Imbibe’s Tasting Notes Newsletter, 08.19.20

This letter was originally sent via email as part of our bi-weekly Tasting Notes newsletter. Sign up for Tasting Notes today, and every other week you’ll receive a letter from our executive editor, Paul Clarke, along with links to our favorite recipes and compelling stories, right in your inbox.

By the time the middle of August rolls around each summer, ice has become a precious commodity in my household. The first cubes clink into glasses of iced coffee in the morning; they pack my Hydro Flask before it’s filled with chilled tea for the day; and by the time evening rolls around, they’re plunking into my cocktail shaker as part of the daily Daiquiri, or being pounded into snow to accompany a good glug of bourbon and a handful of mint leaves plucked from the yard in a lovingly made Mint Julep.

Putting additional strain on my ice supply right now? A taste for blended drinks that recurs at this time every summer. Whether the cubes are going into an updated classic like the College Radio (adapted from a Trader Vic original) or a White Russian riff like The Rug, or something as simple as a frozen take on an Aperol Spritz, the ice supply—and the blender—is getting a workout these days.

We’ve got blender recommendations so you can play along with these recipes at home (and some ideas for what else to do with that bottle of Aperol once you’ve satisfied your spritz craving). You can find all of that at here imbibemagazine.com—and if the website’s not already one of your regular internet hangs, posts like this piece on what brewing legend Garrett Oliver is doing to promote lasting change in the beer and spirits world could certainly make you a convert.

Over on the website, you’ll also find the first two episodes of Radio Imbibe, our brand-new podcast. Check us out on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app, and listen to our conversations with some of the most interesting people in the drinks world. And yes, we’ve got great cocktail recipes and drinks recommendations, too.

The podcast joins our existing channels on our website, and on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, so you can have even more liquid culture in your life. And if you’re not already a magazine subscriber, then it’s high time to change that—click here to subscribe to the print and/or digital editions.

We’re at the part of summer where it seems the season could go on forever. I’m going to pick up some fresh peaches and a crowler or two of fresh pilsner from my neighborhood brewery, and see if I can make that happen. I’ll be back with you again in a couple of weeks.