Introducing CooranBong Vodka, a new, grape-based and gluten free vodka distilled from Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot Grapes from Australia that has been distilled several times for purity.  Not a wine, but a very
smooth vodka with a bit of a kick.

Australian Crush
4 Lime Wedges – Muddled
1 1/2 oz CooranBong Vodka
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
Fill with Ice – Shake
Top with Champaign and serve in a highball glass with Lime Wedge garnish

Victoria Breeze
2 oz CooranBong Vodka
1/2 oz Pineapple
1/2 oz Peach Schnapps
1/2 oz OJ
1/2 oz Cranberry Juice
Fill with Ice – Shake, Pour
Top with Grenadine and serve in a Martini glass with Orange Twist

Naked Australian
2 oz CooranBong Vodka
1 oz Bailey’s
1/2 oz Crème de Cacao
1/2 oz Disaranno
1/2 oz Cranberry Juice
Fill with Ice – Shake, Pour
Garnish w/ Carmel Swirl and serve in a Martini glass

• Wine & Spirits Magazine: Do you fancy yourself a wine connoisseur? Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone about the two buck chuck from Trader Joe’s that you tried to pass off as a rare find to your friend that doesn’t know what Trader Joe’s is (ha, I’ve tried it. Who could’ve guessed that she worked for Trader Joe’s in college…). Either way, Wine & Spirits Magazine has their list of Wine Value Brands of 2008, with everything from the Top 5 Chilean Value Brand Wines to the Top 3 Greek Wines. Sweet….
• Talking Drinks: If you’ve ever thought to yourself “Man, I wish I could quit this job to become a Senior Brand Manager for Absolut,” then you are kind of in luck! While I’ve been commenting on blogs hoping that some CEO from a spirit company will notice my awesome-ness and swoop me off my feet to become part of the luxurious world of spirits marketing, Talking Drinks has been posting and fulfilling those wonderful dream jobs. Also check out their feature on the Green Wine Summit, the first annual summit forum dedicated to green wine processes, being held in Santa Rosa, CA December 1st through 2nd.
• Food & Wine: Check out Food & Wine’s Slideshow featuring 10 Holiday  Drinks. You’ll start with a recipe for the Sticky Toffee Pudding Eggnog and end with the Rosemary Gin Fizz.
• Cocktail Times: Not looking forward to dodging questions from your Aunt Mary this Thanksgiving regarding your single status? Liquor her up with a “Cosmopolitan Turkey Panini” and drink the remaining vodka yourself. Happy Holidays!
• Bev Info Group: Stop by the Bev Info Group online magazine for a glimpse into the latest and greatest in spirits, products and trends…

*Girly Drinks Christmas Cocktails Photo Courtesy of Flickr

Hungry Girl made my day (it doesn’t take a lot) by posting two new Winter Cocktails recipes, one for a Winter Wonderland Peppermintini and the other for a Spiked Almond Joy Hot Cocoa.

Since it’s beginning to snow where I live, these winter cocktails sound great and will be thoroughly enjoyed. Visit Hungry Girl for additional low calorie cocktails recipes.

Winter Cocktails #1: Winter Wonderland Peppermintini

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz. (3 tbsp.) 80-proof vodka
• 2 tsp. Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
• 1 no-calorie sweetener packet (like Splenda)
• 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
• Optional Garnish: 1 small candy cane

Directions:
Place powdered creamer and sweetener in a glass. Add 1/4 cup warm water and stir to dissolve.

Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice cubes. Add creamer mixture, vodka, and peppermint extract. Cover and shake well, until mixture is cold.
Strain into a martini glass. If you like, garnish with a candy cane leaning jauntily on the rim.

MAKES 1 SERVING

Winter Cocktails #2: Spiked Almond Joy Hot Cocoa

Ingredients:

1 1/2 oz. (3 tbsp.) coconut rum

Directions:
In your favorite mug, prepare cocoa with 3/4 cup hot water according to package instructions. Add the rum and almond extract. (Remember, just one DROP of extract!) Stir and, if you like, top with a generous squirt of Reddi-wip. Enjoy, preferably wrapped in a blanket by a roaring fire.
MAKES 1 SERVING

*Winter Cocktails recipes and images courtesy of Hungry Girl.

• Cocktail Match: Check out Cocktail Match, a new social network where lifestyle, fashion, and culture connect. View cocktail recipes, request cocktail recipes, and connect with like-minded cocktail enthusiasts.
• Rachael Ray Thanksgiving Cocktails: Rachael Ray has a great list of Thanksgiving Cocktails, including some unique ones like the Apple Pie Shooter, a Cinnamon Snaps Champagne Mix, Pecan Pie Martini. Yum-Oh
• Slashfood - Pumpkin Cocktail Round Up: Check out the Pumpkin cocktail recipe that Slash Food features, including the directions to  make a pumpkin infused vodka.
• Yum Sugar - Budget Thanksgiving Drinks: Hosting a Thanksgiving party with your girlfriends this holiday season? Check out Yum Sugar’s tips for throwing a budget Thanksgiving party while still providing cocktails. Yum provides a girly drink cocktail recipe for a Cranberry Champagne Cocktail.
• Fine Living Network “Warm Me Up” Drinks: Since it finally snowed where I live, I figured a round up of cold weather drinks was in order. Fine Living Network never fails to report the best of luxury, chic cocktails; their latest round of cocktails include a Hot Apple Ginger Toddy and the Hoppin’ Hot Scotch.

Source

Have you checked out the Hypnotiq website lately? I hadn’t been there in awhile but was recently sent this recipe for their specialty cocktail, Roc Candy.

I went over to the Hypnotiq site for some more information and was pleasantly surprised to find a variety of recipes dedicated to girly drinks. If you have the time or find yourself in of need of some recipes for your next party (and can’t find them on Girly Drinks), head over to Hypnotiq for more recipes, including the Hypnotiq Eye Catcher in the Girl’s Night Out section, or for the interactive instructions to make the Bubbles ‘n Blue recipe, a cocktail mixing Hypnotiq and Champagne

Hpnotiq Roc Candy

• 2 oz of Hpnotiq
• 1 oz of Ciroc Vodka
• Splash of pineapple juice.

Mixology: Pour over crushed ice in a martini glass. Stir and garnish with a
rock candy stick.

*Girly Drinks image and recipe for Roc Candy courtesy of Hypnotiq

The following recipes come to Girly Drinks courtesy of Pittypat’s Porch, a restaurant located in Atlanta, Georgia. They’ve sent over a few of their more popular girly drink recipes, including one for a Mint Julep, their specialty drink “Pittypat’s Pitch,” and a fun and delightfully named cocktail, the “Ankle Breaker.”

*Mint Julep*

*You’ll feel like a Kentucky Derby winner while sippin’ it.*

• 3 oz. of Bourbon Whiskey
• 1/2 oz. of Mint Juilip Mixture
• simple syrup-melt sugar 1 cup sugar in 1/2 cup of water
• crush mint and mix with sugar mixture
• Serve over crushed ice.

*Pittypat’s Pitch*

*This brew of Vodka, Passion Juice and sacred herbs holds the magic of
Pittypat’s hospitality.*

Serve over crushed ice.

• Add 1 oz. Vodka
• 1/2 oz. Passion Fruit juice
• Top with orange juice

*Ankle Breaker*

*General Jackson broke his ankle after half a dozen of them. You might have
to get yourself a partrner to handle one. *

• 1 oz. 151 Rum
• 1/2 oz. Sweet & sour
• 1/2 oz. Grenadine
• 1/2 oz. wild cherry Brandy
• Top with orange juice
• Serve over crushed ice

*Girly Drinks recipe and photo courtesy of Pittypat’s Porch

Guava Daiquiri

From the book Calypso Coolers (Calypso Coolers, 2007, Stewart, Tabori & Chang) comes this recipe for a Guava Daiquiri. I figured since it’s getting cold here that it wouldn’t hurt to shake up a girly drink cocktail that reminds me of the summer. And laying out on a beach. With sun. And waiters…

From the Calypso Coolers book: The soft, pink flesh of a fresh guava exudes a perfume and flavor that is intoxicating. This tropical fruit, found flourishing along roadsides in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico-and in several varieties (and shades) on many other islands-yields a luscious nectar that combines beautifully with fresh lime juice and, of course, rum. Though fresh guavas may be hard to come by in areas north of the Caribbean, excellent-quality nectar is not.

Serves 1

• Ice cubes
• 2 ounces light or golden rum
• 3 ounces guava nectar
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice, plus 1 full-moon lime slice, for garnish
• 1/4 ounce Cointreau

In a shaker filled with ice cubes, combine the rum, guava nectar, lime juice, and Cointreau. Shake well and strain into a chilled martini glass. Place the lime slice in the cocktail. Serve immediately.

*Girly Drinks Guava Daiquiri image and recipe courtesy of the book Calypso Coolers

Basil, cucumber, simple syrup - sounds like a great cocktail to me! The Whiskey Blue and Whiskey Sky are serving at these Green Cocktail concoctions at their Chicago locations. Better than that, these are hotel cocktails, my favorite:

Green Fever

• 2oz Right Gin
• 1oz Fresh lime juice
• ½ oz Simple Syrup
• 6-8 fresh basil leaves

Muddle basil leaves and lime juice in a mixing glass.  Add ice, simple syrup and Right gin. Shake & strain. Served in Martini glass, garnish with basil leave

Amazon Cooler

• 2 oz VeeV Acai Spirit
• 3 pieces of basil
• 2 slices of cucumber
• ¾ oz of lemon juice
• ½ oz of simple syrup

Muddle 2 slices of cucumber and 3 basil leaves in a mixing glass. Add VeeV, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup and ice in a cocktail shaker and shake.  Strain and pour into martini glass and garnish with a floating cucumber.

*Girly Drinks images and recipe courtesy of Whiskey Blue and Whiskey Sky in Chicago

You know who you’re voting for tomorrow, but still undecided about where to celebrate Election Day?  Chelsea hotspot, Citrine, has you covered with election night festivities sponsored by Rock The Vote and hosted by Jonathan Murphy from Life on Mars, Desperate Houswives’ Joy Lauren, David Basche & Alysia Reiner of The Starter Wife, and NYCTV’s Kelly Choi, in addition to other surprise celebrity guests!

On Tuesday night, guests are invited to join the new nightspot (already a favorite among celebrities like Janet Jackson, Shannen Doherty, M.I.A., Jeremy Piven, and Lindsay Lohan) to watch live coverage of the election while toasting their candidate with specialty cocktails such as the OBAMAtini (made with premium vodka and Rose’s Blue Raspberry Cocktail Infusions) or the Red Maverick (made with premium vodka and Rose’s Pomegranate Twist Cocktail Infusions).  DJ Micprobes will also be on hand to make sure the party keeps going from 8 pm until results are announced.

• Yum Sugar Happy Hour: Yum Sugar’s Happy Hour feature for today is the Blueberry Martini - a specialty martini for sure.
• Drinks After Dark: Now that Halloween is done, check out this recipe for a Hot Apple Pie Cocktail to warm you up before the crazy Holiday’s.
• Alcademics: NutraSweet Margarita Mix? Yep, just add Tequila and Water. Aspartame sweetened portable margarita packets that you can take to the bar…
• Real Simple: Tomorrow, after you’ve voted, why not make one of these Election Day Cocktails like the Flag Salute or Vote on the Rocks and watch the results on T.V.
• Cosmopolitan: Cosmo’s Cocktail Challenege - The Blended Orgasm. Vote on which cocktail you like best.
• Rejiggered Cocktails: Check out these recipes for Gingerbread in a Glass, a collection of gingerbread cocktails, including the Gingerbread with Caramel Three Ways and the Vanilla Gingerbread Cream, made from Hiram Walker gingerbread liqueur.