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Believe it or not........ Alaska distiller has high hopes for salmon vodka REACTION: Some are skeptical; others enjoy the smoky flavor. By ELIZABETH BLUEMINK Published: June 29th, 2010 10:00 PM Last Modified: June 30th, 2010 07:31 AM Imagine drinking rather than eating a big lunker salmon. Toby Foster did and then he made the unusual choice of distilling it into vodka. "The first three or four times, it was gag city," he said. In all, it took the Wasilla distiller nearly 50 attempts to perfect the recipe for his new Smoked Salmon Flavored Vodka, now available in liquor stores, bars and restaurants in Alaska and in some locations in the Lower 48. Salmon vodka is the costliest and most stressful product that Foster's 2-year-old company, the Alaska Distillery, has produced since its inception, he said. The existence of a salmon-flavored vodka prompts a reasonable person to ask many questions, starting with "Why?" Foster believes salmon vodka is Alaska's contribution to the large variety of boutique vodkas that have flooded the liquor market over the past decade or so, including bacon-flavored vodka from Seattle. By Foster's thinking, if he's going to make a big break in the vodka world, "It's probably going to be smoked salmon. Because it's so silly." Which leads to another question. Who would drink such a thing? "First of all, ick. Second of all, I haven't served one," said Amber Sheffield, a server at Humpy's Great Alaskan Ale House downtown. The owner of another popular bar downtown, Bernie's Bungalow Lounge, Bernie Souphanavong, said he doesn't think he's sold any of it either. Foster said his product has been out for a month and the marketing at local bars will begin soon. His team is considering a launch party and promotional events. For now, there are a few salmon vodka enthusiasts on the local restaurant scene: Amy Mack, a manager at the Bear Tooth Grill who dabbles in cocktail recipe creation, is one of them. "It doesn't taste like you are drinking a fish," she said. Instead, it tastes smoky, with a "very light underlayer of the salmon." "It's like you are sitting around a campfire and someone just lit a charcoal grill. I can almost taste bacon when I think about it," she said. A taste test by a reporter confirmed Mack's description of the salmon vodka flavor. The salmon taste was very light, to the point that it could have been mistaken for another smoky-flavored meat that leans sweet rather than peppery. Which leads to a third question. How does one make salmon-flavored vodka? Foster gets the question so often that he likes to tell people that he gets a group of Italian women to crush salmon fillets in oaken barrels with their bare feet. For now, the vodka is available at local liquor stores and roughly 30 local bars and restaurants. Foster says the salmon vodka outsold his national award-winning brand, called Permafrost, by about 30 percent in its first month. "We've produced 400 cases and sold 350," he said. Each case contains 12 salmon vodka bottles. "Actually I just sold my biggest order yet to Texas," he said.

Thanks, A. Even removed from the case I think you could delaminate the beastie by heating and cooling. There's a lot of mass there so give it time to fully heat up, and get full expansion of all 3 axes. Since sapphire is harder than glass, it also conducts heat better, and that will add to the thermal shock. material---------thermal conductivity Water (liquid)------0.6 Glass---------------1.1 Stainless steel----12.11 ~ 45.0 Diamond-----------900 ~ 2320

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. How much of the crystal sandwich is grabbed by the case when inserted? Can it be only the bottom of the sandwich is pressed in tight (I remember you said it was TIGHT) and the top of the sandwich is mostly free floating, with only light pressure or NO pressure against its sides? So you take that combination and wear it. It all heats up to approx body temperature, but the bottom half of the crystal is constrained by its case so it cannot expand as much as it wants to. The top half is free to expand, just a little bit more. Then the unthinkable happens: IT GETS WET!!!!! This forces a sudden cooling, which lets the top of the crystal sandwich shrink rapidly, while the bottom crystal doesn't shrink as much (remember it was kept from fully expanding to match the top crystal). The change in relative diameters overcomes the adhesive and it delaminates. How to test it? Press the crystal assembly back into the case, mount the bezel, attach the caseback (all intended to keep the case dimensions static) then heat the entire watch up to a good hot temp. 110F ought to be plenty. Let it sit for 15min or so to stabilize temperatures, then pour nice cool water on the crystal. I bet the top one will shrink faster than its sandwich brother and you'll see it delaminate. I think this is a temperature differential issue, not a solvent issue. Mineral glass has a different coefficient of expansion than sapphire. Anisotropic materials ------------------------ In anisotropic materials the total volumetric expansion is distributed unequally among the three axes and if the crystal symmetry is monoclinic or triclinic even the angles between these axes are subject to thermal changes. In such cases it is necessary to treat thermal expansion as a tensor that has up to six independent elements. A good way to determine the elements of the tensor is to study the expansion by powder diffraction. For exactly isotropic materials, the area thermal expansion coefficient is 2/3 of the volumetric coefficient. For exactly isotropic materials, the volumetric thermal expansion coefficient is 3 times the linear expansion coefficient. material------------coefficients of linear/volumetric thermal expansion Diamond-----------------1.0---3.0 Gallium(III) arsenide---5.8--17.5 Glass-------------------8.5--25.5 Glass, borosilicate-----3.3---9.9 Iron-------------------11.1--33.3 Nickel-----------------13.0--39.0 Sapphire----------------5.3--15.9 Stainless steel--------17.3--51.9

It's okay, boys... Offshore is on the case. Tell ya what, when he finds the solution he'll have the world beating a path to his door! Go get 'em Tiger!

If only they did! Boy I'd love to get a new in-the-box 9315, a 7836 and a 7206 for less than $500 each. Instead, I prowl the shadowy halls of Craigslist and Ebay............ ............watching......

You got it, Freddy. The scariest part is that in the bends of the links, some are worn down paper thin. A good solid whack against a door frame could break one of them, and splat ... down she goes. I have a near-new 93150 that's also correct for the watch, but I just like it a whole lot better on folded oyster. So we'll see how good the "new" one is.

Cats, sure thing... here's how the watch looks now with the

Wow, that's a GREAT pictorial. I'd sure like to see a video of exactly how he got those smooth curves when he folded them down. Maybe the reverse curves / dimples only happen as we open up the links and then reclose them? If I could get my hands on a dozen or so of those factory folded middle pieces, still open and not yet bent down ... yowza! I think it could be done! I've experimented with thick layers of soft leather on work surfaces as I attempt to bend/fold steel, and you can distribute the pressure that way so the finished surface doesn't get deformed.

*PFTSNORRRRRT!!!* Thanks... I just blew coffee all over my screen. Score!

I understand there is a tool (cue soft mysterious music). Only the true WIS cognescenti are allowed to discuss its existence. We mere mortals are left to muse. It has been whispered that the use of this elusive tool (should it exist) will indeed replace folded mid links, without "the bend". Nobody has ever seen this tool; we are left with but rumors. I personally believe that Rolex mines the folded links in situ in the perfectly curved form, no bending required. That's the simplest explanation. And now this message must be destroyed lest it fall into nefarious hands. It was once read by a member here known as Klink, and ............ ........he was never seen again. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Redwatch, sorry but once bent forever bent. My original had 3 links replaced by its previous owner back when links were readily available. The repairman is a Rolex factory trained watchmaker and even the ones he put in have the little bend. I've learned to like the look. Ubi, you are too generous! Unbelievable that you'd do that for me. Thank you.

Please do! I'd like to have my original "unstretched" but I'm afraid it can't be done, my links are worn most of the way through at the bends and are very fragile.

Pretty sweet, eh? These have been going for north of $1,000

I picked up a real nice gen 9315 band this morning for a mere $355. Granted, it has someone else's initials engraved on the clasp, but that's easy enough to fix. The good news is the date stamp matches my old tired stretched band exactly. SCORE!!!!!!!

Oh, man! If that isn't a babe magnet, I don't know what is!

Are you seeing any of the problems being reported with OS4 yet? http://www.businessinsider.com/the-new-iphone-isnt-broken-ios-4-is-2010-6 http://www.businessinsider.com/ios4-upgrade-breaks-iphone-to-car-stereo-connection-apple-customers-riot-2010-6

Y'know, that price might be justified. If the dial is missing one of its feet ... doesn't that make this possibly the world's only 1,999 ft COMEX dial?

Get yer checkbooks out, and you better be sitting down. COMEX dial for a 1665

Nice! So if I right-click your photos and do a "save as" then do your watches wind up in MY watch box?

Now that is cool. Very tasty.

For the entertainment value, of course!

Okay, now all that remains is for you to PM me before releasing any photos in the wild.

OSRep, yes I took that one. Federico, thank you too... but my photos are just "fun" things. Your photography is amazing! I have no idea to take pictures like yours.

Well Freddy you've gone and done it. Once my mind is made up about what I like or don't like about a family of vintage pieces, it's carved in stone. I never change my mind. Ever. But you've done it. I always thought the albino 6542 was yooooogly. But good Lord, man... you've created a Garbot. It's a Racquel. Holy smokes, you've created Sophia Loren in stainless steel. I am more impressed than I know how to put into words. Well done.