NY Barfly

Where’d the Baby Go? / Beer for Coney Island

-A couple in Kentucky was arrested after they took their 5 month old daughter into a bowling alley, proceeded to get wasted, and then “couldn’t find” the baby because they accidently piled coats on top of it. It’s good that this sort of thing doesn’t happen in New York. Bowling – come on!

-To celebrate Coney Island’s new amusement park, Shmaltz Brewing Co. announced a new label: Coney Island Luna Lager. We are going to reserve judgment on this label until we confirm that it was actually brewed by a one-armed carnie.

-Eater gets some thoughts from the departing keg master of Superdive. He says the place is still “kicking strong.” Kind of like a seizure before dying.

Closing Ceremonies? Let's Drink!

Olympians have always had a reputation for knowing how to party. Turns out the people of Vancouver are on the same (very drunk) page. The town has been catching some flak for some recent out of control behavior during the games. Check it out, an article in the Times describes a walk through the main drag on an Olympic evening.

Most of the revelers were well under 30 and a significant number seem to be very intoxicated. A stroll through downtown near midnight saw several young men urinating in public, numerous people drunk to the point where they needed support from friends to stay standing and two women who said they were not feeling well who certainly looked the part.

We always get a little wistful when the Olympics come to an end. Partially because we enjoy watching, but mainly because we never like the last hours of a party. Hopefully the closing ceremonies will give us a blow-out to remember. Come on, Vancouver – ruin that reputation forever!

Wine Expo in Town - This Weekend!

Winos of the world unite, and drag you tipsy butt to the Javits Center. This weekend is the New York Wine Expo, and on Friday and Saturday you’ll have your chance to walk around the trade show floor with an empty glass and sample some of the best wines in town.

Now, the real question is which tasting session should you go to. You can head over Friday after work and hit the tasting from 6:00 – 10:00 PM, or you can be truly adventurous and do the Saturday afternoon session, which lasts from 2:00 in the afternoon to 6 in the evening.

A Friday one day ticket will run you $85, while it’s $95 for the afternoon session on Saturday. You can buy some last minute tickets at the expo website here.

Whether it’s under the cover of night, or in the full light of day, you’re sure to get that really happy grin that you get after sampling 125 wines.

Highland Park 1968: The Cougar of Scotches

What does $4,000 taste like? Well, judging by Highland Park’s recently launched 1968 label, it’s smooth, meaty, contains hints of ginger, and packs a hell of a kick.

We had the pleasure to taste the Scotch company’s 40 year old single malt the other night. They should have had a security guard standing by the bottle, as it was one of only 1,500 made by the spirits company. They’ve marketed it to those who truly love their award winning Scotch. How deep is the buyer’s love of this scotch? $3,999 deep.

If that sounds high to you, you have to put it in a little perspective. What was going on 40 years ago? Atari, leggings, and Devo – nope, try a little harder. Disco and a John Travolta that we could all take seriously – nope, go back even more. Come to think of it, the only knowledge we have of that time period comes from Mad Men. A quick google search shows that Lyndon Johnson was in office when this was barreled. Yowza. This is a true liquid time capsule. Let's just say if it was a certain type of lady, it would be going after Ashton Kutcher.

Best part? It both memorializes the past with vintage, and helps you forget it with its 45.6% alcoholic content. Scrape those pennies together and drink up!

Time for Absolut Berri Acai

Breaking news alert! Did you know that the word “Acai” has three syllables?! It’s pronounced “AH-SAI-E”, which made us seem like a doofus at last week's launch of Absolut’s new flavor. We went around the room, trying to seem worldly as we spouted on about the new berry “A-KAI” flavor.

The spirit actually has three berry flavors – acai, blueberry, and pomegranate. The result is tasty and subtle, the blueberry notes definitely are the most prominent in the blend. The flavored vodka was excellent when mixed in the Absolut Berri Acai Sour (recipe below), the fruitiness contrasted nicely with the sour bite of the lemon juice.

Acai is known for its antioxidant properties and, even though the vodka probably doesn’t come with the fruit’s health benefits, it sure sounds like a good excuse to have another cocktail. Next time we mispronounce, we’re blaming the drinks.

ABSOLUT BERRI AÇAÍ SOUR

2 parts ABSOLUT BERRI AÇAÍ

3/4 part simple syrup

1 part fresh lemon juice

Shake and strain into rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with blueberries.

Party Report: Lunar New Year Bash at Apotheke

When Chinatown cocktail den Apotheke broke out the Asian inspired cocktails last week, it wasn’t just to celebrate the year of the tiger. The drinks were toasting the first annual LuckyRice Asian Food Festival. Tickets are on sale now for this event, which features tastings, cocktail parties (!!!), and some awesome events like a night market and a sunset luau.

The festival is scheduled for April 29^th to May 3^rd, and is to be followed by an Asian restaurant week. This deal will see some of the city’s top Asian restaurants offering discounts from May 2^nd Clearly, there was a lot to toast for. Yes, we had to drink extra.

Check out some pics from the party (courtesy of Todd Leong) and peek at the LuckyRice Website for info and tickets.

 
 

 

Wine in Grocery Stores Gets Another Go

New York State’s budget is in the proverbial toilet and we’re all going to be broke? Well, there’s always a silver lining, and it usually involves wine. The state legislature is revisiting the law that would potentially allow grocery stores to sell wine. This time, the supporters of the law are pointing out its potential to raise revenue. Check it out:

The state says it could net $300 million in licensing fees to grocery stores looking to sell wine.

The plan is still not gaining support with smaller wine shops, who claim that the increased competition from the supermarkets will drive down their sales. As always, we say hooey. More spots to get wine can only be a good thing, especially because more vino will help us cope with the fact that the state’s budget is such a disaster that they have to let wine into supermarkets.

Jail Sentences for Selling Fake Wine

The wine police are some serious mo-fos. They just busted a ring of dealers and merchants who were passing off a lesser grape as Pinot Noir. Turns out that most of the Red Bicyclette on the market in the US was un imposteur! While wine counterfeiting doesn’t seem like the biggest deal, the French take it seriously as it dilutes their brand and goes against the traditional labeling system. The authorities there mean business, check it out:

A court handed out suspended jail terms and hefty fines to 12 people for selling 18 million bottles (135,334 hectolitres) of wine they said was Pinot Noir but which was in fact made from far cheaper grape varieties.

The convicted included executives from wine estates, cooperatives, a broker, wine merchant Ducasse and the conglomerate Sieur d'Arques.

Yikes! Guess we better stop selling that Four Buck Chuck that we repackaged as a 1995 Barolo!

Weekend Wine School in Session

While going to school on the weekends may not seem like the best idea for lazy/tired you, Vero Wine Bar is giving you a great excuse to get to class: drinking. The classy wine spot (we’re a fan, check this out) is seeking to spread the vino knowledge with a series of weekend seminars.

The classes are going to cover all the important stuff, like French wine and cheese (yum and yum), organic wines, and the Pinot family of vino. School is in session on Saturdays through February and March, and the classes run from 4 to 6 PM. They cost $65 - $75 a session, but also (of course) include tastings.

You can check out the full class schedule at their website: www.veronyc.com. Extra credit is available to the tipsy.

Pickle Backs at The Breslin!

The Breslin just cemented itself as the coolest restaurant in NYC. No, not because of the hordes of folks that flock there every night, and not because of the highly gnaw-able pig’s foot. We got word that bartender TJ Lynch is dishing out pickle backs. What a great way to make the wait for a table fly by.

Of course most of you know that the pickle back is the latest milestone in shot innovation. It’s a shot of Jameson, chased by a shot of pickle juice. While they don’t appear to be a good pairing, those who have experienced the pickle back know that it is the nectar of the (drunken) gods. Restaurants are scoring their own signature pickle juice, and those who were previously afraid of Jameson are coming into the Irish Whiskey fold.

While it’s not on the menu, The Breslin will make one for you upon request. We suggest ordering one at the table and using it to help get that pig's foot down. They’re also available at The Randolph, The Woods (Williamsburg), Daddy-O, and The Rusty Knot if you want to steer clear of the ACE until the craziness dies down (hint: that will be about two years from now).