Negroni

During the really hot spell last week, I made the happy discovery that a Negroni, one of the few European cocktails to get any traction here, is a very refreshing summer drink. I've always liked them and when I had one in the midst of the stifling 100-degree weather, it tasted particularly good.

A Negroni is one-third gin, one-third Campari, and one-third sweet vermouth, with an optional splash of soda and a lemon twist or orange slice as garnish. I always add the soda, and in the summer would consider it obligatory. To me, it tastes fine without the twist. The bitter Campari flavor predominates, softened by the vermouth and the gin, of course, gives it a nice little kick.

The Negroni is attributed to Count Camillo Negroni, who asked a Florence bartender to add gin to his Americano, a cocktail with just the other three ingredients. I don't know why one would ever drink an Americano now without the gin.

The first summer I went to Europe, I discovered that Martini refers to vermouth as an apperitif and not to the cocktail. Vermouth, a flavored, fortified wine, is used exclusively as a mixer here, but is typical of the European-style apperitifs, which have double the alcoholic content of wine but half of that in whiskey or other distilled spirits.

I learned to order Martini "rouge" for sweet, and "blanc" for dry, and "rouge et blanc" for a mix, which turned out to be my favorite. And you order a "Martini cocktail" if you want our mix of gin and dry vermouth.

Campari is a "bitter" so beloved of the Europeans, consisting of alcohol infused with a secret mix of herbs and colored an unhealthy shade of chemical red. It is usually served with soda or orange juice and quite refreshing in its own right, once you've acquired the taste for it.

Mediterranean countries prefer the anisette drinks on hot late afternoons -- pastis in France, ouzo in Greece, raki in Turkey. With a couple of ice cubes and an occasional splash of water to dilute it, you can stretch out a glass of pastis for quite a while. It is not so much refreshing, as soothing in the heat, giving you a pleasant little buzz that makes the heat seem kind of nice.

Here of course we like our gin, rum and vodka with tonic, or the almighty margarita in the summer, or other citrusy Latin drinks like mojito or caparinha. A pastis is not to everyone's taste, nor probably is Campari. But venturesome drinkers might keep these European apperitifs in mind as nice summer alternatives.

Olive oil

Part of the fun of traveling, even close to home, is the serendipity of a great discovery -- like the one we had this weekend in Frederick when we stumbled onto the Lebherz Oil and Vinegar Emporium (L.O.V.E.). It's the most fun I've had shopping for olive oil since A L'Olivier in Paris.

L.O.V.E. is brand new, with a spare and elegant decor of hardwood flooring and dark green walls allowing the dazzling array of stainless steel vats to occupy center stage. The uniform vats contain two dozen-some olive oils and about 17 balsamic vinegars. Customers can sample any of the oils and vinegars by holding a little paper cup under the spigot for a quick shot, then dipping bread into it. Once you find what you like, you take one of the empty bottles (375ml and 750ml) and fill it up. They will seal the cork in tinfoil when you pay and you tie a pre-printed little tag around the neck of the bottle to label your choice.

It's all completely charming and the products are good. The 375ml bottle of oil costs $17 and of balsamic vinegar $16. Balsamic vinegar of course can mean virtually anything, but proprietor Maggie Lebherz shops for hers in Modena, the home of the real traditional balsamic. This selection does not fit the definition of aged balsamic but they are pretty darn good for salads, marinades and other uses. We got the ripe peach white balsamic (!) and it was heavenly on a salad of summer greens, heirloom tomatoes, avocado and tarragon from the garden. Can't wait to use it to marinate some strawberries for dessert.

The olive oils are more diverse in origin, alike in being crushed within hours of picking. The shop has oils from Italy, Spain, Greece, France, Chile, Tunisia and California. We got a bottle of the Arquebina oil from California -- a full-flavored olive oil on the darker side that worked perfectly to drizzle on steak fiorentina. Our favorite oil so far has been the McEvoy brand sold at Cowgirl Creamery -- a Tuscan style blend also produced on a California ranch.

We had gone to Frederick to shop for furniture but it turned out to be more satisfying on the culinary front. After our pleasant interlude at L.O.V.E. we strolled down North Market to look at the menu at Volt, but found a $25 prix fixe luncheon menu a bit more food and time than we were ready for, so we ended up at the Tasting Room for lunch. The big-window, sleek modern decor was perfect for a summer lunch and the food was excellent, bursting with freshness. We ordered a grilled-chicken salad that had avocado, corn, bacon and a lime cilantro dressing that was just the perfect thing for a hot day, and a salad Nicoise with pan-seared sushi tuna that was very elegant and just ample enough. The challah-style bread had a crispy, light crust that was delicious and the brewed iced tea was refreshing. It was an altogether pleasant experience at what is now the No. 2 Zagat-rated restaurant in Frederick since Volt opened.

The glass partitions separating the dining area from the bar have short descriptions of some basic foods stenciled onto them -- salt, bread and, coincidentally, olive oil. We returned to Washington without any furniture but a feeling that Frederick is a nice little gourmet oasis and hardly more than a half-hour from our upper NW starting point.