NY Barfly

Smirnoff Launches Screwdriver and Tropical Fruit Flavors

Who actually drinks screwdrivers these days? Someone out there, clearly, because Smirnoff just announced the launch of a screwdriver-flavored beverage dubbed Smirnoff Signature Screwdriver. The malt beverage rings in at 5.8% ABV, which is significantly lower than the actual cocktail, so you can knock a few back without falling over.

The company is also rolling out Smirnoff Ice Tropical Fruit, which is even less boozy at 4.5%. Both of them are being touted as a summer drink, but we don’t see any point in waiting – the folks that usually drink Twisted Tea are surely ready to get all up in this.

Shock Top Launches Wheat IPA

IPA is a personal favorite these days – the beer is hoppy, flavorful and more alcoholic than your normal label, which is pretty much everything we look for in a brew. Well, Shock Top is rolling out an India Pale Ale that’s different from any we’ve seen before – it’s a wheat beer that is brewed in the style of an IPA. Whaaa????? The result of their brewing process is a hoppy burst of citrus that rings in at 5.8% ABV – while we find it hard to believe that this would be as meaty as the other IPAs we have come to know and love, we’re guessing it will be tastier than the creamy wheat beers that we typically shy away from.

The IPA joins the growing list of Shock Top’s flavored, Belgian style wheat beers – which also includes Belgian White and Raspberry Wheat. What do you think – will this lure some folks over to the wheat, or will regular beer drinkers find it just too shocking?

Bud Select Goes Even Lower in Calorie Count, Drinkers Say "Why?"

The calorie wars are escalating – or, um, de-escalating if we’re being precise. Bud Select has their “55” label, and to best Miller and other low-cal labels, they’ve decided to shrink things down. Funny, we didn’t think that anyone likes to brag about shrinkage. They just rolled out two new offerings – an eight-ounce version that’s 35 calories a serving, and a seven-ounce bottle that is only 32 calories a serving. You can get both options in 12 packs.

This just goes to show – if you want to avoid the beer belly, well, you just have to drink less beer. Kind of sad, right?

New York Gets a New Distillery - Hooray!

Good news everyone – the stork has arrived and a baby distillery has been born in the Empire State. Rejoice! Dutch’s Spirits is a new craft distillery that’s located on the grounds of a former bootlegging operation – so they’ve got the history, and they’ve certainly got the booze. Apparently, the mobster Dutch Schultz used to run the old haunt, and we think he’d be proud of the Dutch’s Spirits Sugar Wash Moonshine – one of the distillers first products. They’ve also got some bitters – Dutch’s Colonial Cocktail Bitters and Dutch’s Spirits Peach Brandy to round out the inaugural line, sounds pretty swell to us.

We’re always excited to hear about a new hyper-local liquor maker that will make us hyper drunk. This one is located upstate in Pine Plains, NY, and you can check out their website here.

Absolut Rolls Out Miami Label, Snowbirds Rejoice

What does New York need in the dead of winter? A little sip of Miami, yo….Well, call the debut of Absolut’s latest city-inspired bottle perfect timing then. Absolut Miami joins other limited editions like Brooklyn and San Francisco on the shelves of the liquor store. If there is one thing that city knows well beyond its bikinis, it’s nightlife. The label received a SoBe-worthy launch party the other week – and plenty of revelers came out to celebrate the new spirit – which combines hints of orange blossom and passion fruit for a blend that’s sure to provide a little warmth this winter (not to mention get the party started). The bottle is bedecked with pink flamingoes and palm trees, natch, and you can keep an eye out for it at your local liquor store.

If you want a drink to mix up with the hooch, check out the cocktail recipe below:

ABSOLUT MIAMI South Beach Breeze

2 parts ABSOLUT MIAMI

1.5 Parts Fresh Orange Juice

1.5 Parts Fresh Pineapple Juice

Build over ice in a highball glass and stir. Garnish with a pineapple spear and lime wedge.

Peruvian Eggnog Saves A Horrible Drink's Reputation

Every holiday season, we return to the one truth we hold dear: eggnog is gross! Well, Pisco Porton has reinterpreted the drink to make it actually palatable. Their Peruvian Eggnog is kind of a Pisco Sour spinoff, saving the libation from unfashionable punch bowls everywhere. Check out the recipe below and mix one up to see why once you have a few sips of this, you’ll be liberated from the holiday horror forever.

1 ounce Pisco Portón

1/2 ounce Chai Tea Liqueur

3/4 ounce heavy cream

1/2 ounce simple syrup

1 whole egg

1 cinnamon stick

Add the spirits, cream, egg, and simple syrup to an iced shaker. Shake for 20 seconds (I will be passing the shaker off to the host). Strain into a martini glass and top with fresh cinnamon.

Moscato Explained With a Handy-Dandy Chart

In case you haven’t heard, Moscato is pretty trendy right now. It’s typically poured as a dessert wine, but there are plenty of drier vinos that come from the Muscat grape, which is one of the world’s oldest fruits to go from vine to wine. Want some more info about this category of wine? Well, the folks over at Jacob’s Creek have provided this handy infographic. Read it before Thanksgiving, and you can seem all smart-like at the dinner table. Grandma will be so proud.

Fog Up Your Cocktail With Dry Ice

OK, so Halloween is over, and you’re saying a different kind of boo: boo hoo! Don’t get too upset, even though it is the end of spooky season, you can still make what’s in your glass look like a witch’s brew. For our latest on Tablespoon, we came up with a do-it-yourself guide from throwing some dry ice into your drink. The ingredient will get your beverage bubbling up with some spooky fog – but hey, why just limit such theatrics to one day a year. We think some dry ice drinks are just what you need to make Thanksgiving dinner really memorable, don’t you? You can check out our guide here.

New Amsterdam Launches Vodka with a Shave and a Haircut

Usually you don't want your bartender getting hopped up on vodka, but the haircutters at the Blind Barber speakeasy in the East Village know how to work a pair of shears with one hand while holding a  martini with the other. When New Amsterdam decided to throw a launch party for their new vodka there, we were so down.

We had a never-gets-old Prohibition moment walking through the barber shop front (which was operating that night – complimentary straight shaves for the gents), and were greeted with vodka, vodka and more vodka. There was a make-your-own screwdriver station, make-your-own Bloody Mary station and of course, martinis at the bar.

No Agent (007  or otherwise) would be ashamed to order a vodka martini  with this brand or buy one for his lady companion, preferably after a fresh shave. The Bloody Marys and Screwdrivers were smooth enough that you could barely tell you are drinking vodka (danger! danger!). The martinis were strong enough that you felt sophisticated just ordering one and smooth enough to pretend you were on the hunt for an international terrorist. Conclusion? New Amsterdam vodka is a great value, though slightly less than that free haircut. Sounds like a good excuse for another drink to us.

-Katie Carroll

Kahlua Launches Cinnamon Spice Label

If sugar and spice and everything nice is what little girls are made of, cinnamon spice with a shot or two of vodka is what those ladies are made of when they turn 25 or so, especially now that Kahlua is slinging a cinnamon-spiked label. The new liqueur is geared toward the fall-beverage market, if pumpkin cocktails are not your thing, a hit or two of this makes for a good substitute (same goes for those of you who aren’t fans of eggnog – keep a bottle of this around during the Christmas season if you aren’t a fan of the holiday classic).

There are plenty of options to mix up with this stuff, including a cocktail that was inspired by all those trips to the apple orchard. Mixologist Lynnette Marrero came up with this one and yes, one of the ingredients is apple BUTTER. Drool.

Zócalo Sidra (cider)

1 oz Kahlúa Cinnamon Spice

3/4 oz Lemon juice

1 1/2 oz Martell Vs Cognac

2 barspoons apple butter

2 dashes Angostura bitters

Place all ingredients in a shaker. Shake and strain into a couple glass garnish with cinnamon stick.