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Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka

Summertime in the sweltering South calls for that thirst relieving concoction known as sweet tea. Now a South Carolina distiller has created a liquored-up version. Firefly Sweet Tea vodka is an infusion of American Tea and Firefly Vodka which is a muscadine grape vodka. The new flavor is a huge hit in Charleston where local bartenders are creating new tasty drinks for summer sippers. The vodka is sold in South Carolina, Colorado, Nevada, New York currently and will soon be making its way to other states but it's perhaps best experienced in states where sweet tea is already a beloved drink.

[via Charleston City Paper]

Campari Celebrates Summer in Style


In our Classicist column about Veuve Clicquot's collaboration with Riva Yachts the other day we fell to musing about Dolce Vita style on the Riviera. Of course, nothing exemplifies seaside sprezzatura quite like Campari, the classic Italian aperitif. The bold red spirit with the sexy ads starring Salma Hayek (above) has been around since 1860, but that doesn't mean they've run out of things to do with it. Campari and soda is the classic combo - and one of our seasonal staples - but the company has come up with several spiffy new cocktails for summer. See the gallery for recipes, including a couple that can be made in large quantities for parties.

Gallery: Campari Summer Style

The classic Campari bottleCampari Sgroppino - created by mixologist Tony Abou-GanimCampari Passion - created by mixologist Jacques BezuidenhoutCampari Cherry InfusionCampari Citrus Infusion

Stirrings' Summery Lemonade Cocktail Mix

Earlier in the season we wrote about Stirrings, the Massachusetts-based company dedicated to improving America's drinking habits through all-natural cocktail ingredients. Now Stirrings is about to introduce a thirst-quenching new mixer for summer.

Their Simple Lemonade cocktail mix is inspired by the taste of classic farm stand lemonade, made with real lemon juice and an additional blend of acai and white cranberry juices.

The simplest way to jazz it up is by adding vodka, but it can also be combined with their other mixers such as Pomegranate, Blueberry and Cosmopolitan to create more complicated concoctions. See the gallery and visit www.stirrings.com for more.

Gallery: Stirrings of Summer

Stirrings Summer MixersStirrings LemonadeStirrings Cocktail SodasStrawberry DaiquiriMargarita Mix

Diamond Standard Vodka

The new Diamond Standard vodka takes a concept I first saw with Diva vodka, a step further, using just diamonds rather than all precious stones to filter their vodka. Their process uses over 600 cut diamonds of up to one carat in size. The grain used is from Poland. The bottle is produced by Saver Glass and is made of perfume bottle grade glass with a 25mm Swarovski Xillion Chaton crystal as its centerpiece embedded within its neckline. The vodka is now being test marketed and sold in Massachusetts with plans to expand into New York and New Jersey and has a retail price of $100.

A Great Day in Cocktail History

Looking for an excuse to celebrate? July 19 is National Daiquiri Day. The drink many people associate with author Ernest Hemingway was in fact invented in 1898 in the small iron mining town of Daiquiri near Santiago, Cuba by an engineer named Jennings Stockton Cox.

He came up with the drink, a simple blend of lime juice, sugar and local Bacardi rum (est. 1862) over cracked ice as a way to boost the morale of mine workers during the sizzling summer months. It was such a success Cox not only received a generous stipend from the mining company but also a monthly gallon of Bacardi.

Hemingway (above, hoisting a daiquiri) later helped to popularize the drink. Of course in Cox's day there was no question of freezing or blending. See the gallery for a traditional hand-shaken daiquiri recipe and some historical images pertaining to this classic cocktail's origins.

Gallery: National Daiquiri Day

Daiquiri inventor Jennings Stockton Cox.The Daiquiri mines.Cox's original recipe.Traditional Daiquiri recipe.Bacardi Superior Rum.

SKYY Vodka Introduces Infusions Line


SKYY Vodka, the super-premium purity-minded spirit in the distinctive cobalt blue bottle, has introduced a new line of all-natural infused flavors in time for summer drink-making. SKYY, which is made from American grain and 100% pure filtered water, developed proprietary four-column distillation and a three-step filtration process to remove any impurities from its spirit. The five new flavors are Citrus, Cherry, Passion Fruit, Grape and Raspberry. See the gallery for some fun cocktail recipes made with these tempting new offerings.

Gallery: SKYY Infusions Cocktails

Citrus in ProvencePassionate Summer FlingBerry Me in the SandCherry Capri Get in Grape Shape

New Amsterdam Straight Gin

The general trend in gin these days is to infuse it with ever more exotic botanicals and other unusual ingredients to make as distinctive a spirit as possible. However, New Amsterdam, a new gin from the E.&J. Gallo Winery in California (their first non-grape product), is more about subtlety.

The quintessential gin component juniper is suppressed in this "straight" concoction, which with its citrusy notes produces a lighter, cleaner, less "ginny" gin than you're no doubt used to. The name refers to the 17th-century Dutch settlement that became New York City and the modernistic bottle features a slice of the Manhattan skyline.

See the gallery for some neat New Amsterdam cocktail recipes formulated to highlight this fresh, summery spirit.

Gallery: New Amsterdam Gin

The distinctive bottle.The ElectrolyteThe Lemonade 485The SpaThe Lower East Side

Guy Ritchie Wants To Create His Own Whisky

Guy Ritchie may become the latest celebrity to have his own liquor brand. The Sun reports that the film director and spouse of Madonna is interested in creating his own malt whisky. But for Ritchie no ordinary tipple will do, He's been sampling 33-year-old malts lately at The Punch Bowl pub, in London's Mayfair area that he and Madonna bought recently. He feels that he could create the most expensive and prestigious brand in the world.

Gallery: Celebrity Liquor

Snoop DoggDr. DreDuke Ellington CognacTres Rios TequilaOld Whiskey River Bourbon

The Classicist: Veuve Clicquot Clicks with Riva Yachts


Renowned French champagne house Veuve Clicquot has teamed up with luxury Italian motoryacht maker Riva to produce an amazing new Grande Dame Cruise Collection of coolers and accessories for discerning yachtsmen. It's nothing short of a match made in style heaven of two very chic European marques. The top offering from the collaboration is an $80,000 made-to-order cruising trunk that resembles a small boat in itself and harks back to the golden age of traveling in style which we reminisced about recently. For something done on such a grand scale it's rather refined, a luxurious design without resorting to odious "bling" to attract those with more money than sense.

The trunk comes packed with four bottles (1988) and two magnums (1998) of Clicquot's coveted La Grande Dame champagne, six Riedel crystal champagne flutes and elegant table settings for six people. A smaller limited edition Cruiser Bag comes with a single bottle of Grande Dame and two flutes for more intimate occasions, and a matching ice bucket is crafted with marine flair to spare. All pieces feature the same lacquer work, mahogany inlay, chrome detailing and leather trim found on Riva's beautiful boats.

Riva, which dates from the 1800s, is an icon of the Italian Riviera's Dolce Vita style. The company first captured the attention of movie stars and the international jet set in the '50s. Its classic wooden craft, which inspired the Cruise Collection, have been owned by the likes of Brigitte Bardot, Richard Burton, Sophia Loren, Aristotle Onassis and Prince Ranier of Monaco. Their yachts, including more modern designs, can be seen at the chic European seaside resorts where the bon ton gather, and they have their own line of elegant nautical-inspired clothing as well.

Gallery: Veuve Clicquot & Riva Yachts

The made-to-order cooler/hamper.Another view.The smaller cooler.Classic Clicquot Yellow Label.Classic wooden Riva speedboats.

Continue reading The Classicist: Veuve Clicquot Clicks with Riva Yachts

Blogger Tastes 23 Orange Liqueurs And Picks A Favorite

Ah what some bloggers will do in the name of research. Intrepid drinks blogger Jay Hepburn of Oh Gosh sampled 23 orange liqueurs over the course of several months to determine which was the best. After countless margaritas, sidecars and straight sips of orange liqueur, he has determined the best of the best. He gave the award for best overall to Giffard Premium Curaçao Triple Sec for both mixing and sipping separately. Hepburn is a British blogger and so this orange liqueur might be hard to find here in the States. Fear not, the most ubiquitous of the orange liqueurs, Cointreau, got high marks for its utility in mixed drinks.

[via Alcademics]

Finlandia Celebrates the Summer Solstice

In the far north of Finland the sun does not set for 73 straight days during summer. This "midnight sun" helps give Finlandia vodka its crisp, clean taste as the endless summer allows its key ingredients, six-row barley and pure glacial spring water, to flourish.

Traditionally, Finns have celebrated this phenomenon on the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. The cities empty as they commune with nature in the countryside, taking advantage of the incredible bounty of their unique locale. To mark the occasion, Finlandia has come up with some refreshing new summer solstice cocktails. Here's how to make the Mango Midnight Run pictured here:

2 oz Finlandia Mango Fusion
2 oz cranberry juice
Splash of lime juice

Mix and serve in a cocktail glass over ice. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

See the gallery for other recipes and more.

Gallery: Finlandia Summer Solstice

A summer scene from Northern Finland.The famous midnight sun.Finlandia Vodka.Grapefruit Sunshine.Midnight Sun Martini.

Black Bowmore 42-Year-Old Scotch Whisky


The Black Bowmore is one of the most expensive whiskies around. The scotch comes from Bowmore, one of Scotland's oldest distilleries on the island of Islay. The spirit was poured into oak casks that had been used for aging Oloroso sherry. This dark whisky has scents of cocoa, toffee, sherry and mature oak with a rich flavor with hints of coffee and orange.

Back in February, RIck Lyke who writes the great spirits blog Lyke to Drink tasted the 42-year-old Black Bowmore which was distilled on Nov. 5, 1964, The five casks used in this bottling yielded 827 bottles of which 80 were shipped to the U.S. earlier this year. The bottle comes in a mahogany box inlaid with maple burl and copper and sells for $4500.

Ardbeg Double Barrel


Their most ambitious and complex Scotch yet, the Ardbeg Double Barrel from the UK company was inspired by the British shooting parties of old. Presented in a handmade leather bespoke gun case it is complete with two bottles from different single casks of 1974 Ardbeg Scotch and eight sterling silver drinking cups. Ready to travel and share with many the $23,190 package is only one of 250 made. Certainly a stunning gift or just something fun to own by someone inspired by the past or smitten with Scotch, the Ardbeg Double Barrel is certainly one of a kind.

Gallery: Ardbeg Double Barrel

Stogies & Sticks Mancation Package


Gentlemen, save the date: From Thursday, October 16 - Sunday, October 19, The Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa in Phoenix is offering the ultimate guy getaway: the Stogies & Sticks Foursome Mancation. Brace yourselves for a long weekend of lighting up fine cigars, sipping premium bourbon, dining on delectable American Lodge Cuisine and teeing off on two of Phoenix's best golf courses.

The three-night/four-day vacation package for four kicks off at with a Bourbon & Cigar Dinner in the resort's signature restaurant, Wright's at The Biltmore. An array of top-brand cigars will be offered and selections from the Jim Beam Small Batch Bourbon Collection will be poured. Friday and Saturday will be golf days on the Arizona Biltmore's two outstanding courses, with 18-hole Adobe one day and 18-hole Links the next.

The mancation package includes accommodations for three nights, the Bourbon & Cigar Dinner, and two rounds of golf with daily breakfast: $450 per person, double occupancy, per night. Add three days of golf ­and a total of 54 holes with an instructional option at the Hilton Golf Academy: $300 per person.

Whisky Meets Wine in Longrow's Gaja Barolo Bottling

We admit we've never been troubled by the dilemma of choosing between Scotch and wine - we just have both. Usually not in the same glass, however; until a bottle of Longrow Gaja Barolo showed up. The 7-year-old single malt from Springbank, one of Scotland's most renowned distilling dynasties, is matured in bourbon casks for five years then finished for a year-and-a-half in Barolo wine casks from Angelo Gaja's famed vineyard in Piemonte, founded in 1859.

Trying this experiment with a heavily peated Campbeltown malt like Longrow might seem counterintuitive, but in fact the smokiness keeps the spirit from being overpowered by the grape. The confluence of flavors is nothing short of symphonic, plus at 111.6-proof it packs all the authentic muscle of a cask strength bottling. Definitely one the very best single malts we've tasted since the last time we were actually in Scotland.

[via Men.Style]

Gallery: Longrow & Gaja

View of a Gaja vineyard.A classic Gaja label.Springbank distillery, Campbeltown.Campbeltown from across the Loch.Longrow CV label.

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