So the other day I was watching a show where a startup company was looking to bring to market a hangover patch (similar in concept to the nicotine patch) which would pump your body full of vitamins while you consumed alcohol, all with the purpose of reducing or eliminating a hangover.  I was intrigued.  Now, I have heard of hangover pills but they require too much work and with the amount of liquid you consume while boozing you are bound to be peeing out most of the beneficial ingredients.  With a patch, you slap it on, the vitamins get absorbed throughout your skin all the while you can pound back drink after drink without worry.  This makes sense.

After a search on the Internet I found a company called Zaca which is already marketing this kick ass  concept.  The cost is $19.99 for a 6 patches, with discounts available for larger purchases.  At over $3 per patch it isn’t exactly cheap but it can be less than the price of even one drink at the bar.  I figured if I was going to buy 12 drinks to make me feel terrible, the cost of one drink to make me feel better would totally be worth it.

After no deliberation I immediately went ahead and placed my order.  Within minutes, I received an email from Mark of Zaca with some immediate, pressing concerns.  Since I live in Canada and the product was shipping from the US he wanted to give me the heads up that my order may not arrive for St. Patty’s Day, which was just around the corner.  Right then and there I could tell that I had made the right decision.

Approximately a week later (just missing my St. Patty’s boozefest) I was excited to receive my hangover patches in the mail.  Of course, it didn’t take long to put those patches to a good challenge as the next Friday was yet another piss up.   After cracking my first bevy I slapped a patch on my left shoulder and proceeded to party like it was 1999.  An entertaining night flew by and after a solid dozen or so drinks I found myself stumbling home with a big slice in hand coming to a crash in my bed where the room spun me to sleep.

The next morning I awoke, still feeling intoxicated as the patches do not suppress alcohol (thankfully).   After grabbing a cup of Joe and whipping up some eggs and toast I found my body really rebounding from the night before.  Normally hangover + exercise = booze sweats + nausea but not today, nor any of the days that I have used the patch.  I actually went for a solid 8 km (5 mi) run that day and felt great afterwards.  After going through 5 sessions with the hangover patch now I can tell you the results are very consistent.

I do have one complaint, and its that I still feel the ‘blahs’ the next day.  Those emotional lows related to depleted seratonin resulting from excessive drinking.  After some research I wasn’t surprised to determine the patch is missing the ingredients that may have dealt with that issue.  Here is a quote from a website talking about the effects alcohol has on stress / depression:

“Certain nutrients are needed by the body in order for it to manufacture chemicals that dampen anxiety. Alcohol causes depletion of vitamin B6 and Folic acid, the very nutrients needed for us t0 be in optimum psychological health enabling us to cope with stress. It also stimulates the release of the stress hormone adrenaline and interferes with the amino acid tryptophan which is used to manufacture serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical involved in sleep and mood regulation.” – http://stresshelp.tripod.com/id13.html

The patch has a lot of great ingredients but no B6 or Folic Acid (Maybe in the Hangover Patch V2???).  Here is the 11 different organic ingredients who’s benefits in reducing your hangover are described here:

So in conclusion your hangover isn’t eliminated, but your body will thank you for wearing these patches while you drink.  No longer will alcohol prevent you from eating a good meal, or exercising the next day.  If you want to give it a go, try ordering the hangover topical patch from Zaca and post back to the blog to let us know how it worked for you.

Popularity: 8% [?]

For the past several months on my daily commute to work I have been greeted by an advertisement that I eventually had to follow up on.  The sign claimed that Iceberg Vodka was voted a gold medal at the 2009 Cannes Vodka competition.  Now I regard Iceberg as a lower level offering on par with Smironoff and Absolute so I was suprised by such a prestigous award.  I figured that maybe I could save some money on the Belvedere I typically purchase and make the switch to this inexpensive yet ‘highly premium’ vodka.  Not so fast.

Now, I haven’t tried Iceberg Vodka and after investigating this ‘award’, nor will I ever.  I did some research and there was a very casual vodka tasting event at the Cannes FILM festival and here is the list of winners. Now I don’t even care who won that competition as the number of companies participating was tiny, the event was informl and was more of a PR stunt rather then a real competition.  Even more notable is the fact that Iceberg Vodka wasn’t even a participant.

I contacted the company asking them why they had this claim in their sign hoping that I had overlooked something but was completely ignored by them.  Its too bad they didn’t realize their poor customer service skills would result in negative publicity on a popular bartending website.

As a result of this entire ordeal I figured JoeBartender.com would hold its own tasting competition.  Real people testing real Spirits.  Lets get a consumers opinion on what is good and what isn’t, forget about these weird competition with so called experts.  What matters is when people like you and I order a Vodka water or a shot of Whiskey at the bar it tastes great.  Now despite emailing every North American distillery asking them to participate I did not get one company willing to enter.  What a crock!

Iceberg and the entire North American distillery industry should be ashamed.  A lot of these awards and competitions are a farce to drive up sales.  I guess the only way to determine what is good is to sample a variety of alcohols until you stumble upons something you like.

Popularity: 10% [?]

For many, bartending is a college gig, something to do part time, or a great way to meet attractive members of the opposite sex. Angelo Cammarata on the other hand, has rang the bell for last call and hung up his mixer after 77 years of service.

Now 95, he has been bartending at Cammarata’s, a bar he started since the stroke of midnight, April 7, 1933. What’s even more amazing about this, is that this was the very second prohibition ended in the United States. Check out more on an interview with him here.

Popularity: 13% [?]

I’ve lived in 7 different places, and in each place I’ve always found a bar that becomes ‘my spot’. After about the 10th visit the bartenders start to recognize you, you get comfortable at the same table, and you’re going on a regular basis. In good times or bad, your regular hang-out can be a place to vent, celebrate, or just relax.

For me at my current spot that is about once a week, usually for a Hoegaarden or two. I recently got a kick-ass coffee table (or bar top) book, purely made up of photos of regulars (aptly titlled The Regulars) which is what got me thinking about the topic.

Sarah Stolfa is an extremely gifted photographer who took all the pictures as a student while bartending at McGlinchey’s bar in Philadelphia. Each photo depicts one person sitting at the bar where she worked, but they are more than just pictures. From all walks of life, and covering the spectrum of human emotion I find myself flipping through the book regularly, just picking a page and studying the image for a few minutes. Some look confused, some happy, some enthralled in work, some smoking an endless amount of cigarettes; every picture tells a story.

I find myself now trying to spot regulars at the bars I frequent. I think there’s a few key factors that draw me to the same bar more than once:

* the bartenders: I want a crew that can remember my name, make my drinks extra stiff and give me some ‘Regular’ attention when it gets busy
* the crowd: ah, the scenery; everyone loves a good view while you enjoy a pint or two but they key is laid back people you can talk to
* the environment: show me a patio with palm trees and Christmas lights. I’m sure some people prefer the classical dingy atmosphere you can find in the Regulars but I go out to escape. I want to feel like I’m on vacation.
* the location: If I can stumble home on the two foot express while grabbing a slice of pizza on route, then my night can be complete.

I wonder if I would make an interesting still life? Probably not.

What about you guys? What moves a bar from a one time visit to a routine stop?

You can grab the book I’ve been shamelessly plugging here:

Popularity: 27% [?]

Let’s talk about doing shots. There is nothing like hammering down an intoxicating thimbleful of your favorite alcohol with a group of friends. A shot will take you to the next plateau and bring about that familiar cloudiness we all cherish. What else can make a gremlin desirable, transform a dirty porcelain bowl into a pillow or turn an inconspicuous location into a urinal? Now a shot doesn’t have to be an exercise in alcoholism, it can also be a tasty treat!

For me I’ve always hated hard liquor shots. Rum, Rye, Vodka, Gin, Grappa… Gross! Tequila is the exception, especially a fine Petron, lemon preferred. It is really the only hard liquor I can withstand, never mind actually desire.

As for the less ‘manly’ spirits, I used to enjoy a good Jagermeister. Maybe there was a night of excess I can’t recall but today that stuff just tastes like Buckley’s Cough Medicine to me – ‘Tastes bad but it works.’. I’ve had quite a bit of Southern Comfort in my day and i can still force a few down but the sweetness just screams migraine-style hangover. As a SoCo alternative I don’t mind the similar but smoother Disaronno.

Now onto the Petron Black coffee liqueur. This tequila based shot still sits at 35% alcohol so it definately packs a punch. When you first down the chilled black liquid you feel the shotgun blast warming head rush you normally expect from Tequila but with a delightful coffee aftertaste. Instead of having to neutralize your pallet by chugging a beer, you are going to want to savour the flavor of this decadent alcohol. With such a unique taste I certainly wouldn’t want to overdo this shot, especially with its expensive price tag but for now order me up another round.

What is your favorite shot?

Popularity: 75% [?]