Martini Groove

This whisky seems perfect for American shores. It's always easier to sell to us fat Americans something that is large quantity, regardless of actual quality. It's the founding principle of super-sizing, buffets, and Jennifer Lopez. Ardbeg distillery is creating this 14 pound bottle of whisky (shown inhich the picture next to a regular-sized bottle) and calling it Mór which means 'big' in Gaelic. It's full-cask strength and they've created 1,000 of the bottles for sale all over the world and you can have one of your own for US$712 (£350). Ardbeg distillery

Every bar in San Francisco seems to be carrying the Distillery 209 gin as it's born and bred right on one of the piers in SF. It's a decent gin (not as good as everyone keeps trying to tell me it is) but makes up in storyline what it might be lacking in ginny goodness. I recently posted about Cocktails on the Fly and the host, Albert Straub, a web video production that covers how to make some unique drinks. Alberta's a pro bartender and she has some great takes on drinks and a pretty fun personality. She came out from behind the bar to do a 3-part tour of the Distillery 209. Though the piece starts off a bit slow (she keeps looking at the camera, like she knows I'm there. She KNOWS, man!) she quickly gets in to her groove and does a great little piece on how gin is made and why 209 is unique. Definitely worth a watch for anyone who wants to see a distillery in action. Tour San Francisco Gin Distillery 209

You can get Absinthe in the US but you have to order it from Europe and get it shipped here at ridiculous prices and wait for a long time. This is widely regarded as a "pain in the ass." Lucid Absinthe is set to begin shipping next month to locations throughout the US. They were able to pass regulatory muster by getting rid of all the thujone (the banned ingredient) in their product. However, they were able to use certain European herbs in order to make up for the taste difference. So, you can finally bring Absinthe to the party and be the toast of the ball. One of the unintended side-effects of Absinthe coming to the US though, will be a significant reduction in posts from Liquor Snob , they can't seem to keep their hands off the stuff. Keep an eye on their site for a liquor store selling it near you. Lucid Absinthe - US$59.95 Edit: Erik added some comments that fleshed out the Thujone issue as well as some Absinthe background.

Is there any better way to wash fine wine glasses than with the baby bottle washer? I think not.

Year two of "America's Hottest Bartenders" is currently going on over at AOL's Cityguide. You can vote for your favorite in specific cities including: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, D.C., Vegas, L.A., Miami, San Francisco, and New York. Might I suggest Andrea? A lovely bartender from SF who works at the ultra-cool Ambassador and actually pronounces "Glenmorangie" correctly, plus she makes a killer gimlet and has a great customer-centric attitude even when she's slammed at the bar. Winners from each city go on to the national finals. America's Hottest Bartenders: Season 2

I admit to absolutely adoring bar bands. They play mostly other people's songs that I love and they do it louder and in a place that I don't have to pay $200 to get in to. Boru Vodka has announced their "Defend the bar band" contest which will give US$10,000 to a lucky bar band and a contract from Roadrunner records. Voting will be done online and even the voters can get a piece of the action by winning US$5,000, a Boru branded jukebox, or even daily music downloads. The contest will extend to Maxim Online, Blender, and Fark.com as well, so voting could get pretty interesting. Boru Vodka

Smirnoff Source is the new malt liquor that is advertised as "Alcohol + Water." The alcopop is the first to contain pure spring water and a malt-based alcohol. It has 3.5% ABV and is supposed to have less calories than most beers out there. The commercial is pretty damned cool and features a song by The Rapture as water moves to the beat like a graphic equalizer.

If you're one of the first 50 people to register each week, then you could get an awesome 99 Schnapps recipe magnet which is perfect for...recipes, and....sticking to metal things. fr

I've had this bottle of G'vine sitting around, taunting me, since almost last December. Frankly, it scared me. It was the unholy union of grape flowers (which bloom for about two weeks before becoming a fruit) and juniper, along with some other spices. UNNATURAL I TELL YOU! As it was recently awarded a gold medal for taste, beating out all the other fine gins, I decided to make it a priority to taste it over this past weekend. Take a whiff A deep breath brings about a strong smell of Spring. The flower smell is strong and the overtones of Juniper and licorice come to the forefront. A little nutmeg and lime showed up too, but only for a second with the Juniper coming back to the front. Take a drink The four-times distillation process is rather evident as the first taste immediately feels clean. The botanicals quickly take over though and I didn't get as much grape flavor as I expected. Instead I found the Juniper to take hold and show off why they call this a gin and...

Who says that Sommeliers have to be tired old men who glare at you if you sniff the cork and drone on about tannins as you sip something that is akin to Two Buck Chuck? Sexy Sommeliers is a company that is the perfect party-guest. Not only do they bring a great bottle of wine (or a few cases, depending on the size of your party), they also bring an extraordinarily hot girl to pour it. Considering your last party's biggest achievement was the fact that no one threw a Mike's Hard Lemonade at you, this is a good thing. You can look through each girls pictures and profile and even take a look in to their wine experience (if they have any, it seems that many don't), where else are you going to find a gorgeous Sommelier who lists one of her interests as "Kama Sutra?" For my money, I'm still hiring Courtney Cochrane , but not everyone can get her, so you may have to make do with one of these. Sexy Sommeliers Thanks Kevin !

The outrageously-priced Martini market finally found a way to tug at your heart strings a bit and do something good with the outrageous price. Adobe in Santa Monica offers up a Martini that gives you that glitz and glamor feel and puts its money where its mouth is. For $US300 you get a martini made from Ultra-Premium Coconut Pearl Vodka, a splash of Blue Curacao, and a AAA 12mm Tahitian Black Pearl as a garnish. Not only does the drink sound actually yummy and come with a cool little souvenir, proceeds go Heal the Bay , an organization that is spending its much needed efforts cleaning up the Santa Monica Bay.

The popularity of the Mint Mojito is starting to greatly annoy me. Yes, they are perfect for a hot summer afternoon/night but the people ordering them in a busy club because they can't figure out anything else to order and so decide on a trendy one need to spend some time working it out with an impartial third party (read: Therapist or Ultimate Fighter). Having to stand there at a busy bar and wait for the Fresh Off Of Campus girl to order her Mojito and the look on the poor bartender's face as he has to muddle another one is a huge deterrent to going out to popular bars. Why can't you hop on the OTHER bandwagon and just order a SoCo and Lime? Or here's a better idea, just grab the Orbit Mint Mojito flavored gum and call it a night. Go back to your dorm room and kiss your hand as you pretend it's your boyfriend which you won't have as long as the only drink you can think of to order when the bar is hoppin' is a Mojito. Or whatever it is you people do. It...

Tales of the Cocktail is taking place right now in New Orleans and you can expect there to be plenty of announcements (and blog posts) on drink related items. One of the biggest ones to come out is the launch of a new vodka from Absolut that is being made and sold to benefit the town. Absolut New Orleans is mango flavored with a black pepper kick and is being limited to a run of 35,000 cases. The vodka will sell for US$19 per bottle and is expected to raise abou US$2 Million for 5 New Orleans charities, including one that will buy new instruments for musicians that lost them to Katrina. The money in and of itself is timely as funding for a lot of charities is beginning to dry up. Edit: You can also go to the Absolut site now and vote on which other cities should get their time as a vodka flavor! Limited edition vodka to benefit Gulf Coast rebuilding

Revolution U&I isn't really vodka, but it's not really a regular malt liquor beer. It's in a new category called "Alcomalt" and is made in Canada. It's charm comes from its ability to not only taste like vodka, but also because it has half the alcohol of vodka, allowing it to be sold in convenience stores under a regular beer and wine license. They're not just stopping at vodka either. They've got a dry gin, a rum, and mixed drinks too, like a strawberry daiquiri and a Blue Lagoon. You won't find them in the US yet, only in Canada and mostly in French, which means we'll probably never get them. Revolution U&I

G'vine Gin , the gin made from grape flowers, placed first among all gins earning a gold medal for its “Exceptional” rating of 94 points at this year’s International Review of Spirits Competition by Beverage Testing Institute. The Gin even beat my absolute favorite, Hendrick's, and Martin Miller's. Two incredible gin's, so it's in esteemed company. I have a bottle of the stuff that I received for review and I haven't even tried it yet. Most of the other bloggers out there seem to like it and now it's got some real reviewer cred with it's recent win. G'vine Gin

If you're a vodka company and you want to show some guts, challenge all comers to a room temperature taste test and then call your vodka "The Smoothest Vodka On Earth." That's exactly what Peureux Perfect 1864 Vodka has done. Each batch of Perfect 1864 includes certificates attesting that the wheat base was sourced exclusively from a soft variety found only in France's Brie Champagne region and that the water comes only from ancient natural springs in the Vosges Mountains near France's border with Switzerland. Perfect 1864 is the only vodka in the world to provide certified support for the quality of its ingredients with every batch produced. It launched in limited spots late last year but is now starting to spread. Look for it near you. Peureux Perfect 1864 Vodka - US$33.95

I changed the way that you subscribe to the RSS on here, so some people may have to resubscribe as I'm now directing it through Feedburner in order to better track subscriptions as well as make it more customizable. Sorry for any inconvenience.

The ShotPak company, makers of single-serving drinks such as the Lemon Drop pictured here, has said that they've come up with the "First Ever Vodka Energy Drink Formula" for their single-serving audience. While this is categorically false (Think Zygo, P.I.N.K. and a few others), I'm sure it's the first that comes in an easy-to-conceal packet that allows you to sneak it in to the movies and get all amped up while watching the next great romantic comedy. Expect to see it launch this Fall. Shotpak Energy Vodka

If you don't live in California, you may not have (as much) experience with this problem. Basically, it seems that every wine that hasn't been reviewed by a magazine or celebrity taster falls back on the laurels of their blue ribbon from the state fair. The California State Fair seems especially liberal with dishing these little pieces of folklore out and seems to have enough categories that any winery can win. Do we really want to know which wine won "Best Zinfandel Between Mile Markers 34 and 42 on Highway 12?" Alder over at Vinography does a bit of an expose on the blue ribbon scam and articulates something that I've been thinking for a very long time: Blue Ribbons Suck. Read the whole post at Vinography .

Sean Harrison is the Master Distiller for Plymouth Gin and recently made the rounds in the US. Robert Hess from The Cocktail Spirit recently sat down with him in Seattle and got quite a lengthy interview out of him. I was impressed with Sean's practicality when it came to the Gin market. He understands that the Gin crowd is not one that is going to be under 25 and they're not spending any time trying to open up that market. Though he gives a nod to the fact that gin is making a comeback, he concedes that gin will never overtake the vodka market. Watch the full interview here at Small Screen Network.

The great tasting UV Vodka line has added another flavor to its stable. The bright pink looking bottle displays its pink lemonade flavoring that makes for great hipster drinks or just one for girls. The drink recipe that they're pushing seems like a cool one. The Pink Flamingo uses the UV Lemonade, triple sec, and a splash of cranberry. The drink coincides with the 50th birthday of the pink flamingo that you put on your lawn. Well, the pink flamingo that you just never took off your lawn. UV Lemonade Vodka - US$10

Classic Vegas!