Craig Ferguson on Whiskey

The Much-Harder-Working-Than-Me, Bill Dowd, pointed out a good clip from the Craig Ferguson show.  Check it out.

Roundhouse Gin

Now this is what I've been waiting for!

A small batch gin, hand-bottled, and from The Western U.S., which is a region far better than those other directional regions. 

Roundhouse Spirits has come out with a gin that is carefully crafted with all organic ingredients.  It's stable of herbs and spices includes juniper berry, corriander, citrus peel, star anise, angelica, and orris root.  That's only a few less than KFC!  The company even buys credits through a non-profit to offset it's own carbon footprint. 

Alas, you need to be in the only state in America that requires a cat on the loose to have a tail light in order to imbibe upon this magical concoction that begs me to be drink it.  At some point you're probably going to have to fly through Denver anyway, pick some up!

Roundhouse Spirits is also making a coffee liqueur called Corretto. 

You stay classy, Colorado!

Roundhouse Gin

Review: Obsello Absinthe

If you're drinking absinthe at this point, there are a limited number of reasons for it.  Some people just want to try it because of the mystique or because it's a new drink, other's have a love of black jelly beans, and the rests are the purists.  The one's who want a real absinthe and create something new with it. 

Obsello Absinthe is for those purists that want a great, traditional Absinthe.

The Story
Obsello is the real thing, not a chemical creation that is taking advantage of the trend.  It's a Spanish absinthe that actually is distilled from grapes, the original stuff they made absinthe from all those years ago.  They also distill their own herbs and use Alicante Anise, only the best for you.  Just like a winemaker pours his heart and soul and best ingredients in to his fine wine, the folks at Obsello are bringing that same passion to absinthe.  Natural ingredients, well thought-out flavors, and Grand Wormwood.  Cuz, it's absinthe.

Talk About The Stuff Already
Of course, it tastes like licorice.  But there's a lot more to it.  This doesn't look like the bright green slime that Nickelodeon dumps on people.  It's got a nice, natural look and no ridiculous neon colors.  The smell gives you the anise feel but there's also some vanilla tones in there.  At this point, I very much looked forward to it. 

The Louche effect was pretty cool because it was so uneven.  There were swirls and shades and things that made it look like something was really happening.  A lot of other absinthes just tend to change to one color and move on. 

The taste left no bitterness but it wasn't skimping on the anise flavor either, which must be very hard to do when you're making absinthe.  The attention to detail from start to finish is pretty impressive.  Obsello feels a bit thick in your mouth and goes down smooth without any artificial taste.  There's a tiny bit of bitter finish which is a nice way to remind you that you're drinking absinthe. 

The nice thing about Obsello is that it's so premium.  It's a top-notch absinthe that doesn't skimp on a single thing.  Even the cork is perfect for preventing oxidation.  However, it sells for an easy US$59.95, which is squarely in the mid-market pricing, but it'll beat out anything that you put in front of it that costs a lot more. 

Verdict
If you're in to absinthe or you want to get someone in to absinthe, this is the right stuff for you.  Easy to drink, fun to play with, and what every absinthe is supposed to be.

Obsello Absinthe - US$59.95

Prohibition Distillery is planning vodka...and gin...and rum

As "Eat Local" becomes more and more of a desire for people trying to be more sustainable, one distillery wants to promote the cause but not let you miss out on your vodka. 

Prohibition Distillery is based in New York (Long Island) and the former investment banker and realtor brother-sister team want to add to their stock soon by making gin and bourbon.  This way, you can live in New York and not get your Organic Vodka from California, Bourbon from Kentucky, and gin from...well, wherever it is that gin comes from. 

No info yet on release dates or prices, but the vodka is coming first with the gin and bourbon to follow. 

Prohibition Distillery

Slava Vodka - High-end vodka, on the cheap!

Edit to the edit:  The owner has e-mailed me a lot and apologized for being...well, the way he was.  Let's see how it goes when this stuff hits the U.S.

Edits: Slava Vodka, under penalty of legal action, asked me to make some corrections and remove their image. A nice e-mail letting me know where I was wrong would have been better but I guess they feel that pulling the lawyer card instantly will garner goodwill.

If you're Canadian, you know just how important it is for an alcohol to be cheap AND good! It's the only country I've been to where many companies just advertise how much product you get without saying a thing about taste. Oh! Canada! Edit: Slava Vodka says you can't advertise quantity in Canada.

Slava is a new vodka that is only available in Canada and is distilled 4 times and then filtered 12 times. 12 times! What are they making this stuff from that it needs to be filtered 12 times? Are we looking at the worlds first vodka made from steel refinery by-product? Edit: Slava vodka says that Smirnoff is filtered 10 times and that it's normal to filter this much. However, I say that there are also many that are filtered less and they taste pretty good.

They also claim that it tastes every bit as good as the super-premium vodkas that cost more than US$40 but costs less than US$30 (Edit: Slava vodka says that it will cost around US$17) . They say that those other vodkas cost so much because the bottle is expensive and Slava doesn't try to make their bottle look like an AK-47, so it can be cheaper. But let's be honest, it's not the bottle that's raising the price, it's the marketing budget.

Slava then goes on to tell you how unique their bottle is and how important it is that their bottle is freezer friendly because of its triangular shape, you know, so it won't roll around in your freezer.

If you're going to get a cheap vodka, then use Tito's, IKON, or UV Vodka and get the great taste for under $20. Otherwise, impress your friends with the bottle that has jewels in it and pay the piper. Edit: I guess "The Piper" only charges an extra dollar since my pricing was wrong. Oh Hyperbole, what will you think of next?

They also saved a ton of money on building their website in Microsoft Word and passed those savings on to you! Edit: I looked at the HTML Source. This part is still true.

Slava Vodka - ~US$30 Edit: US$17 dummy! And it's not available in the US yet anyway. Only Canada.

Love My Martini Glasses

I'm not even done with the Halloween candy that I stole from my kids yet, but here we are, on the downslope to Valentine's Day.  Yep!  You've got just enough time to get that credit card bill from Christmas, get in a fight about it, and make up before the holiday that makes even the best restaurants serve crappy food.

The bottom of the glass has martini recipes and the the hearts on the glass have those little sayings on them like "Be Mine" and "Marry Me."  That last one being a bit awkard if you were just waiting until after Valentine's Day to ask for the divorce. 

Each glass sells for $24.95, so you better be ready to commit. 

Love Candy Hearts Martini Glasses - US$24.95

BaR2-D2 serves 'em up!

Our shared dream of coming closer to a bartender like the one in The Fifth Element is slowly coming to fruition! 

BaR2-D2 has been unleashed on the masses with sound activated lighting, a removable drawer for mixers, a turntable that rotates beers in to position, and a six-bottle shot dispenser.  Apparently, these ARE the droids you're looking for.

Next up, a robot urinal, C3PeeO. 

You can download the instructions on how to build this for free!  Time and materials are on you though.  You can see a video of it in action here. 

BaR2-D2 on Instructables
via BornRich

GiveReal.com lets you buy someone a drink, anytime, anywhere

The problem with Buyyourfriendadrink.com is that you have to use one of their participating bars.  GiveReal.com solves that problem by allowing you to use a credit card you already have.  Let me 'splain.

Let's say you want to buy your friend a round for helping you move that Bowflex in to the laundry room where it can serve some actual use.  You can go to GiveReal.com and put some money in to their account.  Your friend gets an e-mail stating that you bought them a drink which then allows them to go on their site and register their credit card.  They can then use that credit card to purchase their drink at ANY restaurant or bar in America. 

Since we've all become Facebook junkies, they even have a Facebook application.  Finally!  An application that you might actually use that doesn't involve a sex test or throwing a snowball at someone! 

GiveReal.com