Wine, Drinks and Entertaining from Saveur- SAVEUR.com

May 17, 2013

by Katie Parla

Most pizzerias in Naples—and in Italy in general—are content to serve predictable drinks such as Moretti lager or Coca-Cola. And most Neapolitans are content to drink them. But times are changing even in tradition-minded Italy, where there's a growing awareness of the finely crafted beers, wine, and artisanal sodas that can enhance a meal centered around pizza. Here are some of our favorites. Keep reading »

May 17, 2013

Friday Cocktails: French Monaco

by Sara Cann

Ordering a Monaco in Paris is akin to ordering a Shirley Temple in the states—only kids do it. I didn't know this the first time I heard about the frothy beer cocktail, which is spiked with grenadine or cassis and French lemonade; I just thought it was an ingenious way to dress up a light brew. As I explored Paris, ordering Monacos along the way, Parisian bartenders started to snicker at me. When a friend eventually whispered that only high school kids drink this beverage, I realized I had managed to make myself look young, even in a country that doesn't ask for your ID at the door. Mon dieu! Keep reading »

Credit: Helen Rosner

May 13, 2013

Urban Grapes

by Joe Appel

From SAVEUR Issue #156
In college, I read about fin de siècle Vienna and fell in love with the city from afar. I took Viennese modernists as my heroes and became enamored of their ideas: Arnold Schoenberg embraced musical dissonance; Sigmund Freud asked the individual to reject no aspect of himself, no matter how crude, in striving for self-insight. Experimental yet informed by ancient urges, a friend to nature but committed to a built future, their modern man was a complicated blend of the old and the new. Keep reading »

Credit: Mark Smith

May 11, 2013

10 Perfect Champagne Cocktails

There's a reason we often describe a joyful personality as bubbly, effervescent, or sparkling—there's just something about those little bubbles that lift the spirits. These 10 fruity champagne cocktails are perfect for spring brunches, Mother's Day dinners, or just an afternoon tipple. See all the cocktails »

Credit: Maxime Iattoni

May 10, 2013

Friday Cocktails: Fizzy Lifting Drink

by Kellie Evans

When I was young, the quickest way for me to get into a ravenous state of gastronomic longing was to watch Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the 1971 fantasy musical about a lonely chocolatier and the hapless children he squired through a tour of his factory. From a chocolate river, to chewing gum that made you feel like you'd eaten a full roast-beef dinner, to wallpaper that tasted like fruit (sadly, despite my checking for it, my parents' Virginia home did not have this feature), the wonders of Willy Wonka's world sent me spiraling into fantasy.

See the recipe for Fizzy Lifting Drink »

Credit: Helen Rosner

May 9, 2013

Twist of the Knife: Tequila's Authentic Batanga

by Gabi Porter

In the western Mexico town of Tequila, there's a small, nondescript cantina called La Capilla, which happens to be a major bucket list stop for the world's cocktail nerds. La Capilla (which translates to "the chapel") is the home of the batanga, a simple drink created in the 1950s by Don Javier Delgado Corona, the bar's owner. Now well into his nineties, Don Javier can still be convinced to get behind the bar to make a drink or two for tequila pilgrims. Keep reading »

Twist of the Knife: Tequila's Authentic Batanga

Credit: Gabriella Porter

May 5, 2013

Mexican-Inspired Drinks for Cinco de Mayo

When it comes to drinks for Cinco de Mayo, we've got too many favorite Mexican-inspired cocktails to serve just one. From a classic frozen margarita, to the Chico—a blackberry liqueur and tequila cocktail popular in Texas/Mexico border towns in the 1950s—to the refreshing combination of sweet and tart that is the grapefruit-based Paloma, these drinks keep the celebration going. See the gallery »

Credit: André Baranowski

May 3, 2013

Friday Cocktails: The Thousand-Dollar Mint Julep

by Helen Rosner

For some people, the Kentucky Derby is a day of horse-racing. For others, it's a day of hat-wearing. For me—and, I imagine, for far more than belong to those other two categories—it is a day of mint juleps, the iconic Derby drink of strong bourbon and sweet mint over crushed ice, a sophisticated snow-cone served, classically, in a frost-covered silver cup. Keep reading »

Credit: Helen Rosner

Apr 29, 2013

Good and Steamed

by Ken Weaver

As I settle onto a bar stool at Vesuvio Cafe in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood, the bartender pours me just what I've come here for: a perfect pint of Anchor Steam beer. It's brilliantly clear, deep amber in color, and capped by a bone-white head of foam. Savoring its crystalline-sugar sweetness, all I can think is how far this beer has come. Keep reading »

Credit: Michael Kraus/Getty Images

Apr 26, 2013

Friday Cocktails: Corpse Reviver No. 2

by Laura Sant

On a recent Sunday afternoon, I found myself with a house full of guests—half of them ready to start cocktail hour, the other half still recovering from a bit too much fun the night before. Casting about for a concoction that would function equally well as an afternoon drink and hair-of-the-dog remedy, I settled on the Corpse Reviver No. 2: equal parts gin, lemon juice, Lillet blanc, and Cointreau. An ice-cold nip of this elixir is refreshing, astringent, and strong enough to perk up the senses—reviving, indeed. Keep reading »