Comments on: Recipes for the holidays: Chocolate Stout Mousse, Pears in Cider

By: William Brand

William Brand — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:05:21 +0000

Hi BahHumBrew. I went back to the original recipe from 1997 and yes, it calls for one and one-half ounces of gelatin. This is the recipe we have used to make the dish a number of times. But if you feel that’s too much gelatin, cut down the amount. I think one and one-half ounces is one of those little packages that come in the gelatin box. So try it and let me know what you find out.

By: William Brand

William Brand — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 06:39:46 +0000

Oh dear. It’s completely possible I screwed up, but if I did it was long ago. I’ll delve into my archives and find the original — we’re talking circa 1988 here. Last time we made it, a couple of years ago, it was stunning.

And glad you liked the pears in cider. It’s so simple and so eloquent.

By: BahHumBrew

BahHumBrew — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:02:52 +0000

We tried both the Mousse and the Pears. While the pear recipe was great, the Mousse recipe may suffer from some errors in the ingredients list. First of all 1 1/2 ozs of gelatin is a very large amount. Maybe it should be 1 1/2 teaspoons? Using ozs in US recipes is unusual. Is there a way to backcheck the ingredients list for this recipe?

By: William Brand

William Brand — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 20:42:34 +0000

The cider situation in America is much worse than in the UK. At least you have some decent choices. Here, almost every cider, if you look at the label, which is nearly always in fine print, you’ll see that the beverage you’re about to consume is really a chemical cocktail. Stabilizers, malic acid to make it tart. It’s a long, depressing list.

And pear ciders here are usually made with apple juice with “pear essence” added. Aspall’s really a breath of fresh air.

By: Melissa

Melissa — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 08:58:39 +0000

Aspall is fantastic, I have a very uneasy relationship with cider, especially the ones that smell and taste like they’ve been made from barnyard scrapings mixed with pig pen floor, but Aspall is absolutely awesome.

The Premier Cru is the standout of the portfolio for me, and the Peronelle’s Blush which is flavoured with a mere hint of creme de mure is divine.