Brain Freeze
Robert Simonson of the New York Times narrates this tasting adventure at New York bars and lounges that have picked up on the frozen drink trend. Says Simonson, “It helps that the icy drinks, which cost $10 to $13, sell like hot cakes. On a recent Saturday night, Battery Harris went through 36 liters of slushies. And an increasing number of New York bars have brought frozen drinks in from the cold and given them a place on the menu.”
Devil May Drink
This whiskey is a doozy, especially since their first offering won the 2013 World Whiskies Design Award for Best Single Malt £99 & Under and sold out in a hurry. The Scotch distillers have produced 6,660 bottles of The Devil’s Punch Bowl Chapter II: Angels & Devils (pictured), which is on sale now. Master distiller James MacTaggart says, “With vibrant notes of classic dried fruits, light spice and cigar box, layered over a sherry-sweet base, Angels & Devils drinks more like a dream than a nightmare.” $108.97 / 53.1% ABV
Bourbon Envy
A $12 million distillery will be built in downtown Louisville. “We are constructing a fully functioning distillery, from milling of grains to blending and bottling on site,” says Wes Henderson, COO for Angel’s Share Brands. “The Angel’s Envy distillery will be a must-see experience on the Urban Bourbon Trail.” Bourbon adventurers can add this destination, to be built at the old Vermont American Building, to their Bourbon Trail experience in December 2014.
Lock, Stock and $1.1 Million Worth of Vodka
$1.1 million worth of Spirits of the Tsars vodka was stolen on June 22 in a well-executed warehouse heist, NBC Miami reports. Along with recently released footage, Miami police say the crooks broke-in by knocking a hole in the concrete wall where the vodka was stored and made off with 752 cases. At six bottles per case, the high-end vodka goes for $300 a bottle retail, and can fetch up to $1,200 a pop at nightclubs. Each bottle comes equipped with a 24-karat gold veneer label. Subtle.
Return of the Dragon
Whiskey maker Johnnie Walker has released a surreal TV advertisement for its Blue Label expression featuring a CGI version of the late martial arts legend and Hollywood star, Bruce Lee. The spot is beautifully done, to be sure, but we’re still quite partial to the ads featuring Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks.
