Tried & tested: From coffee to Black Bow Himalayan Whiskey, here are some F&B picks to impress your valentine

As we begin to come out of phase three of this enforced hibernation, we are greeted by a weather God who can’t seem to make up its mind. Consequently, our food and drink habits are constantly being altered to align with the climate (change) that we are being subjected to. Maybe, some of this makes it to your Valentine’s shopping (and impressing) list.

Here are some of my picks of F&B treats that I think are worthy of sharing.

Orika, the brand, first impressed me with a nice jal-jeera lemonade pre-mix and now I worked my way through some of their marinades and rubs and came away equally impressed. It makes preparing exotic dishes at home fairly simple and takes the (masala pounding and grinding) work out of it. Neat packaging and a good array for choice.

I am extremely intrigued by cannabidiol (CBD) and all it can (or may not) be. Either way, I do have to admit that it makes me (and wife) sleep cozily well and I am still trying to find if it also aids in my overall well-being. Awshad was the first one I tried and then I stumbled upon Trost which infuses CBD oil with other ingredients to give it a  little extra edge. In case anybody knows more about exploring this branch of alternative healing, do share it on public platforms. I’m no anti-vaxxer but we can all do with a little less chemical being pumped into us.

Speaking of eating natural, hydroponics is another contemporary answer. I don’t know if it’s entirely sustainable (or even cost-effective) but for the produce I have tried from the Agro2o home kit, all harvests have been crunchy and top draw. And it took literally zero effort to get to my first harvest which is a big achievement for someone who can kill most house plants.

There’s a new burger chain—Boss Burger—in town (in Delhi-NCR for now, but possibly in other cities soon), and it comes from the team that gave us Smokehouse Cafe. Big bold babies with enough meat between the buns to make your jaw stretch to the max. The tenderloin and lamb were my picks (veg black bean was too spicy for my liking) and the starters were also a sinfully good way to commit caloricide. Only gripe, I wish the burgers came with fries and not nachos, I still can’t seem to break that pairing in my head.

When an outlet claims to be Indo-Chinese, you know it will find mass appeal. So, it certainly helps that this delivery brand —Wok-on-Fire—is present across multiple cities, churning out that nostalgic version of spiced-up Asian fare that maybe a distant relative of the original recipes but has come to be recognised and accepted as the version we like on the subcontinent. Prices are mostly modest, and the portions ample, and it is a good online address for that post-pub crawl grub.

On to a favourite, Glenfiddich recently hosted an online session with its in-house brand ambassador. Angad is a charmer from the get-go and can make that aged single malt seem even smoother. A little respite for Delhi folk, the new pricing puts it ever more within our reach; so, all the reason to indulge oneself.

Don’t ask me why but I signed up for an online class with acclaimed chef Amninder Sandhu to make jackfruit biryani at home. It certainly helped that all ingredients and even the container (an Indus Valley tri-ply stainless steel stockpot no less) were all shipped to me. It tasted good and even the cleaning up (of the pot) afterwards was a cinch. But I am still some trials away from unleashing my culinary prowess on my close circle. Back to the stockpot for now.

Coffee is complex—in terms of the ways you can make it, mix it, enjoy it, comment on it, and so on. I attended an online coffee session which demystified everything that one may have wanted to know but didn’t know whom to ask. Abhinav Mathur of Something’s Brewing (an online one-stop portal for all coffee needs) conducted the Coffee Masterclass and it was a great way to navigate this world of complex flavours. We all had little kits to tinker with at our homes to understand how the way a coffee is made can change so much about the final taste. Sadly, this isn’t open to everyone but the site is fairly easy to navigate and I am sure if someone left a query there, they’d be satisfactorily answered.

Black Bow Himalayan Whiskey is a very young brand that’s trying to bring a sense of provenance to the sub-1,000 rupee whisky category. It’s a novel effort from a young entrepreneur (Shivam Ginglani) and a monumental one, if I may add. Sure, it will take time to establish the idea of a Himalayan blended whisky but from what I tasted, it worked well in high balls and cocktails. Neat packaging further ups the trust quotient. They spell it “whiskey” to try and deviate from the classic Scotch style (but it’s not like a Bourbon either).

A quick note on Bombay Sapphire Gin & Tonic, a canned premix that is one of the best packaged alcoholic drinks out there—balanced, true to the original and well presented (and priced). Now to find a good, secluded picnic spot.

The writer is a sommelier