At the epicenter of the cult Cabernet movement, Napa winemakers flirt with obscure grapes like Gruner Veltliner, with excellent results.

Stop number two on RumDood's tour of Old New Orleans rums: This time, he's tasting the Amber.

Move over, Dunkin' Donuts: Starbucks is test-marketing its high-end Clover system in 30 Boston shops.

A citrus press: No tool is better behind the bar for extracting large amounts of juice. (Plus 9 other must-have kitchen tools.)

Beyond bar snacks: A look at hot Manhattan cocktail haunts that also serve excellent food, including Pegu Club, PDT, Employees Only, and more.

NY Times highlights brewers and importers turning toward well-made but lower-alcohol beers designed for drinking with dinner.

A 'Wisconsin Old-Fashioned', also known as a Brandy Old-Fashioned Sweet (Brandy & 7-Up). Variations include Bourbon or Rye with water.

A flight of homemade liqueurs from mixologist Adam Seger of Chicago's Nacional 27.

Alice Q Foodie is "dazzled by a row of jewel-toned aguas frescas" at San Diego's Tacos el Paisa.

"Pusher" by swedish design group Form Us With Love ~ for Beefeater's design challenge (click products > pusher)

Cucumber Cooler - A delicious and refreshing cocktail using cucumber! Perfect for the end of Summer!

An embarrassing wine hoax exposed ~ Wine Spectator praises a Milan restaurant that doesn't exist. Wine critic and author Robin Goldstein cooked up the hoax.

It's time to schedule a Backyard Revival, specialty of the bartenders at Roux, Portland's New Orleans-style restaurant and bar.

Andrew at Very Good Taste missed the Mixology Monday roundup by a mile, but arrives fashionably late with a very British drink, the Garden Party.

The Liquid Muse takes a trip to Poland's Sobieski Distillery and learns how premium vodka is made from certified Dankowski rye.

FlavH2O is flavored water in a clear plastic bottle with a regular aluminum can top.

Designed for stand-up eating at parties, an opening in the center of the GoPlate fits over a beverage bottle, can, or cup.

David Ngo's Toumei sake carafe has an LED in the base that illuminates the remaining sake. As the carafe is emptied, the light becomes less diffuse.

The Art of Drink investigates the Green Swizzle, a possible precursor to the better-known Corn 'n' Oil.

"If the steak is Christ, the martini is its John the Baptist," says Esquire's David Wondrich, opining on the perfect pre-Porterhouse aperitif.

Merlove -- a documentary celebrating Merlot -- takes on the famous Sideways diss.

Lagunitas Sirius Cream Ale may just be the perfect blend of lager and ale.

Jeff Morgenthaler visits Portland's Great American Distillers Fest and attends Robert Hess's panel, "The History of the Cocktail“.

Helpful tips from The Kitchn on picking a good wine from the big brands. They test 15 under-$15 supermarket Pinot Grigios and pick 6 winners.

Denver-area brewers are capitalizing on the Democratic convention to draw attention to their brands. (And yes, it's working.)

The Natural Harmonic from The Spirit World uses Damrak gin, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and -- in place of bitters -- a syrup made from IPA.

Gin with Muddled Summer Plums. Using fresh fruit makes for a delicious, refreshing seasonal cocktail.

Untouchable Pale Ale from San Francisco's Speakeasy brewery, one of two Beer of the Week entries from Underhill Lounge.

Mr Bali Hai takes us on a three-way recipe comparison of a tiki classic, the Suffering Bastard.

Don the Beachcomber's Caribbean Punch, and 6 other "Tiki Drinks with a Twist"

Viva Campari! Read about the Italian bitter aperitif's storied history and discover two dozen recipes over at A Mountain of Crushed Ice.

Tiare invents a new drink with rum and Aperol (she calls it "Campari's little sister") and christens it Mata'Irea -- in honor of a Tahitian island.

Erwin Bauer has redesigned Zulls graphic profile and some of their wine bottles. Playful design for something stiff and serious as Austrian wine.

Golden Phelps--A celebration of the summer Olympics in a glass, featuring this season's golden plums and purple basil.

Bid a fond farewell to summer with Il Diavolo. This fizzy refresher features chinotto, an Italian soda made with bittersweet citrus.

Lush Life has the deets on the new haunt from bar maven Sasha Petraske (Milk & Honey, et al). White Star Bar serves just two drinks: Absinthe and beer.

Sommelier Emily Wines trusts you. At the aptly named Honor Bar at San Francisco's Fifth Floor, she puts out six wines and a self-service payment box.

The Cocktailians revisit New York's legendary Death&Co and sample a Sentimental Journey: Tanqueray Ten, Chardonnay, cinnamon bark syrup, all served up with a twist.

Imbibe Unfiltered samples a savory cocktail from Bridget Albert's long-awaited book, Market-Fresh Mixology.

Slashfood's "Diary of a Distiller" series gets down to business, making the wild Maine blueberry wine that will become eau de vie and fruit brandy this winter.

Commercial cocktail cherries aren't made from hand-picked fruit marinated in Maraschino liqueur. But yours can be.

The Banana Bliss -- a sweet and strong cocktail invented by E. Angerosa -- is perfect digestive.

The latest in Underhill Lounge's "Stomping Through Savoy" series: The Derby cocktail, a bracing mix of ice-cold gin laced with peach bitters and mint.

SF Chronicle reports some California vintners are reconsidering sulfites, a controversial additive that's also a natural by-product of fermentation.

Even if you can't afford airfare to Bermuda, you can still enjoy the island's official drink: the spicy-cool, oh so refreshing, Dark and Stormy.

Gary Regan's Cocktailian column plucks a pair of peachy, Italian-inspired highballs from San Francisco's prominent restaurants.