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: 7% [?]

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: 10% [?]

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: 83% [?]

If you are like me and have some cashizzle tied up in the stock market or have a job thats dependent on the health of the economy, what better time then now is there to drown your sorrows in alcohol?

Sure health officials may warn against the magical combination of depression and booze, but sometimes it just feels like the right thing to do.  So now that the Dow has crashed, your boss has warned of impending layoffs and your Citibank margin purchase is haunting you, what will provide you the necessary salvation?

To try and visualize a good recommendation for the Joe Bartender readers, I tried to rember what alcohol is used in the movies.  You know, what would a regular dude order at bar when his family and friends have been murdered by a rogue govenment agency after he accidently witnessed a top government official get offed?  There is only one drink that came to mind.  That is Whiskey – Straight Up.

Now to get a little more specific, what type of whiskey should I drink.  Well since the American economy is the source of the pain its got to be an American Whiskey.  There are three types that fit the bill and they include:

Bourbon whiskey
Rye whiskey
Corn whiskey

and

as of 1941 good old fashion Tenesse Whiskey with the most famous brand of all:

- Jack Daniels -

Directions:

Shoot it (Dow Jones down 200)
Pour it over ice (Dow Jones down 201 – 600)
Sip it neat in a Brandy Sniffer (Dow Jones down 601 – 850)
Hell, drink it straight from the bottle (Dow Jones down 850+)
 
Try enjoying some other Jack Daniels drinks from Joe Bartender

http://www.joebartender.com/tag/jack-daniels/

 
JB Economy is tanking Stock Pick:

Altria Group, Inc. (Public, NYSE:MO)
Industry: Tobacco
Nov 26 – Close: $15.87

Now I know a lot of the Joe Bartender followers are bartenders themselves.  What do you see pissed off folks drinking up after a hard day?  What is your ’stress reliever’ drink?

Popularity: 86% [?]