Palinka – the Hungarian brandy. For a spirit to be classified as palinka, it must be made from a fruit based brandy – and it has to be damn strong. According to European Union official definitions, real palinka must be made in Hungary from ingredients grown in Hungary, and MUST be between 37.5-percent and 86-percent alcohol content.  (more…)

For the next couple of weeks, we will be featuring a badass spirit from Europe that you might not know about. First up the big daddy of them all, Spirytus! There is a reason this stuff is barely legal anywhere but Poland…it has a whopping 96% (192 proof) alcohol content. (more…)

Holy frijoles! July 24th is National Tequila Day! And that means as much tequila drinking as you can cram into 24 hours. So, since margaritas get old some time around 4PM, we’ve compiled recipes from our two favorite Tequila makers, Don Julio and Patrón, for 16 of the tastiest tequila cocktails (other than margaritas), to help give your Friday a dose of much-needed variety.

(click thumb to view recipe)

While my favorite way to drink whisky is warm and neat, that’s a hard beverage to stomach during the scorching-hot summer months. So to help you cool down, while still keeping whisky solidly in your diet, the best way to go is the cocktail. My two favorite whiskies to mix are Canadian Club 10-year-old and 12-year-old. These two refreshing yet flavorful spirits go great with a wide variety of mixers. Here are the 6 Canadian Club cocktails I think kick the most ass.

NOTE: To all you whisky fanatics out there, be sure to try the Canadian Club 30-YO. Unless you’re a Goldman, Sachs employee, the $200 price tag makes it not the best for mixing. But with a nice, healthy pour and an ice cube, this smooth, vanilla whisky will practically wash your problems away. (You know, problems like having just spent $200 on a bottle of liquor…) (more…)

If you’re entire experience with drinking tequila involves downing endless shots of Jose Cuervo Gold, you’re doing it wrong. Not that there’s anything with doing shots of tequila – never would we say such a thing – but with a little bit of knowledge about this Mexican liquor, a whole new world of beverage enjoyment opens up to you. Luckily, the good people of Details have put together a quick, comprehensive guide to properly enjoying this deliciously intoxicating brew.

Find out how to drink tequila, here!

For many drink enthusiasts, Scotch and Bourbon stand strongest at opposite ends of the “brown spirit” battlefield. To the West, the sweet punch to the face of Bourbon, America’s whiskey; to the East, Scotch whisky — a deep, smoky Highland warrior.

While plenty of whisky — or “whiskey,” take your pick — drinkers cross sides, most have their favorite kind. Far more, however, couldn’t tell the difference between a Maker’s Mark and a Johnnie Walker, or don’t realize there’s a difference in the first place.

If you’re only experience with drinking whisk(e)y involves a chaser, you’re doing it wrong. Not that shots suck (never would I say such a thing), but they do limit the drinking experience to “not drunk” and “drunk,” without leaving room for a bit of beverage enjoyment – you know, tasting the whisky, not just washing it down.

Between that and not knowing where to start among the thousands of different whiskeys, it doesn’t seem worth the effort when alcohol still works, regardless of what you know.

But with a little bit of knowledge, a whole new world of drinking is opened up to you. Plus, people will think you’re smart. Here’s how to spot the differences and appreciate Scotch and Bourbon alike. (more…)

With summer just around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about how you’re going to quench that thirst for the next three months. So instead of going with the same old mixed drinks you’ve been drinking since freshman year, we’ve put together of a list of delicious beer cocktails that will definitely add some “Ahhhhh” to your summer fun. (more…)

Holy frijoles it’s Cinco de F’ing Mayo! And that means as much tequila drinking as you can cram into 24 hours. So, since margaritas get old some time around 4PM, we’ve compiled recipes from our two favorite Tequila makers, Don Julio and Patrón, for 16 of the tastiest tequila cocktails (other than margaritas), to help give your May 5th a dose of much-needed variety. (more…)

Originally, Cinco de Mayo was about Mexican victory over the French, when those baguette-eating bastards tried to overtake the city of Puebla. But these days it’s more about seeing how far gone the bottle of tequila can go before somebody blacks out. So we’ve put together a collection of the 44 hottest Mexican models on the planet. Maybe that will make you want to stay conscious this year. Salud!

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Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo – and anyone with access to alcohol is going to be celebrating the beautiful tradition of getting wasted off their ass, Mexico-style. So to give you an idea of what you’re in for, we’re re-posting my first-hand experience with the joys hazards of downing a little too much of the Mexican liquor:

Everyone I’ve ever met has a dark past with tequila. Just the mention of it makes their face go sour–the shots, the smell, the blinding drunk, and a hellacious hangover the next morning. For some reason, I am not one of those people. But after my family vacation to Mexico last week, I learned a bit about another South-of-the-Border brew: Mezcal.

Like tequila (which is actually a type of mezcal), mezcal is made from agave, a cactus-like plant, native to Mexico. Mezcals are often aged, in oak barrels, for two months to seven years, giving the alcohol a brown coloration and woody flavor, but are available un-aged and clear.

Connoisseurs will tell you the best mezcals come from the Mexican state of Oaxaca (wah-hock-ah). To fully enjoy the complexities of this subtle liquor, go to the city of Oaxaca, the state’s capital, who’s colonial architecture and friendly people only add to the liquor’s historic mystic. And also serves as the perfect setting to get way, way too drunk. Read More »