Oils

Last one. Let me know what you think of them.

1. Grape Seed

I gotta be honest, I didn't really smell much of anything on this one. It was thin, fairly clean feel for an oil, and was very slightly nutty.

2. Sunflower

Again, I couldn't smell much of anything on this one. It tastes a bit like sunflower seeds, and it's a little more viscous than the grape seed.

3. Canola

Not a lot of smell, thicker than the other two, tastes like oil. Lot of people already have and idea of this one anyway.

4. Olive (Pure)
Light smell, light flavor. This is fairly thin as far as olive oil is concerned.

5. Carli EVOO (Italian)
The next three are different brands from different areas, but they are all EVOO olive oils. This one was a nice strong smell to it, kind of delicate. The color was better on this on than on the pure (picture doesn't do it justice).

6. Almazara EVOO (Spanish)
Smelled slightly fruity. The color was even darker than the carli and it tasted a little bit like butter (Dad said something about movie theater popcorn). This one was my favorite.

7. D'opio EVOO (French)
Smelled like grass. No kidding, go outside and smell grass clippings and that's what this smelled like. Tasted like it too. It was a little peppery as well.

8. Walnut
Strong sweet nutty smell to this one. Tasted like walnuts. Definitely a salad dressing oil, something you'd want to taste in the food.

9. Sesame
Smelled and tasted like toasted sesame seeds (which is what they did to the seeds before they made the oil). Very nice, but very strong. Too much...would be obvious.

10. Mustard

Smells like lemon/mustard. So it smells a little citrusy and you'd think it wouldn't be so bad, yes? I tasted this one and it just tasted like oil at first. It's viscous and thick, but I sat for a minute thinking it wasn't so bad. Then the flavor hit me over the head with a board. It's like spicy Chinese mustard. And I grew up hating that mustard. Oh, it was a bad couple of minutes, this stuff leaves the tongue very slowly. Do not overdo this sucker, it will hurt.

Vinegars

These were...hard to keep tasting. I drank so much water for these tastings.

1. White Vinegar

This one was fairly pungent. It's kind of bitey and sour, but it burns off quickly and you don't notice the flavor anymore after a bit.

2. Rice Vinegar

Lighter smell than the white vinegar, but still a bit of a bite to it. It's slightly sweet and it reminds me a bit of sake. It's slower to leave the tongue.

3. Apple Cider Vinegar

Bitey smell. Tart, slightly sweet, and a little fruity. Flavor burns off quick.

4. Champagne Vinegar

Sharp smelling, but slightly flowery. Slower than the apple cider to leave the tongue and I tasted this more toward the front of my mouth than the back (like with the others).

5. White Wine Vinegar

Lighter smell than the champagne. Slightly sweet, fairly acidic.

6. Red Wine Vinegar

Less bitey than the white wine, with a slightly lighter smell (not by much).

7. White Balsamic Vinegar

Bite on the smell, with a little sweetness. Flavor is a bit sweet, with no real bite in the back of the throat. It's very gentle and leaves the tongue quickly. This is one of my favorites.

8. Balsamic Vinegar

More pungent than the white balsamic. Has more of a bite as well, but it's still a bit sweet. A bit stronger and more viscous.

9. Sherry Vinegar

Less of a scent on this than the balsamics. Leaves the tongue very slowly. Bit of a bite, and the flavor is fairly strong. Little sweetness comparatively.

10. Malt Vinegar

Lightish smell. Potent taste, but less bite than the sherry had (I don't know how much of this is due to having tasted quite a bit beforehand).

11. 6 yr Balsamic Vinegar

Smells sweet, with very little bite. Tastes very sweet as well. Smooth, viscous, with no sourness on the back end, and slow to leave the tongue. Lingers quite a bit. I'm fond of this one.

12. 12 yr Balsamic Vinegar

And even more fond of this one. Smells sweet, but with a woody, rich scent to it. Again, it's sweet, but even more viscosity. It has even less bite, less sourness, and leaves the tongue even slower than the 6 year.

Salts

The tasting evaluations will be done separately so you can search it properly (and so the amount of information isn't overwhelming).

1. Kosher salt
White, flaky, and dissolved fairly quickly. Didn't taste immensely salty, but did give a little crunch and texture.

2. Iodized salt

It's table salt. Please don't ask me how the flavor is on that one. It's salty. End of story.

3. Balien Fine Sea Salt

Finely ground Balien (French) brand sea salt. It's salty, not as much as the iodized, but about the same consistency and grain.

4. Balien Coarse Sea Salt

Coarse crystal Balien brand sea salt. Again, salty but with a little texture (like the kosher).

5. Smoked Sea Salt

Obviously a black salt. Heavy smoked flavor, with a deep nuttiness. It's a bit sweet on the back end, and it smells like woodsmoke. I love this one.

6. Smoked Sea Salt

A brownish, sort of wet salt (Texture is a bit like brown sugar). Again, a fairly nutty, smoky kind of salt. It has hints of hicory, and is very smooth. This one happens to be my favorite.

7. Smoked Hawaiian Pink Salt

Coarse grain, with chile chunks in it. Smoky aroma and taste, with a bit of spicyness to it.

8. Himalayan Pink Salt

A pink salt with mineral specks in it. Light in flavor and kind of dissapointing. You get what you pay for though, and this one was kind of cheap.

9. Hawaiian Pink Salt

Coarse granules, larger than the Himalayan was. It's less harsh than some of the others, and fairly pretty (picture doesn't do it justice).

10. Hawaiian Volcanic Pink Salt

Literally chunks of salt broken off a larger crystal. This one is pinker in reality. It tastes smooth, it's a fairly light taste, and it's got strong hints of minerals. I like this one quite a bit too.

Tasting day

Today we didn't do very much cooking. We made baguettes and epi (It's a loaf of bread made from a baguette shape, it looks like a stalk of wheat), but that was about it. After that, we did salt, vinegar, and oil tastings. I'm going to make a separate post for that, along with flavors, scents, and general impressions. Plus pictures, that's nice I'm sure. It'll be a long one because of the pictures. We also learned how to take the ovens apart, and we ate etouffee for lunch (Very good, Chef Rebecca made it for us since we weren't really cooking today).