Bottles, it seems, are all the rage right now. Chambord had barely announced their redesign before they were thoroughly upstaged by Brewdog releasing the strongest, most expensive beer in human history - packaged in your choice of stuffed animal.
Over in New Orleans, it's time for their annual celebration of fantastic liquids that aren't necessarily served in preserved rodents, and the 2010 Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards. UK winners included Sagatiba's John Gakuru, the Connaught Hotel in London, the Merchant Hotel in Belfast, Hendrick's Gin's Charlotte Voisey, CLASS magazine, and the Connaught's Agostino Perrone.
Via alcademics: Camper English gets through...a whole lot of drink at Tales.
Via the Bar Blogger: homeless man breaks into a shuttered bar and reopens for business.
Via The Awl: Starbucks will make America a great wine country.
Via just-drinks.com: how the screw-cap is killing the Iberian lynx.
Via Off The Presses: the news that Ted Breaux is bringing three absinthes to the US market is the perfect opportunity to revisit his attempts to bring it back in the first place, from WIRED in 2005.