Like most nerds and tech junkies, I'm totally addicted to coffee. Without my morning cuppa, I tend to wander around like a drooling zombie, but instead of fresh brains I'm craving bitter brown liquid; the elixir of life, the nectar of my sustenance.

I've typically stayed true to the "traditional" coffee intake of the drip brewpot, usually filled with Eight O'Clock. When out and about, I do occasionally fancy a hit of espresso or a latte, but tend to venture away from the exotic, sugar filled concoctions that masquerade as coffee.

So, maybe it's the cold weather, or my urge for a new toy, but I got the insatiable urge to up the addition quotient just a bit and give home brewing espresso a try. The problem, though, at least for me, is that most "good" espresso machines cost a damn fortune. True, they're badass, but they vary in cost anywhere from $75 to hundreds or even thousands of dollars. I wanted something more economical, and this led me to the Bialetti Moka Express.

Had for a mere 20 clams, this little baby is my favorite new gadget. No buttons, no batteries, no LCD display, just an old school caffeine delivery system that exudes some Euro charm. It's elegant in its simplicity, and only has three parts.

First, you take the bottom part and fill it with water. I got the "one shot" version but they're available in tons of different sizes. Then, you stick the filter in the top and fill it with espresso.

Then, you take the top part and screw it into the bottom part. Shown above is the rubber seal and secondary metal filter in the top piece.

Finally, put it on your stovetop and kick on the low heat. In a few minutes, you'll see the delicious treat bubbling up through the spout, and in about six minutes, your espresso should be finished. The spent grounds form a nice "puck" that's easy to discard when you're done.

The finished product, by my measure, was delicious - rich, only slightly bitter; it tasted like the goodness of a whole pot of coffee crammed into one tiny shot. I'm not sure how the taste compares to the super expensive home machines, but this is far more than good enough for me. (You won't hear me using terms like "mouthfeel" and "intense, nutty essence" and garbage like that. It's coffee, and it's good, and it tastes like coffee.) And for twenty bucks? You can't go wrong. While the device has its drawbacks (it will wear out over time), it's not often these days that you find a product as well made as this one, virtually all metal to boot, that's so useful. It's easy to clean, too.

Ok, so I already blew my watch budget for this year. I probably shouldn't have bought this little beauty, but for under $100 shipped, I just couldn't turn it down. Damn email marketing campaigns ;)

The Carbon is a mens sized, multifunction, "Pilot's Homage" watch. I typically don't buy homage watches, as I feel they're cheesy and generally ugly. However, I couldn't find any "established" watch designs that look like this, so I'm not even sure what it's paying homage to.

The Carbon comes shipped in this green velvet-like pouch that provides reasonable protection for the watch.

You also receive this nice envelope containing instructions for the watch and a warranty card; the watch is warrantied against defects for 1 year from purchase.

As you can see from the photo, the watch has a bold, military style with orange hour markers and luminous white hands. The lume is quite nice; I apologize for not having photos. The three dials are intended to give the watch a chronograph like appearance, but in actuality are (counter-clockwise from top) month, year, and 24 hr. time indicators. It also features a day/date display outlined in silver. The dial is textured... it's definitely not carbon fibre but tries to achieve a similar effect of depth. Even though it's not the same as carbon fibre, it's still quite cool, but very difficult to capture in photographs.

The case, in my opinion, is the best feature of this watch. It has an almost-black, gunmetal type matte finish which exudes manliness, and a sweet hobnail bezel that reminds me of flieger style chronographs (ala Hanhart, for example.) It's 45mm - big enough for my wrist but it might be a bit much for smaller dudes. The crystal is domed mineral, and it comes with a nice leather band with a marked buckle.

This whole time, you've probably been wondering how this watch can pack so much into such a low price. Want to know why? It's made in China. Everything, I'm guessing, is made in China. As such, the Alpha Watch USA name can be a bit misleading... the *company* is based in the US, though. (Interestingly enough, about 30 mins away from me, which I didn't know when I bought it.) Anyway, the movement is Chinese and looks Chinese - rough and basically unfinished. The gold Alpha Watch logo on the rotor is nice, though. Looks can be deceiving, though - this watch keeps excellent time and so far has stayed within 10-15 secs. per day.

My overall impressions of the Carbon are excellent, price notwithstanding. This is a really striking watch with a unique blend of black, orange and white that stands out in my collection. It has satiated my desire to acquire an expensive military style watch. Speaking of the price, it's crazy that something so nice could cost so little. I think I paid a total of $93, and that included tax and shipping (tax is only charged to customers in IL, as far as I know.)

If you're a watch collector or just looking for an interesting everyday automatic watch that won't break the bank, look no further. I really like what Alpha Watch is trying to do in that they are taking Chinese movements and components and packaging them into something worth far more than the sum of its parts.

That being said, where I think Alpha Watch misses the mark is that the majority of their designs are "homage," that is, ripoffs of popular watches such as Rolex and Omega... which I tend to dislike. (Again, I made an exception for the Alpha because I couldn't nail down a watch it seems to copy directly, and even if I did, I still really like it.) The quality, customer service, and image of Alpha is so good that I think they could do quite well with their own unique watches.

Alpha, hear my plea and work on your own custom designs, I'll be there with my credit card burning a hole in my pocket. Let's see some larger sized (Unitas style) handwinds and perhaps a Sea-Gull tourbillon...

http://www.alphawatchusa.com

I'm a big fan of martinis, in case you didn't read my post reviewing various cocktail olives. As such, I'm always on the lookout for spirits in the $10-15 range, so I can enjoy my fine libation of choice without becoming a pauper. (And yes, I drink vodka martinis as well as true martinis.)

I stumbled upon KU:L vodka (I pronounce it COOL) at a local grocery store here in the Chicagoland area. It was a whopping $8.99. For that kind of money, I usually imagine something in a plastic bottle wrapped up in a paper bag, suitable only for swilling on street corners or downing immediately after being dumped. So I bought it.
 
You see, deep inside, I'm always hoping that one of these budget buys will taste excellent, and be of superior quality due to the brand's lack of marketing, efficient manufacturing styles, etc. Often, I'm met with a liquor whose price is matched by its quality... horrible. But this time, rather than tasting like the ass of some sweaty carnie at your local county fair, KU:L was fabulous.
 
I'm not an expert, and you won't hear me using terms like "mouthfeel," peaty," "nose," or "hints of almond and peppercorns." All I can say is that it's smoother than Smirnoff, not as smooth as top shelf vodkas such as Grey Goose, but somewhere in the middle - similar to Svedka. What it offers over Svedka, though, is a deliciously sweet aftertaste that's left on your tongue. Yum.
 
All in all, KU:L is great in a martini either neat or, how I like them, with a tiny drop of vermouth and an olive - and I imagine it would be nearly tasteless in a mixed drink. Judging by the activity on their Twitter account, I'm thinking that they're based locally in Chicago and have yet to branch out to other markets. If you see it, give it a shot - I don't think you'll be disappointed.
 
And watch out for those carnies.

My love affair with vodka and gin started way back when I first turned 21.  Like most newly-crowned legals, I began my crusade into the realm of the intoxicated with  the staples of your average drinker everywhere - cheap beer and sweet, cloying mixed drinks like whiskey sours and rum & Coke.

My entire future changed when the first sip of a truly fine spirit cascaded down my throat and into my belly - Chopin potato vodka.  The smooth, crisp yet flavorful taste had me hooked.  It wasn’t long before I tried numerous other fine spirits in both the vodka and the beautifully botanical-ed bite of various great gins.

It wasn’t until more recently, however, that I’ve gravitated towards the martini.  Previously, I had enjoyed these on the rocks with no garnish.  My girlfriend’s parents purchased for me a fine set of martini glasses and I proceeded to delve into the salty, shaken-not-stirred world of the “true” gentleman’s drink.  And there’s no turning back.

And so, a perfect martini isn’t perfect without its not-quite-spherical, savory best friend… the olive.  In true Pete fashion, I have proceeded to purchase numerous varieties of the fruit, all stuffed with delicious cheeses (or garlic) in search of the finest companion to my new favorite beverage.  Here are my findings… so far.

Mario Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

These are the McDonald’s, the “Kleenex” of blue cheese stuffed olives.  Available almost everywhere and certainly mass produced, the Mario olives are about as generic as you can get.  The olives are small and non-offensive.  The cheese, clearly imatiation that has been squirted into the fruit by a machine, has some flavor but isn’t great.  I’m glad I liked these enough to continue my journey, but if I were you, I wouldn’t start here.  Just skip them.  (That being said, the Jalapeno variety by Mario have a pretty good flavor, and I would give them a fair shake.)

Mario Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

• Texture: Squishy
• Flavor (Olive): Slightly pungent
• Flavor (Stuffing): Fake tasting, but OK
• Saltiness: Moderate
• Overall: 5/10… Meh

Santa Barbara Olive Company Blue Cheese Olives

These were the second blue cheese stuffed olives I purchased, and I continue to be very happy with them.  These are a perfect step into the world of stuffed olives, as they are big (queen sized) and flavorful, with a great texture - but not too extreme in any way.  The blue cheese stuffing is clearly not “hand stuffed,” it looks like slices of cheese.  It might be imitation blue cheese, since I cannot see any “veins” running through it.  Thus, it retains a mild, almost buttery flavor.  Great overall.

Santa Barbara Olive Company Blue Cheese Olives

• Texture: Firm and Excellent
• Flavor (Olive): Mild, Clean
• Flavor (Stuffing): Mild, Buttery
• Saltiness: Moderate
• Overall: 7/10… Great

Santa Barbara Olive Company “Hand Stuffed” Blue Cheese Olives

I’m guessing these are the replacement model for the … erm… “non” hand stuffed variety I purchased before, as I can’t seem to find the “original” anywhere.  No matter, these are a superior upgrade, but not for the “newbie.”  These are extremely salty, as is evident by the slightly snappy texture and sometimes wrinkled surface of these olives.  The flavor of the fruit is strong but awesome, and the cheese is decadent, if not a extremely salty.  These are no machine stuffed olives; you can see the veiny cheese has been crammed into the cavity of each delicious morsel in a different way, bits of cheese floating in the bottom of the jar.  Yum, but not for the faint of heart (or those on low sodium diets.)

Santa Barbara Olive Company “Hand Stuffed” Blue Cheese Olives

• Texture: A little snappy
• Flavor (Olive): Strong
• Flavor (Stuffing): Salty, crumbly, delicious
• Saltiness: Extreme
• Overall: 8/10… Awesome

Mezzetta Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

In my opinion, these are the best “store-bought” olives that I’ve tried so far.  One thing that makes them different is that they are packed in canola oil, “for quality,” supposedly.  One caveat is that you really have to pat them down with a paper towel before lowering them into the drink, as they will incorporate lots of oil onto the surface of your cocktail… not desirable, at least for me.  But, once you sink your teeth into one, you’ll see what I mean.  The Mezzetta, unlike the excellent but bold Santa Barbara, have the perfect balance of sweet olive and salty brine, with a delicious filling of real blue cheese to top it all off.  The cheese, again, is a perfect blend of salty and sharp - not too pungent, not too weak.  Definitely give these a try… they’re available almost anywhere, at least around here.

Mezzetta Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

• Texture: Firm
• Flavor (Olive): Moderate
• Flavor (Stuffing): Perfect blend of buttery and sharp
• Saltiness: Moderate
• Overall: 9/10… Kick Ass

Novia Del Sol Blue Cheese Stuffed Manzanilla Olives

I had purchased these in hopes that they would be mind-blowingly good… after testing several other varities, I began to get a little more adventurous.  I paid a premium to order them online (I’ve never seen them in a store around here) from AJ Gourmet.  The service was excellent, and I would buy from them again… just not this product.

Why?  Because they were truly nasty.  First off, I was disappointed in the size of the olives.  True, they are not supposed to be “queen” sized, but man, they were tiny.  Second, the olives themselves had a sour, almost spoiled taste to them (no, they weren’t expired.)  Third, the cheese contained inside was equally as bad - rather than possessing the salty, sharp taste of blue cheese - it just tasted skanky.

I tried each variety three times, on different days with different spirits, just to make sure I really hated them.  Then I threw them out.  I would recommend you give these a skip.

Novia Del Sol Blue Cheese Olives

• Texture: Acceptable
• Flavor (Olive):  Sour, Spoiled
• Flavor (Stuffing): Skanky
• Saltiness: Moderate
• Overall: 1/10… Nasty

Stoller Farms Garlic Stuffed Olives

I know these aren’t cheese stuffed and break the theme of this post a little bit, but I don’t care.  These are distributed locally (Franklin Park, IL) but I have no idea where the company is based.  I bought them at a local liquor store since I had never seen them before.  The texture and size of these olives is awesome.  At first, the flavor was a bit reminiscent of the nasty Novia Del Sol olives I just talked about, but that flavor wanes after the first taste.

The true beauty of these is the garlic stuffing.  There’s a whole clove in each one of these little beauties, and for a garlic lover… that’s heaven.  The rich taste of the vampire repellant blends with the salty goodness of the fruit for a taste treat that can’t be beat.  I highly doubt these are the “best” garlic olives out there, but worthy of a purchase.

Stoller Farms Garlic Stuffed Olives

• Texture: Perfect
• Flavor (Olive): OK, a little skanky
• Flavor (Stuffing): Garlic cloves… not much to debate here
• Saltiness: Moderate
• Overall: 6/10… Great

Conclusions

I’m greatly looking forward to testing out more varieties of olives in the future.  Next on my list are olives stuffed with other cheeses, “real” jalapenos, habaneros, and other garlic stuffed varities!

As I had mentioned in my previous post, lately I had been eager to acquire a new mechanical watch.  When I realized I hadn’t even been wearing a watch these days, I knew it was time to start looking… and return to my timekeeper-obsessed roots.

I had my eyes on Vostok-Europe for quite some time, as they seemed to produce a unique, in-house mechanical movement with some unusual and striking designs… for a bargain.  Usually, they could be had for anywhere between $175-$300 USD, not a bad deal.  I always liked the Metro series, and I saw one of the other models on Amazon for about $109 USD.  I almost bit, but I really liked the “other” model better, and ended up finding a stunning deal on eBay… which I snapped up after thinking for about a nanosecond.  I am not regretting my decision.

The Vostok-Europe Metro is actually made by the Koliz company, based in Lithuania.  As to where the Vostok name comes from… the movements are created and finished by Vostok, a watch factory in Russia.  This is what really attracted me to the watch… an “in-house” movement for this price?  You gotta be kidding.  (When I refer to in-house, that means “not mass produced,” such as the high quality, but extremely common movements made by ETA of Switzerland.)

That isn’t to say that Vostok doesn’t make a lot of movements… as I’m sure they do.  However, the nicely finished movement inside a Vostok-Europe is much less common than the “standard” Vostok movement.  I’ll show you the movement in just a bit, but let’s talk about the rest of it first.

This particular model is a tonneau shaped wristwatch with a stainless steel case and mineral crystal.  The dial is black and quite shiny due to “faux” guilloche, which actually looks quite nice.  The addition of a day/night indicator is nice, but the “day & night indicator” text below it may be a turnoff to some.  The hands are of moderate quality, and the applique numerals are nice, but don’t stand out much.  (I apologize if this is difficult to see in the photos - it’s hard for anyone but a pro to really capture a watch in photographs.)  It’s quite big, measuring in at about 38.5mm wide… definitely well-suited to a bigger guy like me.  The previous owner had included a nice Swiss Banda leather clasp wristband, which I’m sure doesn’t come stock with the watch.

The movement is gorgeous, especially for the price.  This is what I was most worried about, as sometimes photos of watches are doctored up to make the movement look super sweet, only to disappoint upon arrival.  While not finished in the most eloquent of ways (read: a little rough and not super-high-end,) the 31-jewel Russian movement still has a nice sparkle, with cotes’d’Geneve on the rotor and blued-steel screws.

Overall, this is a wonderful watch for a man with big wrists or who is looking for a large, classy mechanical watch that has its own unique character (there are only 999 pieces worldwide.)  For the price, Vostok-Europe offers up quality you couldn’t hope to find elsewhere, and I’ll wear mine with pride.

For more photos, click here.