Follow Your Nose

Just when you thought the vodka companies had tapped into every crazy flavor you thought could or couldn’t be infused, they come through with yet another leaving you scratching your head and wondering “how the hell did they do that”. Three Olives latest flavor should taste VERY familiar to most of us. If the name didn’t give it away, the bright and colorful “O’s” on the label should do the trick. Fruit Loop flavored vodka, who knew? And although It sounds crazy, so did the idea of whipped cream, cake, gummy, and Mt. Dew flavored vodkas and yet the success of those is the reason the Three Olives “Loopy” is here today.
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Presentation: Bright and colorfully done, this one stuck out like a sore thumb. Using a child like font, Three Olives does a great job of visually sucking you in with a blurred background of Fruit Loops on the bottle. If that doesn’t do it for you, twist the cap and be instantly reminded of a fresh bowl at breakfast time. Loopy’s aroma is an exact replication of fruit loops cereal with a “slight” sting to the nostril from presence of alcohol.
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The Taste: Three Olives themselves describe Loopy as “A dastardly delicious medley of tropical fruit and imported English vodka”… I couldn’t have said it better myself. You can taste the tropical red berries and and get a strong sense of citrus both from the taste and the aroma. If you’re a fan of fruit loops (I don’t know anyone who isn’t or wasn’t at one time), then you can pour this one straight over ice and call it a night. Better yet, add in a some milk, throw away the bowl, and start drinking your breakfast. It’s as if you can literally taste the oats and grains of each bite sized “O” in every sip. It’s THAT authentic in taste. If you’re hoping to find a drink that completely hides the burn of alcohol then unfortunately this isn’t the one. This is not a liqueur, but rather a flavored vodka, so at 70 Proof you can be sure to get a nice little bite in the end of each shot (A good thing for those that need an indicator for when to stop). I have to admit I’m not the biggest fan of.sugary drinks unless it’s in the proper setting like tiki/beach drinks while on vacation but I’d like to think this one is justified. We are talking about one of the most popular kids cereals ever, which is essentially sugar, oats, and grains. Still, if your bothered by anything overly sweet or cringe at the idea of another “crazy flavored vodka”, you might want to pass on this one because it’s THAT sweet and THAT crazy.

Overall: What’s not to love? The sweetness if anything. If you aren’t a fan of overly sugary spirits then this one isn’t for you. It’s got PLENTY of sugar, and heavy notes of tropical flavor used to re-create the popular Fruit Loop brand. This one is pretty tasty and if you aren’t careful you could find yourself naked in the back alley of a town you aren’t familiar with. I’ve always said one day the liquor business would find a way to replace our breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a cocktail and with the addition of Three Olives Loopy we are one step closer. Below are a few recipes for you to try at home.

Thanks to the review from our brothers at Intoxicology 101.

Heard It Through The Grapevine

Absolut has a new member in their family, Absolut Grapevine. Absolut Grapevine is the newest vodka that offers a vibrant flavor of white grape, infused with dragon fruit and papaya. Absolut Grapevine was released nationwide at the beginning of 2012. As an all-natural product, this vodka contains no sugar.

After drinking Absolut Grapevine you will get a fruit party on your palate. Get your hands on this bottle as soon as you can. You will be seeing this bottle soon at every nightclub and bar in town. This is an “absolute.”

On The Rocks

Patron Gran Burdeos, a handmade, luxury añejo tequila is crafted from the finest 100 percent Weber blue agave from the Highlands of Jalisco. It is matured in a combination of new American and French Oak barrels and aged for a minimum of 12 months. It is then distilled again before it is racked in vintage Bordeaux barrels, from the finest French chateaux (“Burdeos” means Bordeaux in Spanish). The taste is smooth and sweet; with great body and a long-lasting finish, it offers notes of oak, light agave, vanilla and raisins. Gran Patrón Burdeos is beautifully packaged in a crystal bottle placed inside a handsome rounded display case that accentuates the dark color of the añejo tequila.

Gobble Gobble

Wild Turkey is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey distilled and bottled by the Austin, Nichols division of Campari Group. Its nicknames include "The Dirty Bird", "Gobble Gobble", "Bombed Tom", "Thunder Chicken", "Boat Gas", "Whiskey Tango", "The Screamin' Eagle", and "The Kickin’ Chicken” the reference of some of these being to the 101 proof of its most common bottling, as compared to the 80 proof of standard bourbons. Recently, the company's marketing has referred to the product as "The Bird."

The distillery is located near Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. It offers tours, and is part of the American Whiskey Trail and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

The Ripy brothers built a distillery near Lawrenceburg in 1869 and had consolidated the current facility by 1905 and resumed distilling after Prohibition. The Ripys were bought out in 1952 by the Gould Brothers. In turn the distillery was bought by Pernod Ricard in 1980. On April 8, 2009, the Campari Group announced the acquisition of the brand and of the distillery from Pernod Ricard.

Distillery executive Thomas McCarthy took some warehouse samples on a wild turkey hunting trip in 1940. The next year his friends asked him for "some of that wild turkey whiskey", and a brand was born. The 80 proof version was introduced in 1974.

What A View

Belvedere represents the pinnacle of the Polish vodka-making tradition. Distilled exclusively from the finest Dankowskie Gold Rye and quadruple distilled to create the perfect balance of character and purity, Belvedere Vodka is the true expression of luxury vodka. Completely additive-free and diluted with water from Belvedere's own artesian well, this is a vodka that combines over 600 years of vodka producing expertise with an uncompromising commitment to quality and heritage.

Absolut Ace's Place

Absolut Vodka was first launched in New York in 1979. It soon became talk of the town, the US and eventually of the world. But the recipe behind the pure and natural taste of Absolut is actually older than 30 years. So is the 18th century medicine flask found in an antique store in Stockholm that gave inspiration to the iconic Absolut Vodka bottle.

Absolut Vodka is made exclusively from natural ingredients, and unlike other vodkas, it doesn’t contain any added sugar. In fact Absolut is as pure as vodka can be. Still, that purity has a certain taste: Rich, full-bodied and complex, yet smooth and mellow with a distinct character of grain, followed by a hint of dried fruit.

In 1879, Lars Olsson Smith introduced the continuous distillation with which he made Absolut Rent Bränvin (Absolute Pure Vodka). Instead of the usual three or four times, the vodka was distilled an infinite number of times. 100 years later, it was reintroduced as Absolut. Just as then, Absolut is produced in Åhus, L.O. Smith’s birth town. Also the place where the wheat used for making the vodka is grown. And since the way Absolut is made won’t change, neither will the true taste of vodka.
The main ingredients in Absolut Vodka are water and winter wheat. The water comes from a deep well in Åhus where it’s protected from impurities. Winter wheat differs from other crops: it’s sown in fall, and harvested the next one. Days in between it grows under the Swedish snow developing its hard grain. Also, the use of fertilizers is minimized.

Being so pure, why drink Absolut Vodka any other way than it is? In fact, there’s a good reason why: the purer the vodka, the better it blends with other aromas meaning Absolut Vodka brings out the best in other tastes too.

Spicy

Introduced in Fall of 2011 this fireball was unleashed to an unsuspecting market. Made with a fusion of Southern Comfort and Tabasco brand pepper sauce, Southern Comfort Fiery Pepper is made with whiskey, features the flavors of Southern Comfort and is infused with Original Tabasco Sauce. Tabasco chilies and natural pepper flavors add to the 70 proof spicy spirit; it is available nationally with global expansion to follow.