Recipe: Vieux Carre
The Vieux Carre is a true classic in the cocktail world. It was reportedly developed at the legendary Carousel Bar in New Orleans sometime in the 1930s, on the heels of the drinks boomtime that helped define the “Roaring 20s.” It’s essentially a complex riff on a Manhattan with ingredients that speak to the vibrant,…
Review: GoSili Silicone Straws
The conundrum over straws and how they’re killing the environment has yet to find an easy solution, short of “just don’t use a straw.” Metal and glass straws are rough on your teeth. Paper straws melt. Straws made from other fibers like hay tend to break easily. Here’s an obvious answer from a company called…
Review: Insolito Tequila, Complete Lineup
New tequila brand Insolito (Spanish for “rare” or “extraordinary”) is distilled by Octavio & Alberto Herrera at Premium de Jalisco, which lays claim to being the highest-elevation distillery in Mexico, at 7200 feet above sea level. There’s a curious partnership with the Herreras: Midland, a Texas-based country music trio (and former bartenders). While the distillery…
Review: Highland Brewing Rising Haze IPA
North Carolina’s largest “native” brewer recently dropped a new permanent addition to its lineup, a hazy brewed with Citra, Mosaic, and Galaxy hops. Strictly available in cans. It sure smells the part on the nose: Pour it heavily into a glass and a brisk, sweet pineapple note immediately invades the senses, undercut by just a…
Review: Pyramid Subliminal State Hazy Pale Ale
Pyramid’s latest was originally brewed for the Lazy Dog restaurant chain, but now it’s going out as a bottled seasonal. It’s (another) hazy pale ale, which Pyramid describes as “a tasty beer that combines the best parts of a hazy beer with some west coast-style bitterness” and is its first made with Kveik yeast. There’s…
Review: Jameson Cold Brew
Jameson’s latest bottling isn’t yet another standard spin on Irish, it’s a combination of whiskey with cold brew coffee flavor added. Makes sense, after all. The most iconic coffee + whiskey cocktail is, of course, Irish coffee. There’s not a lot of backstory here, but Jameson reps say that customers have been asking for this…
Review: Martini & Rossi Fiero
Fiero is Martini & Rossi‘s answer to Aperol, although unlike that iconic spirit, Fiero is actually a vermouth — an aromatized wine — not a distilled product. The new Fiero is actually a relaunch, the line having originated in 1998 as an “orange vermouth,” and only now revamped and reintroduced into a market that’s hungry…
Review: Plume & Petal Lemon Drift Vodka
Bacardi’s newest brand is a line of flavored vodkas, a “collection of premium low-ABV vodkas infused with natural artisanal flavors, created to address the real-life demands of modern women.” I’m no modern woman, but I get the spa inspiration behind Plume & Petal, which includes a cucumber version, one made with peaches, and the lemon-infused…
