Category Useful Tips

Cognac is rightfully considered one of the most valuable and respected alcoholic beverages. Consuming it in reasonable amounts is not only enjoyable, but also beneficial to health. I will tell you how to maximize this benefit.

Biologically active substances in cognac have a positive effect on the body as a whole. Only 20-30 grams of the drink dilates blood vessels, lowering blood pressure and stimulating the heart. Even cardiologists do not deny this. In small quantities, cognac helps against headaches and angina attacks. Tannin and tannins contribute to the rapid absorption of vitamin C. Cognac stimulates appetite and stimulates the secretion of gastric juice, in some cases even relieves stomach cramps.

By adding a few drops of cognac to tea, you can boost your immune system and protect yourself from colds. Warmed cognac is an excellent remedy for sore throat, which is used for gargling. To bring down the heat, warm cognac is drunk with honey and lemon. When treating bronchitis, it is heated and mixed with milk.

Also cognacs relieve toothache well. It is enough to moisten two pieces of cotton wool in the drink, apply one of them to the aching tooth, the other near the ear, to which the affected tooth is closer. After a few minutes, the pain will subside.

Cognac is beneficial for improving hearing and memory. Winston Churchill is a prime example. In his life, the famous British politician loved two things – cognac and cigars. He died at the age of 90 in sound mind and memory.

In order not to harm your health, doctors recommend drinking no more than 30 ml of brandy per day. At the same time, it is better to drink it without additives (coffee, tonic, soda, etc.). Another important point is that the benefits of cognac depend on its quality. If you bought a surrogate made from oak sawdust, then do not expect a preventive and therapeutic effect from it.

Cognac is contraindicated for people suffering from hypotension, diabetes, cholelithiasis and other chronic diseases. In this case, it is better to refrain from using it.

As a result of mixing beer with sour cream, an original drink is obtained that has a specific taste that is difficult to compare with other products. Not everyone likes this combination, but I advise you to try it as an experiment. The high calorie content of the mixture promotes rapid weight gain. The main rule is not to spare sour cream.

Warning! Beer with sour cream should not be drunk daily, as it is harmful to the liver and can subsequently result in alcoholism. A cocktail allows you to quickly gain only fat mass, as a result, a person does not look so skinny. For muscle gain, this drink is useless.

Beer recipe with sour cream

Ingredients:

• sour cream – 200 grams;
• light beer – 0.33 l.

Preparation

1). Pour sour cream into a beer mug.

2). Add 100-150 ml of beer, stir until smooth.

3). Top up the rest of the beer and stir again.

It turns out a white cocktail (see photo).

Simple beer soup with sour cream

I also advise fans of exotic dishes to prepare beer soup with sour cream according to the following recipe.

Ingredients:

• beer – 1.5 liters;
• sour cream – 2 glasses;
• yolk – 3 pieces;
• butter – 1 tablespoon;
• sugar, salt – to taste;
• croutons (sliced croutons) – to taste.

Preparation

1). Bring the beer and crackers to a boil.

2). In a separate bowl, beat the sour cream, yolks, sugar and salt.

3). Pour the boiled beer slowly into the yolks, stir.

4). Heat the resulting mixture over low heat until thickened.

5). Pour the finished beer soup into the tureen. Serve in bouillon cups.

Strongly carried away by alcoholic beverages, a person gradually enters into a binge without even noticing it. This condition occurs as a result of drinking alcohol for a long time (from two days to three months). Its main reason is trying to treat a hangover with a new drink. To help yourself or a loved one, you need to know how to get out of the binge yourself at home. We will look at effective smoking methods.

It is best to get out of binge in specialized clinics under the supervision of doctors. But due to various circumstances, mainly financial, not everyone has such an opportunity. In this case, you can try to solve the problem yourself by resorting to folk remedies.

Attention! The implementation of the recommendations below does not guarantee a quick exit from the binge. The site administration is not responsible for the possible consequences. You use these methods at your own risk. Self-medication can be dangerous, consult your doctor.

Getting out of binge at home

1. Desire to end binge drinking. The drinker must recognize the problem and decide for himself to quit drinking. No arguments and reproaches from relatives will help here. Without the willpower and desire of the patient, even doctors are powerless.

2. Gradually reduce the dose of alcohol. A sharp refusal from alcohol with binge is fraught with serious consequences up to death, since the body is in a state of shock. This is comparable to the withdrawal symptoms of drug addicts.

To get out of a long binge, doctors recommend giving up strong alcoholic beverages, replacing them with beer. For 2-3 days, all eaten food is washed down with a small amount of beer (100-150 ml). This is followed by a complete rejection of alcohol, but the amount of food should remain the same. Only after three weeks can the amount of food consumed be reduced.

3. Ammonium alcohol. The first 2-3 days of getting out of binge at home, you need to drink a glass of water with 4-5 drops of ammonia before eating. This will help prevent stomach upset.

4. Drink plenty of fluids. Sweet tea, kvass, mineral or plain water, sour natural juices and even pickles are suitable. In water, you can still dilute the mint tincture in a proportion of 20 drops per glass of water.

5. Medicines. To relieve hard drinking you will need: activated charcoal, Essentiale and vitamins. These drugs are taken as directed. Activated charcoal is drunk two tablets three times a day. Medication helps the body get rid of toxins and keep the body in good shape.

6. Vivid emotions and workload. In a binge state, it is very important to distract yourself from thoughts of alcohol. To do this, psychologists advise loading yourself with chores for several days in advance.

When you get out of a binge on your own, some experts recommend raising the adrenaline level in your blood – jumping with a parachute or doing other extreme sports. But this method is only suitable for people in good health who do not have cardiovascular diseases.

These tips have helped many people get out of the binge. But not every drinker has enough willpower to go through this difficult path to the end. If you cannot cope with the problem on your own, it is better not to waste time and seek help from doctors.

Not many people know how to properly taste and evaluate alcoholic beverages. There is nothing difficult here, it is enough to know a few nuances. If you decide to taste cognac for the first time, this material will be useful to you. We will look at the process of tasting cognac, which consists of three stages.

The first tip is to use only a special cognac glass (snifter). Do not pour cognac into the glass, otherwise you will not be able to enjoy its smell. The glass must be clean (thoroughly wiped) and absolutely dry. This will help you evaluate the appearance of the drink.

The classic cognac tasting consists of three phases: “eye”, “nose” and “mouth”. First, the appearance, smell, and only then taste are assessed.

In the “eye” phase, the shade of cognac is assessed. The color depends on the aging and the presence (absence) of caramel in the alcohol. Cognac can have different shades: light golden, reddish with a bronze or copper tint, dark amber and even brown.

It is impossible to determine the age of cognac only by color, since caramel could be added to it. If a drink labeled VS or VSOP (aged 2-4 years) has a very dark color, caramel was definitely added to it. For several years of aging in oak barrels, cognac cannot darken much.

A perfectly transparent oily drink with a vibrant shine can be called qualitative. The drips on a glass with good cognac should be even and embossed. This is where the visual cognac tasting ends.

During the next phase of assessment (“Nose”), the specialist uses the capabilities of his sense of smell. Some professionals do not evaluate cognac at all visually, believing that the color and consistency are easy to fake. They go straight to smell analysis. For this, the glass is filled no more than a third.

Phase “first nose” – brandy is not shaken, but immediately brought to the nose at a distance of 10-15 cm, trying to catch the first volatile substances.

“Second nose” – the glass is twisted in the hands for several seconds, then tilted a couple of times in different directions. After that, the drink is brought closer to the nose, evaluating the aromatic bouquet. It is very good if the cognac smells like vanilla, honey, chocolate, spices or coconut.

Cognac aged over 15 years should smell like mushrooms, cheese, butter, overripe fruits, almonds and hazelnuts. This aroma is called “rancio” (rancio), it is inherent only in elite aged cognacs and some brands of fortified wines.

At the “third nose” tasting phase, the combination of all the aromas of the drink is assessed. Do not bring your nose too close to the glass, as there is a risk of burning the mucous membrane. The burn is not dangerous, but for a while you will lose your sense of smell and will not be able to finish the tasting.

To relieve irritation of the nasopharynx from cognac alcohol, just sniff the back of your hand.

The final phase of the tasting is called the “mouth”. After a small sip, the cognac is kept in the mouth for several seconds, drawing in a little air. This is how the softness of the evaluated beverage is determined. The higher the quality of the cognac, the longer the aftertaste lasts. There should be no alcohol in the taste of the tasting drink.

Experienced tasters use another secret – they don’t wash the glass. In a good cognac, the aroma lasts for several days, and sometimes weeks.