September 23, 2006
This seems like a damn cool product, but try saying that name ten times fast...the way we sound it out it reminds us of an after-hours show in Tijuana (Mule and what!?). Anyway, the table itself is just as cool as the name of its creator, with 10 angled recesses designed to hold wine or liquor bottles. Plus, you can either lay it down flat as a coffee table, or stand it up on its side so it's more like a little bar. The design's pretty damned futuristic looking, though we're not sure why they're associating their table with the old ultraviolence (check out the Clockwork Orange pic in the background). Must be a dutch thing.
The Shots Liquor Console is made of hard poly vinyl with a scratch-proof coating, and will set you back around 795 Euro, or just over a grand American. Learn more at N-U.nl.
September 22, 2006
All in all, we think drinking Ready to Drink cocktails (affectionately known as RTDs) is like riding a moped or making love to someone who's unattractive - it can be a lot of fun until your friends find out about it. After that, you're mercilessly made fun of and called "Mr. Hard Lemonade" until the day you die. Or at least that's how it is with our friends.
And it's not like you can be super stealthy about it usually - they're just so damned conspicuous. Everyone else in the bar is drinking beer out of a brown or green bottle, and you're there with your hand around a clear bottle full of something that looks like toxic waste.
That's probably why Diageo is finding so much success with their new canned RTDs. You shove the can in a coozie and suddenly you can pretend you're drinking Miller Lite just like all your friends, while you're really sipping down a pre-made Captain and Coke. That's real genius.
Mike over at Days that End in "Y" has the full rundown:
Rather than buying cases of beer, you may be buying cases of cocktails in the near future. Diageo has rolled out four ready-to-drink cocktails, which it's testing in Tampa: Captain Morgan and Cola, Smirnoff Vodka and Lemon-Lime Soda, George Dickel Whisky and Cola, and Seagram's 7 American Whiskey and Lemon-Lime Soda. The cocktails are 5% ABV in regular 12-ounce cans, so they sit right next to beer.
via
Days that End in "Y"
September 11, 2006
Apparently, the Canadians have discovered Jell-O shots. Or, at least, Canadian grownups - we're sure the industrious college students of the Great White North have been slurping them down with the same voracity as kids in the US. The following article from the Toronto Star gives some overall info and drinking (eating?) tips for Jell-O shots, plus talks about an interesting-looking book of gelatin shot recipes called Jiggelo.
The shot comes to mind in September, as college students flock back to school and attempt to put the higher in education. Jell-O shots are portable and spill-proof, and coddle those who are uncomfortable with the taste of alcohol — the equivalent of those fruity, mixed drinks that marketers describe as "entry-level." No wonder they have become synonymous with wild campus parties. Their popularity, however, is slowly expanding to friendly grownup get-togethers, camping excursions and holiday events with colour themes, such as Halloween or St. Patrick's Day.
via
Toronto Star
The author made his recipes from a book called Jiggelo: Inventive Gelatin Shots for Creative Imbibers (available at Amazon), which contains over 50 Jell-O shot recipes. Included ingredients are "chocolate, peanut butter, chopped nuts, Tabasco sauce, Twinkies and cooking spray all make appearances, as does practically every kind of hard liquor one can imagine." Sounds like a must-have for any back-to-school package.
September 6, 2006
Leblon Cachaca
Distilled in Brazil; Aged in France
80 Proof (40% ABV)
Typcial Price: About $30 for 750ml
LiveLoveLeblon
We've had our bottle of Leblon Cachaca for a couple weeks now, and it didn't really cross our mind to question what "Leblon" meant. A last name? An acronym? We weren't sure. But after digging around through their site for a while (a site that has an overabundance of mail nipples, if you ask us) we found out that Leblon is a "hip, upscale beach neighborhood adjacent to Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro."
Sounds like a cool place to be, but does Leblon live up to its hipster name? Read on to find out.
Continue reading: "Leblon Cachaca Review"
July 31, 2006
We're hearing more and more about cachaca, and while we've only tried a few kinds we're kind of digging it. First of all, you get to make caipirinhas, which much like Capoeira, totally kick ass. Second of all...well, there really doesn't need to be a second of all because of the whole caipirinha thing. We'll be reviewing Mae de Ouro cachaca this week and we just stumbled across a press release for another kind we'd never heard of...Cabana Cachaca.
They're touting the whole double-distilled thing to move their cachaca out of its historical realm of peasant drink, and it sounds pretty interesting. Each cachaca we've tried has been very different even though they're all made from pressed sugarcane, and we've found recipes where it can stand in for vodka, rum or even tequila if you get sick of caipirinhas, which we don't foresee. This stuff's a little more spendy than we typically see at $35 for 750ml (we're usually seeing more like $20-$25 for a liter), so it'll be interesting to see what you get for the bucks.
Read on for their full press release.
Continue reading: "Cabana Cachaca is Coming to America"
July 27, 2006
Fazenda Mae de Ouro Cachaca
Sugar Cane Liquor Imported from Brazil
80 Proof (40% ABV)
Typical Price: Around $25 for 1L
Website
Everybody's talking about mojitos these days, but for our money the caipirinha is the way to go. Maybe it's our anti-trendy inclinations, or maybe it's a backlash against those annoying-ass Bacardi ads. We're not sure what it is but when we want a sugar-based liquor mixed with limes, we reach for the cachaca instead of the rum.
Fazenda Mae de Ouro is the latest on our list of usual suspects. It's made in pot stills using a 400 year old process, it's filtered three times and laid down in white oak barrels for a couple years before it's bottled. Sounds more like the process for making a fine whiskey than whipping up the white lightning we'd been lead to believe was cachaca. But does all that extra time in the creation process make Mae de Ouro worth yours? Read on to find out.
Continue reading: "Fazenda Mae de Ouro Cachaca Review"
July 23, 2006
After our recent discovery of Cachaca we became complete caipirinha enthusiasts. In fact, it's possible that our bodies are now 90% lime, sugar and cachaca because hey - who needs water? We've gotten in a full liter bottle of Mae de Ouro Cachaca, so we'll be putting it through the wringer to see how it stands up.
We haven't tried it yet, but here's what the Mae de Ouro site has to say:
Fazenda Mae de Ouro when translated into English literally means "The Mother of Gold Farm". Surrounded by rolling green hills our fields are a sea of tall green sugarcane, irrigated by water from the lake and the gentle tropical rains. As the sun sets over the waters, from a distance the fields look as if they are made of gold, giving us our name.
But we named it our farm not only for the beauty and the golden sunsets but also because we have tremendous respect for Mother Earth and our workers who produce our golden distillation.
Oh, and if you're itching to get your hands on a little bit of caipirinha goodness before we lay the review on you, check out the CSU (Caipirinha State University) site for directions on
how to make a caipirinha.
July 15, 2006
We love cloves - they put us in mind of everything from Christmas ham to clove cigarettes. Spicy and savory, cloves give off warmth and a pleasant burn. While that might not sound too exciting in the middle of summer, can you imagine sipping a liqueur with that flavor next to a fireplace (or nice warm heater, we guess)? Check out Berchovka liqueur, the description of which puts thoughts of Jagermeister spinning through our heads, from Josh Spear. Looks like it's not available in the states, or at least not yet...who do we write to about that?
Ever smoked a clove? If so, you might notice the sweet taste on your mouth after a couple drags. Think of that lip-smacker flavor, put it in liquid form and you have Becherovka, an herbal bitter liqueur made in the Czech Republic. Alcohol, anise seeds, cinnamon, sugar and 32 other herbs make it sticky and spicy. It's best cold, nice as a sipper or with a bit of tonic (ask for a Beton) and Becherovka also aids in digestion. It's a great way to taste a little bit of Czech culture as you're trying so desperately to dodge the Americans that seem to have taken over that poor city. Available at most pubs and a bargain at Tescos.
via
Josh Spear
July 12, 2006
Lichido Liqueur
Vodka and Cognac with Lychee, Guava and White Peach flavor
36 Proof (18% ABV)
Typical Price: $22.99 for 750ml
Lichido Website
We keep saying we don't like sweeter drinks, then we keep falling in love with peach-flavored vodkas and cucumber gin. Does it mean we're getting soft in our old age? Maybe - but it also means we're discovering some great drinks. So what does all this mean? It means we really dug the Lichido we reviewed this week...read on to find out what a lychee-infused liqueur tastes like.
Continue reading: "Lichido Liqueur Review"
July 10, 2006
Sacre Bleu! This Friday is Bastille Day - do you know where your cocktail recipes are? Now that you're just getting over your July 4 hangover, you can jump right off the wagon again and storm the Bastille with the French.
Not sure what Bastille Day is all about? Seems like it's their answer to Independence Day, only with more implied guillotines.
We got the facts from a Chambord press release in celebration of the big day, and they also included some tasty cocktails we're sure you'll lose your head over. [Editor's Note: Wocka Wocka!] Read on for stats and, more importantly, drink recipes.
Continue reading: "Storm the Bastille with Chambord Cocktails"
Shots Liquor Console by J.P. Meulendijks
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