The Spirit World

Let’s start with something fun. I don’t believe I’ve ever had a Carlton Draught, but I’m going have to try one after watching this commercial.

Robort Hess — bless him — has a new episode of The Cocktail Spirit out on The Small Screen Network. This week, the Mojito.

Yikes! It snuck up on me. The Kentucky Bourbon Festival is this week. I don’t think I’ll be able to work it in — alas, since Bourbon is my preferred tipple — but for the footloose, there’s still time, so check it out!

Speaking of Bourbon…

…Jim has put up a post about a new Four Roses offering over on Dowd’s Spirits Notebook.

And speaking of new products, this looks intriguing: Sotol, a relatively little known Mexican spirit, which — like Tequila — is made from the Agave plant.

I don’t know if this one is new, or not, but Melinda at Tokyo through the Drinking Glass makes it sound soooooo good: A Sake Named Desire.

I’m an ornery Libertarian, so I take a dim view of this initiative to require a “serving facts” panel on all alcoholic beverages, but perhaps some out there will see it as a great advance.

This, on the other hand, is right up my alley: an accessible little glossary of whisky/whiskey terminology at Accidental Hedonist.

Nothing succeeds like excess? Las Vegas has long had a reputation for things extreme and over the top, but these cocktails take it to a new level.

Being a Martini lover and a coffee lover, I feel I must give a nod to this article on Martinis for the coffee lover from The New Haven Register. Some don’t meet my definition of a Martini — “a short drink made with either gin or vodka and served straight up, in a Martini glass” (from Miller & Brown’s Shaken Not Stirred: A Celebration of the Martini) — but they all look tasty!

Finally, some previews of this week’s coming attractions: Tomorrow, Robert Hess will give an overview of Scotch whisky. On Tuesday, The Spirit World will launch a new regular reader-participant feature, “Raiders of the Lost Cocktails.” And on Wednesday, we’ll have the first essay from our newest feature writer, Ken Walczak.

Meanwhile, have fun, be careful, call us when you get there!