatar

Inspiration

Hugo Vega’s the teacher kind of Daddy. He also loves cheese, fine wine, and wrestling on the DDDL (that means “Dream Daddy Down-Low” for all you non-Daddys out there). This man is obsessed, and it felt appropriate to lean into his fascination as much as he has for his namesake drink.

Workshopping

Cheese

In researching cheese in cocktails, I couldn’t help but notice the presence of that Doritos distillate on the market. Long story short, it tastes like soggy nacho cheese Doritos tortilla chips without all that extra spice. (Here’s a short summary of my tasting notes of Empirical x Doritos on YouTube)

Moving on from nacho cheese, I turned to a more sophisticated culture. My local grocery store had Havarti cheese on sale. According to a quick Google search, fruit, salt, and a bit of cheese combine superbly! I snagged some watermelon as well and placed it atop the cheese and a salty cracker. My little late night snack struck me with the inspiration to try another combo, but this time in drink form. Back to the store, I went to pick up another selection, Brie.

Cheese-Washing

I can’t remember what exactly came over me, but I felt compelled to take the Brie and place it in a spirit. Fat-washing is a technique that I’ve only recently begun experimenting with. I had seen it done before with milk and coconut oil, so why not cheese? What a Gouda idea indeed. I dunked half of my block of Brie (with the wax) into some Laird’s applejack apple brandy.  Hugo is a teacher after all, and what brandy would be better befitting than one derived from apples?

The Brie and applejack combination was shaken vigorously and left to sit at room temperature for 3 hours. It was then left in the freezer overnight, and strained out in the morning. On its own, Brie-infused applejack is a rather salty mix that is very forward on the cheese. The flavor of apple from the brandy is muted, yet still perceptible amidst the bite of the alcohol.

In the hopes of preserving the poignant flavor of the infused spirit, I opted to serve Hugo’s drink as a martini.

Brie Martini

Martinis don’t have much to hide behind. Traditionally, they are only spirit, vermouth, and cold (with optional garnish). Hugo attempts to keep hidden his love of wrestling, seemingly because of some insecurity. You can’t hide from us Mr. Vega! Also, if you didn’t know already, vermouths are generally aromatized wines. Hugo enjoys fine wine and good cheese, so vermouth and the cheese-infused applejack seemed like a no-brainer.

My first attempt at Hugo’s Brie martini was essentially just dry vermouth and the applejack with a ratio light on the vermouth. Although that flavor of Brie was prominent enough, it was a bit overpowering for the more herbaceous notes of the vermouth. Dialing back on the base and supporting the flavor with some non-infused applejack balanced things out. In addition to tempering the salty Brie flavors, adding some of the applejack back accented the fruitier notes present in the whole concoction.

The final garnish included a dried apricot and a skewered block of Brie. My methodology for garnishes as of late is to provide visual context for the drink. The block of Brie would imply that, perhaps, there is something cheesy about the liquid it sits in - check! What about the apricot? Although I would normally include it to give cue that there is an apricot spirit or sweetener in the drink, this time it is because the combo of Brie and dried apricot appeared in-game.

Flavor Analysis

The tangy saltiness of Brie cheese flavor is supported by subtle notes of apple skin. A very odd yet pleasant combination of savory and dry sweetness.