the damaina flower is said to be an aphrodisiac. blend it with that naughty liquor known as tequila and he won’t stand a chance girls, against your powers of seduction. nope, can’t go wrong here… this liqueur is pleasantly sweet, enjoyed as an after dinner drink on the rocks, or mixed in a cocktail. get some in time for cinco de mayo and have a mexican party in your laten love den…

bone up on your knowledge of AGAVERO…
“The master distiller selects the highest quality 100% blue agave añejo and reposado tequilas that have been separately aged in specially charred, French Limousin oak barrels. The añejo tequila is aged up to eighteen months and the reposado tequila is rested for nearly a year. The tequilas are combined and then hand blended with the essence of Damiana, a flower indigenous to the hot mountains of Jalisco that has been rumored for centuries to stir up the emotions among individuals.” ($24.99 750 ml bottle)

actually, i created a cocktail that calls for agavero at COMIDA. come taste the FANTASMA VERDE anytime, my drunken little love slaves…

check out AGAVERO: EL ORIGINAL LICOR DE TEQUILA

Anindita Mitra writes for the THE TELEGRAPH in calcutta, india. she’s a sagittarius… the sign of both mental and physical travel, and she virtually travelled across the globe to research her cocktail blogosphere piece. well written and interesting, the article mentions yours truly along with the other KAISER, ms thing the LIQUID MUSE, none other than JAMIE BOUDREAU, my ACHING HEAD, the one and only CAMPER ENGLISH, mixology monday founder PAUL CLARKE and COCKTAILIANS. cheers to us all, and thanks anindita! check the article out here…thanks for the pic alcademics…

cuffs anyone? earrings perhaps? if drinking the green fairy isn’t enough, now you can wear it too. check out this cool absinthe-themed set of cufflinks, earrings, brooches, necklaces and rings available on ETSY.

this week, COMIDA will unveil the BEEKEEPER MARTEANI in honor of earth day. made with organic honey syrup, and chamomile tea-infused organic vodka, this is a leoan libation. yes, the sunny chamomile flower belongs to leo, the sign that loves to be loved. leo should indeed be honored with such a prestigious launch date for she wants nothing more than to be recognized for her outstanding efforts… think madonna, think obama. i have quite a few leo friends and they are all excellent, kind, and conscientious workers. similar to the honey bee, they quietly toil. but unlike the honey bee, they won’t be content to drone on without some pats on the head or a bowl of creamy honey. so give the good little leos in your life some acknowledgment… those kind words will recharge them in the most literal sense. we love ya leo! and we love the honey bee too…

albert einstein (pisces) said that without bees, mankind will have four years to live. this is because they cross pollinate our food supply and without them to do it for us, we will do it ourselves at a woefully sad pace. a.k.a. we’ll starve to death. he wasn’t a dummy, mr. einstein, so he might be onto something with his dire prediction. bee die off is a collassal problem at present, due to colony collapse disorder. we believe this illness is a form of mass bee suicide caused by A) pesticide and herbicide B) genetically modified organism crops C) cell phone signals bouncing of satellites; electro magnetic radiation D) over work (we don’t even let bees hibernate anymore but wake them up in the dead of winter and ship them out to california to pollinate almonds). you think you need a vacation? i would wanna kill myself too if i were a bee!

i hope i’ve established that colony collapse disorder is a real phenonmon, and one what we all need to concern ourselves with remedying. COMIDA is doing a little something to help… every time you order a BEE KEEPER MARTEANI at COMIDA (82nd st & columbus ave, nyc… near the children’s museum of new york and the american museum of natural history) they will donate $1 to PlanBeeCentral.com. wait, it gets better! COMIDA uses 100% organic honey to create this philanthropic cocktail and that stuff is not cheap. i do believe organic honey is one of the most expensive organic products you can possibly buy. think about it… the farmer must section off vast acreage of pesticide, herbicide and GMO-free crops. you can imagine how many flowers it takes to make just one drop of honey. but the lucky bees that get to make it… i am sure those are some of the happiest and thankful bees on the planet! i bet they get up every morning and can’t wait to get to work!

so happy earth day everyone, and please stop in at COMIDA to taste my (and leo’s) latest tipple, the BEE KEEPER MARTEANI.

BEE KEEPER MARTEANI:
(martini glass, up)

2 oz chamomile infused organic vodka
1 ½ oz chamomile organic honey tea syrup
½ oz lime
comb honey (carefully cut one square out and rest on side of glass for garnish)

***to infuse chamomile organic vodka, steep 10 tea bags in 750 ml bottle for one week.
***to make organic honey syrup, combine 1 cup organic honey with 3 cups hot water.

CROP Organic Vodka comes in three flavors: plain, tomato, cucumber. they are all awesome… smooth, clear, flavorful and honestly— they do taste farmer’s market fresh. made from certified organic american corn, CROP is NON GMO. that means you won’t be getting any tumors, or lowering your sperm count for drinking it. yes, that is how harmful genetically modified products are to your health. CROP invites you to imbibe with a clear conscience, and all for a mere $30 a bottle.

SHORTCAKE SPRITZER: (love recipes in parts rather than ounces)

glass: flute
2 parts Crop Organic Cucumber Vodka
champagne (Carpe Diem Spumante my local fave)
1 part lemon juice
3 parts muddled strawberries
garnish: mint leaf

***muddle lemon, strawberries. shake over vodka. strain into FLUTE, top with champagne. (kudos to you if you find organic)

let’s take the strangest ingredient one would ever consider using in a cocktail, and use it in a cocktail. of course this has to be one of aquarius’ creations, the sign of the zodiac known for its eccentricity and uniquity. aquarius is also known for her universal love, and acceptance of any and every strange creature to inhabit this earth, and i’m sure those in faraway galaxies too. perhaps it is because she knows she’s not quite normal, a little off, slightly wacky in a good way of course, that she empathasizes with those beings that society cares for last. the bedraggled, the abandoned, the misunderstood, the special ones if you will. the liquor bearer will always greet you with open mind and open arms, if not outwardly, then inwardly. we love aquarius, and aquarius loves every last one of us. even the most f***d of us will find a friend in the liquor bearer girl!

why the mushroom? this odd fungus is ruled by saturn, ancient ruler of aquarius. (now considered co-ruled by both saturn and uranus). while i used portabella mushrooms for this tipple, i would love to t(r)ipple with some magic-mushroom infusions. now that’s a brilliantly aquarian idea…!

this drink has got a smoky, earthy, woody quality to it from the mushrooms… i guess similar to mescal tequila if i was going to give a comparison. cheers!

SHROOMTINI:
2 oz mushroom infused vodka
2 oz fresh lemon
1 oz simple syrup
1 oz NAVAN vanilla liqueur

*to infuse vodka with mushrooms add 3 sliced portabella mushrooms to 750 ml bottle vodka allow to infuse for 1 month.
*simple syrup is fifty percent water fifty percent sugar mixture