Dizzy Recap: Beefeater Summer Launch, St. Germain Can-Can Classic, Zagat's Preview of Theater and Absolut Brooklyn Launch!

 

So many parties, so little time! June officially kicked off summer party season in NYC, and so far it's been quite the bender:

Beefeater Gin launched its limited-edition Beefeater Summer  featuring hibiscus, elderflower and black currant at the Ace Hotel. This gin has balanced sweetness and can be sipped straight--clearly Master Distiller Desmond Payne knows what he's doing. Refreshing summer cocktails by Jamie Gordon, fish and chips, and a live twitter screen made this event a hit among the bartender, blogger and cocktailian crowd.

St. Germain's Third Annual Can-Can Classic brought 13 bartenders from across the states to compete in a cocktail competition judged by Dave Wondrich, Andy Seymour, Lynnette Marrero, Toby Maloney and Phil Ward. The top $5,000 prize went to of Bobby McCoy of the Eastern Standard in Boston (winning cocktail recipe below). Afterwards, St. Germain kicked off its 1920s-themed Harvest Fair Party at the Bowery Hotel, complete with sword swallowers, carnival games and a live band.

Zagat Survey hosted this week's much-anticipated reveal of Theater, the new Tribeca cabaret-themed cavern from Apotheke's Albert Trummer. Also billed as a celebration of Internet Week New York, Trummer opened the doors to his not-yet-officially-open space at 114 Franklin St. featuring a bar designed to look like a stage, a VIP room behind the stage, and an upstairs balcony and DJ booth. Zacapa rum cocktails and Sigmund Pretzelshop pretzels kept this party going strong.

And just last night, hordes of Brooklynites packed into the PowerHouse Arena in DUMBO to celebrate the launch of Absolut Brooklyn, featuring a red apple and ginger flavor (although more like a hint of ginger). With special guest Spike Lee, DJ Spinna keeping the crowd bumping, professional dancers and a steady supply of refreshing cocktails, this party was off the heeze and further proof that Absolut throws some of the best parties in NYC! For more pics, check out Ucwhateyec.com.

Whew! Off to drink more water and take a nap... until the next!

Elixir Alpestre by Bobby McCoy, Boston, Eastern Standard

2 oz. Bols Genever 3/4 oz. St-Germain 1/4 oz. Becherovka 1 Dash Angostura Orange Bitters 6 Drops Pernod Absinthe

Combine all ingredients in a shaker tin over ice and shake.  Strain into a large coupe glass.  Garnish with a lemon twist.

File Under: Wants

• Just in time for party and picnic season, St-Germain is releasing a "Summer Soiree" kit, complete with a bottle of the elderflower liqueur, a carafe with measurements for a champagne punch, cocktail stirrer, and poster with summery recipes. Available for about $34 at Astor Wines & Spirits and Union Square Wines, this is bound to be one hot potato.
• Want a free trip to Tales of the Cocktail? There are at least two cocktail contests offering to do just that, with deadlines approaching. Veev and Contemporary Cocktails have partnered up for "Cocktails for a Cause," asking cocktailians to submit recipes here by May 3 using Veev and fresh ingredients. Not only will Veev plant five trees for every recipe submitted, but the top three vote-getters win airfare and hotel for Tales! And if you not only want to win a trip to Tales, but to Australia too, enter Yellowtail's "wine-tail" contest here before April 25. Semifinals will be held the afternoon of May 17 during the Manhattan Cocktail Classic, and finalists will throw down at Tales in New Orleans on July 24 (standard airfaire and one night stay included). Judges will include Doug Frost, Dale DeGroff, David Wondrich and Andy Seymour, and the winner gets a 6-day trip for two to the land down under!
• Soon enough, you might be telling your bartender to "Super Beer Me," as cases of BrewDog's Tactical Nuclear Penguin make their way to NYC and California. With an ABV of 32 percent (six times Budweiser), the beer is made by being frozen at a local ice cream factory at temperatures as low as -6°C (21°F), for 21 days. Alcohol freezes at lower temperatures than water, and removing water from the solution increased the alcohol concentration. Due to the complex brewing process and limited availability, these pups are going for $53 per 11.2-oz bottle!
• And if you've got $1,000 to play with, Tiffany & Co. has designed an exclusive Woodfords Reserve mint julep cup, with proceeds benefitting The Barnstable Brown Kentucky Diabetes & Obesity Center. Owners of the cups will enjoy a mint julep featuring ingredients from around the globe: raw-cane sugar made from 100 percent organic sugar cane grown in Brazil; Kentucky Colonel Mint from Louisville, KY which was grown in a used Woodford Reserve bourbon barrel; ice made of water from a 10,000-year-old glacier in the far northern region of the Pacific Ocean near the Gulf of Alaska; and a small batch of the Master Distiller’s personal selection of Woodford Reserve super-premium bourbon. The 73 silver cups will be presented on Kentucky Derby Day, May 1, at Churchill Downs--you can purchase here.

Dizzy Recap: Day One & Two of the NYC Wine & Food Festival

What's that, you say? The Food Network's NYC Wine & Food Festival ended a week ago? Well, my apologies for the late recap, but I've been busy, mmmkay? (I just returned from a blogging conference in Vegas--blogging on that to come).

After covering just the Grand Tasting last year (which you can read here, if you wish), I was psyched to attend four events this year: Chelsea Market After Dark, the Grand Tasting, a gin clinic, and a tequila clinic. I'll start by telling you about the first two, which were both massive exhibits in wine, spirits, and beer (all courtesy of Southern Wine & Spirits).

Of course, this year, I came with more of a cocktailian perspective, so when I arrived at the After Dark event, which took over Chelsea Market, I was pleasantly surprised to be handed a Sidecar right away. Appropriately enough, Food Network's saccharine Sandra Lee was signing her cocktail party book next to piles of what I can only assume were "semi-homemade" cupcakes. I also caught a glimpse of Guy Fieri posing for pictures with fans in a clubby lounge area. Other than that, the focus for the night was on the food and drink that's available in and around the Chelsea Market (Morimoto's yellowtail pastrami was especially addictive). Throngs of people crammed the winding aisle throughout the building to taste and sip everything in sight, as well as grab shwag like mini bouquets of flowers. After trying some Georges DuBoeuf wines and Palm beer, I stumbled into the Chelsea Market Wine Vault, where I was stoked to see St-Germain reps handing out small cups of the elderflower liqueur mixed with champagne as well as in a white sangria. And who did I meet behind the St-Germain booth? None other than Robert Cooper, creator of the liqueur and a third-generation distiller whose father introduced Chambord liqueur. I asked Rob when he thinks his highly-anticipated Crème Yvette will hit the shelves, and he said that it's still in the production process and will be launched later this year/early next year--so sit tight, kids!

The following day I attended the media preview of the Grand Tasting, which took place in a sprawling tent at Pier 54 along the Hudson River for the second year in a row. Presented by ShopRite, there were nibbles and signature dishes all along the way, and of course, aisles and aisles of premiere wine and spirits. After learning my lesson last year (better to sip and spit than overindulge), I was picky about which spirits and cocktails I tried, but highlights included: Atlantico Rum, Don Q Rum, Tommy Bahama Rum, Partida Tequila, Cabo Wabo Tequila, Yellow and Green Chartreuse, Sagatiba Cachaca, Aperol, Glenlivet 18, and Svedka Vodka. At the Svedka booth, I had a déjà vu moment when I ran into master mixologist Alex Ott, who was handing out artfully-garnished flavored vodka cocktails just like he did last year.

In the end, I still indulged a little more than I should have, especially considering I had plans to drink Maker's Mark later that evening, but it was all in the name of research, I swear!

Elsewhere in the Liquiverse...

• Following the success of this summer's Jazz Age Lawn Party, Michael Arenella and his Dreamland Orchestra are throwing one last 1920's-themed bash for the year on Governor's Island, featuring St-Germain cocktails. Sunday, Sept. 27, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. $5.
• Red Hook's Fort Defiance is temporarily closed due to some technical difficulties. Keep an eye on the website for the reopening, which will involve a new food menu.
• Domain de Canton is accepting recipes using its ginger liqueur for its 2010 Bartender of the Year competition, which holds its final round in St. Martin and awards $10,000. The 2009 winner was John Lermayer of The Florida Room in Miami. Deadline is Sept. 30.
• New iPhone Apps for Drinkers: F. Paul Pacult’s iWhiskey puts 600-plus whiskey reviews in your pocket for only $10.99, and Nirvino's Wine Ratings Guide offers 1 million wine reviews for $1.99.