Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Not Your Father's Flasks...

So, I'm looking at flasks the other day online and I was somewhat surprised to find not only a vast array of traditional flasks, but also a whole slew of "flaskesque" items that run the gambit from pretty cool to just plain ridiculous. Today's DrinkDummy is about some of the items I came across.

Flip-Flop Flask




They claim each flip-flop will hold 4 shots worth of liquor (3 oz.) Seems tailor made for the beach or outdoor summer concerts. They also have a built in bottle opener!



The Sippin' Seat



Perfect for sporting events!



Cell Phone Flask


Pretty much good to go anywhere! Looks like a cell phone, especially when in it's case.



Beer Belly Flask



WTF? Doesn't seem like this would really work in a real life setting. Seems like people would catch on that your belly was shrinking... hmmm...

Well, there you have it, the best of the "Flaskesque". See you next time.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Shot Repertoires

Everyone has their "shot repertoire" as I like to call it. This is the (usually short) list of shots that any given person immediately thinks of when someone at the bar says "let's do shots!" Think about it. When it's your turn to pick the shots, you know you run through 3 to 5 shots that your comfortable with and that spring to mind first. that's your "shot repertoire". It's not like you object to shots outside of these, but these are your comfort shots, your bread and butter, your peeps.

I have a repertoire myself and that's what I would like to share with you today.

#1 Jager Bomb
Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 oz Jägermeister
* 1/2 can Red Bull energy drink

Preparation:

1. Fill a shot glass with Jägermeister.
2. Drop the shot glass into an highball glass, or other tall glass, filled with a half of a can of Red Bull. Drink like a madman!

#2 Irish Car Bomb
Ingredients:

* 3/4 pint Guinness
* 1/2 shot Irish cream liqueur
* 1/2 shot Irish whiskey

Preparation:

1. Pour the Irish cream liqueur into a shot glass.
2. Pour the Irish whiskey on top.
3. Pour the Guinness into a pint glass or beer mug 1/2 to 3/4 of the way full and let settle.
4. Drop the shot glass into the Guinness and chug.

#3 The Jameson Bomb (Ok, my friends and I made this one up but it rocks)
Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 oz Jameson Irish Whiskey
* 1/2 can Red Bull energy drink

Preparation:

1. Fill a shot glass with Jameson.
2. Drop the shot glass into a glass filled with a half of a can of Red Bull. Slam. Finish with a Cherry.

#4 Red-Headed Slut
Ingredients:

* 1 oz Jagermeister
* 1 oz peach schnapps
* 2 oz cranberry juice

Preparation:

1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
2. Shake well.
3. Strain into a shot or old-fashioned glass.

#5 Tuaca Bomb
Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 oz Tuaca
* 1/2 can Red Bull energy drink

Preparation:

1. Fill a shot glass with tuaca.
2. Drop the shot glass into a glass filled with a half of a can of Red Bull. Slam it back.



That is my repertoire. You can draw a few conclusions from it like: I like Jager, I like "bomb shots", I like Red Bull. All true. I for one am always on the lookout for more shots to expand my repertoire, but it's tough to get away from your favorites. Make an effort and I will too.

Friday, January 16, 2009

What Makes a Dive a Dive?

What makes a "dive bar" a dive bar? According to Wikipedia:

A dive bar, or simply a dive, is a down market drinking establishment serving a working class (or poorer) clientèle.

The term "dive" dates from the London of the 19th century when younger men wanted somewhere slightly more risqué to spend their afternoons than the great clubs frequented by their fathers. They formed more informal clubs where they smoked and drank coffee.[citation needed]

The Shorter Oxford Dictionary indicates that in the U.S in the 1880s, it referred to an illegal drinking den or place of low repute, especially in a cellar or similar place. It has also been used to refer to opium dens. More recently, in Canada at least, it is associated with cheap and dirty accommodation (such as fleabag motels and run-down rooming), as well as with prostitution and other disreputable or illegal activities.


While most of this doesn't seem to apply to a modern day dive, I thought some other internet research was in order. I found multiple message boards and such with interesting things like: "a dive has no food and no windows", and "the bathrooms are what defines a dive", and my favorite "a dive is any bar with me in it". Since I don't think any of those definitions really helped either, I was forced to look inward.

Here are my thoughts on the "dive bar". To me, a dive is a bar that feels "non-corporate". By that I mean you find stuff like home-made menus, graffiti that never gets cleaned, bartenders and waitresses taking shots, a stool at the bar that has seemingly always been broken (and probably always will be), at least one sign above the bar threatening people with physical harm if they walk-out on their tab, a broken juke-box, etc...

Have you ever been drinking at a place where the waitress asks you to finish up your current drink so she can use the glass for your next drink? That's a dive.
How about those places with $5 pitchers of PBR or $1 pints of Natural Light? Also a dive.
Have you ever taken your waitress home for a night of drunken passion? Probably happened at a dive.
If you walk into a bar and someone is passed out sleeping at the bar with a drink in front of them, you've just entered a dive.
Can't find your bartender because he's back in the kitchen frying up your wings? It's a dive.
Does it seem like making it in the urinal (or toilet) is completely optional? I'm gonna say dive.

A lot of Corporate chains these days are trying to pass themselves off as "dive-esque" but don't let them fool you. You can spot corporate bars. Some good indications are: clipboards and thermometers (real dives don't do safety and temp checks), uniforms of any kind (stink of corporate identity), overly pleasant wait staff or bartenders (it usually takes a few visits for them to come around and treat you like a regular at a real dive), topshelf drink specials (like $1 off Grey Goose or $10 Beefeater Martinis), and clean restrooms (total corporate give-away).

I guess we all have our own personal definitions of what constitutes a "dive bar", but I think we can all agree that they have the best drink specials, the best company, and feel the most like home.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Is There Anything Better?

Is there anything in the world better than the first sip of an ice cold beer after a long day's work? Honestly it doesn't even matter to me what kind sometimes. Even crap like Keystone Light or PBR taste like gold medal champions with that first glorious icy cold gulp. I personally believe that if you disagree with that statement then one of two things must be true about you. Either you really aren't a "beer person" or you have way too easy of a job.

Now when I say not a "beer person", I don't mean you don't like beer. I just mean that you are not one of the beer passionate people who would (and sometimes do) do almost anything for a beer (any kind of beer). There are people out there who are passionate about a particular kind of beer like Guinness or Czechvar (both outstanding by the way) but they tend to be looked at by "beer people" as "beer snobs". I am a "beer person". I love all beer. Obviously I greatly prefer some beers over others, but I have no problem grabbing a 30 pack of Keystone Light for house beer when it's on sale for $12.99. If I'm watching the game and the bar has a $5 Coors Light pitcher special, guess what I'm drinking for the rest of that game.

Now, I'm not downgrading "beer snobs". They have a very prominent place in the great alcoholic ecosystem of which we all play important roles. If everyone was a "beer person" there would really only be a couple kinds of beer. "Beer snobs" keep the non-Anheiser-Busch/Miller-Coors breweries in business which we can all agree is a good thing.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that I've had a long day at work and I am really looking forward to that first frosty gulp of beer (whatever it is) in about an hour when I get home. Cheers!

Monday, January 12, 2009

A Black 8-Ball

Every once in awhile, friends can surprise you. You think you've seen all their alcoholic tricks a hundred times and then they spring one on you. That happened to me yesterday while watching the NFL Playoffs.

A quick run to the LQ resulted in the acquisition of several 40 oz. of Old English (always an old school/cost effective maneuver) and a 24 oz of Guinness. To my surprise, my friend quickly drank half of his Old English (OE from here on out) and proceeded to fill the rest of his bottle with Guinness. Now, I'm a lover of Black and Tans to be sure, but The OE and the Guinness did not layer like that. Rather they mixed into an obsidian liquid unlike any I'd ever witnessed. So I asked what he was doing there and he replied "It's a Black 8-Ball". Appalled (but also curious) I asked for a taste. It was wonderful! I love Guinness above all beers and am normally dumb-founded and outraged when it is diluted or combined with something that takes away from it's true beauty, but this Black 8-Ball was something different. It was different in a good way. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Friday, January 9, 2009

Shots

I have recently stumbled upon the following article via Modern Drunkard Magazine and I had to share it with anyone and everyone who will listen. The Art of the Shot is a masterpiece of shot etiquette. It should be read and shared by all who would even entertain the notion of possibly ever partaking in the social ritual of the shot. It contains the fundamental rules and faux pas of the shot and it's closest relation, the toast. Read it, read it again and commit it to memory.

While we are on the subject of shots, I would like to share with you one of my favorites. It appears to be an original (I haven't seen it anywhere else) of a bar near my house in Arvada, CO. It is a bomb shot (kind of) and you will need a 12 oz beer mug (or glass) and a standard shot glass. I will do my best with the description but I don't know about the actual quantities. Without further ado:

The Jacob's Ladder

You will need:
Cranberry juice
Pineapple juice
Raspberry vodka
Triple Sec
Light Beer

Pour about a half inch or so of cranberry juice in the mug. Then place the shot glass into the bottom of the mug (in the cranberry juice). Then fill the shot glass with raspberry vodka. Then add a layer of pineapple juice into the glass. Next, pour about a half oz of Triple Sec over the shot glass. You should be pretty close to the top of the glass by now (three quarters of an inch to an inch from the top). Lastly, finish the shot off with a light beer up to the top of the glass.

Now, I realize this seems awfully big for a shot (it really is intimidating) but it goes down very smoothly. Go try it and you can thank me later!

The Gator Bomb *revised* (The Day After)

My Gators did their part last night and I did mine. We did a Gator Bomb every time the Gators scored (and one before the game and one after as well). We revised it from the previous post because I am currently riding a 3 month+ streak of no soda (Pepsi and Coke are reeling) by dropping the UV Raspberry Vodka into a glass of Crystal Light Mango that we whipped up pre-game. The result was undeniably wonderful. The UV Raspberry Vodka was surprisingly smooth and finished well. I had never tried UV Vodka before and I was very impressed (will buy again). Warning on the Gator Bombs though: they sneak up on you. The Vodka is so smooth and the Crystal Light did a great job of covering the alcohol taste so it was very easy to lose track of how many we had (5 by my count). Some of my friends tried the traditional Gator Bomb as described previously and their reactions were also quite positive.

Congrats Gators!

Thursday, January 8, 2009

The Gator Bomb

So, I'm a huge Florida Gators fan and tonight is the big game against Oklahoma. Of course, I begin my search in earnest for an appropriate gator-related shot to down every time we score and I come across "The Gator Bomb". I'm intrigued to say the least. A Gator Bomb is:

A Shot of UV Raspberry Vodka (nice blue color) dropped into a cup of Sunkist Orange soda. According to the instructions, you should pour the Sunkist from cup to cup a few times to get rid of some of the fizz.

I for one am going to rush out and buy the necessary ingredients and drink my gator tail off tonight. My prediction: Gators 48, Sooners 32. Mark it down my friends, I'll be back to gloat in the morning (but not too early).