The Daiquri hails from Cuba where it was invented by an American businessman during the Spanish-American war. It has since acquired a bit of fame and was rumored to be one of Hemingway’s favorite drinks. Given Hemingway’s voracious appetite for booze, I can’t imagine that he had only one favorite drink. The original Daiquri was a simple, yet delicious drink, consisting of only three ingredients – rum, lime and sugar – served shaken and in a cocktail glass. Clearly, this is a drink that has taken on a life of it’s own in the last hundred plus years. But, I do have to admit that on a hot day, the blended Daiquri is pretty tasty as well. …Read More

July 10th marks Pina Colada Day! The Pina Colada is the perfect blend of pineapple, coconut cream, rum and ice! I have to admit that a virgin Pina Colada (without the rum) is pretty delicious as well. Thanks to some medical issues and crazy antibiotics, I was forced to drink virgin drinks on a recent vacation. The virgin Pina Colada was the best of the bunch. Given the heatwave sweeping America, a Pina Colada would be the perfect way to keep the whole family cool and refreshed with virgin Pina Coladas for the kiddies and Pina Coladas with kick from the parents. …Read More

This week’s book pick is Thoroughly Modern Milkshakes, an appropriate pick given the sweltering heat consuming most of the United States. I love milkshakes, actually, I really love malts, and was pretty excited to see this book show up. Thoroughly Modern Milkshakes covers everything from the basics, chocolate shake anyone, to the exotic, ever try a raspberry rose shake. We tried a few of the recipes and it is clear that Adam Ried, author of Thoroughly Modern Milkshakes, knows his stuff. …Read More

The latest release from Highland Park is the first in a collection of four scotches with a release occurring every year, starting in 2012. It appears that each release will be named after a Norse god, and the first release is called Thor after the Norse god of thunder and war. Check out the Thor website. One may wonder why a Scotch house is paying homage to Norse gods. I know I asked myself that question. Well, it turns out that Orkney, the island where Highland Park is distilled, is actually as Norse as Scottish. The Vikings moved into Orkney in the 9th century and controlled it until the 15th century when the Scots gained control. In fact, the Vikings used Orkney as a base for raiding Britain, Scotland and other lands, including their brethren in Norway. …Read More

Mad Men is one of our favorite shows and we can’t believe the season is ending already. Can’t they make the season longer? I mean, who can’t get enough of Don Drapper, the fashion and all the cocktail swigging. Seriously, my goal in life has become to have a booze cart in my office or cube, even if I can’t touch the stuff on the cart. It just looks awesome! …Read More

We can hardly contain our excitement with the return of the bloody great True Blood! Our lives aren’t the same without Sookie and our favorite vamps from Bon Temps and Shreveport. And, who could forget about the fairies, witches, were-creatures and those werewolves. …Read More

It might be hard to believe today, but cognac was as popular through the end of the 19th century as vodka is today! In fact, cognac was the original “must have” spirit and it was hard for cognac producers to meet demand. …Read More

This weekend marks the official celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee. For those of you not in the know, that means 60 years on the throne! But, the Queen still has over four years to go in order to surpass Queen Victoria’s 64 years on the throne. …Read More

Summer is finally here! While its stays nice and chilly in San Francisco, we have heard that the heat wave has already started in other parts of the country. When the weather turns warm, I turn to lighter wines served chilled. For those white haters out there, don’t despair, there are red wines that can be served chilled and roses to try. Here are our picks for wine to try this summer: …Read More