Recently in Ethanol and tobacco Category

OZEKI One Cup Sake is a non-premium sake imported from Japan. It's priced at RM 12.90 which is rather unusual for imported sake so I assume it must be a really cheap label in the Land of the Rising Sun.



This is the second alcohol vlog...with your favorite (?) fake Japanese accent. ;)

iichiko mugi shochu is a 100% barley shochu from Japan. Japanese shochu is usually made from either sweet potatoes, rice or barley and though it's difficult to differentiate between the three, I tend to prefer barley fermented drinks.



iichiko mugi shocho weighs in at a respectable 25% alcohol and in the new format of alcohol reviews, this is done vlog style, complete with fake Japanese accent. ;)

I dropped by Cheesie's condo earlier this morning to pick up the carton of Marlboros that she had gotten for me duty free during her recent trip to Shanghai. It's the first time I've been to her place and it's a really nice condominium unit with great security. I'm thinking of getting one myself once my paycheck stabilizes - it's just about what you would pay for rent, except you get to own the property at the end.



A big thank you goes out to Ringo, who has kindly contributed to my chances of getting lung cancer. ;)

Kidding. I less than 3 you.

Skol Super Beer is a new product line from Skol that lays claim to "The only 9% alcohol super strong beer". The statement is not inaccurate - it is the King of Lagers (in a fiefdom of mostly 5% alcohol standard beers). Certain fortified beers like Carlsberg's Special Brew attempt to challenge the sovereignty of Skol Super Beer, weighing in at a respectable 8.8% - close, but no cigar.



The extra 0.2% alcohol in Skol Super Beer crowns it as the current king of all beers (measured by ethanol content). It is by far the highest alcohol content lager among all the other brands over here. I picked up a 3-pack at Jusco for just RM 12.80 (the special introductory price), which works out to about RM 4.20 per can. Skol is of Brazilian origin and considered a less premium brand than Carlsberg Special Brew, but it's cheaper by a few dollars and has the potential to capture the middle income, non-discerning ethanol consumer market.

The interesting trend with beer nowadays is the introduction of the 3-pack. The six-pack beer packaging is a very established tradition, and to go against that convention would be considered heretical by beer aficionados. However, I have noticed several advantages to the 3-pack retail mechanism - it's at the right price point for the consumption habits of the majority of casual drinkers.

Skol Super Beer - A very strong lager of the highest quality.

Absolut Akimbo! I managed to get two (2) 1 liter bottles of duty-free vodka goodness from my sister and her husband traveling back from NZ. I wanted Absolut New Orleans and Absolut Los Angeles (the two new city themed Absolut vodka flavors) but my sister couldn't find it...or couldn't be bothered to look for it, I'll never be sure. ;)



She couldn't find Absolut Pears (to complete my Absolut-ly Fabulous liquor collection) either, so I settled with Absolut Ruby Red, which I already have and thus have earned the right (in my twisted rhetoric) to drink...



...and Absolut Mango, launched earlier this year for my collection.



I've been trying to find the elusive Absolut 100 (2007) in the black bottles that weighs in at a respectable 50% alcohol but it's apparently not available at our fine KLIA duty free retail experience. Oh well...

Happy monthsary, dear. :)

...to my shock and horror, the new bottles of Guinness Stout is now 6.8% alcohol instead of the previous 8% alcohol.

Frontera Bar & Grill serves a wide range of premium and super premium 100% blue agave tequila. This here is the official Frontera Margarita Man, who has served thousands of margaritas during his tenure at the bar.



The Speedy Gonzalez is a cocktail with Red Bull, watermelon liquor and Sauza 100% pure blue agave tequila. It's under the Hornitos label and packs a real punch. The Red Bull (caffeine and Taurine) gives a slightly stimulating aspect to offset the CNS depressant qualities of the Sauza Hornitos tequila.



Watch the Speedy Gonzolez being made live! You can't taste the alcohol inside, and the stimulants make you feel like you're not feeling the alcohol too, but you are - a drink to watch out for. :)



The Patron Spirits Company also makes coffee liqueur, which I didn't know until I went to Frontera. Dubbed the Patron XO Cafe, it's like Kahlua, except this coffee liqueur weighs in at a whopping 40% alcohol! It can be sipped neat and taste a hell of a lot better than Kahlua.



Frontera Bar & Grill also makes a mean B-52 with Patron XO Cafe instead of Kahlua. This doubles the alcohol content so I think it should be dubbed the B2 Spirit "Stealth Bomber" instead. It's a shooter with B-52 "Stratofortress" ingredients with the Kahlua substituted with the premium Patron XO Cafe.



The tequila based drinks at Frontera is sweetened with agave syrup instead of sugar syrup so the taste of agave is preserved. It's really a good concept, and a great place for tequila based cocktails. The unopened Gran Patron Platinum at the front costs RM 1,400 per bottle. Larry didn't let me taste it though. ;) It's understandable - he hasn't had the chance to sample it himself.



Tequila is underrated in Malaysia due to the non-premium brands flooding the market but tasting the premium and super premium brands has given me much respect for this drink from Mexico.



Check it out at Frontera Bar & Grill @ Jaya One.

Libertas is a South African Cabernet Sauvignon bottled at the West Cape. I have been taking advantage of the new 5-day work week implemented by our company to chill out on a Saturday afternoon after sleeping in late.



Melody brought some KFC over to my house and we ate the X-Meals (is is just me, or has KFC burgers shrunk over the past decade?) while I opened up the bottle of wine. I have now acquired the discipline of keeping liquor around the house without the temptation of consuming it immediately, which my addiction counselor would term as Progress (TM). ;)



Libertas is Latin for liberty, and the title of the post is made popular by Patrick Henry. Anyway, a 5-day work week may be the norm in KL and other parts of the country, but over here in Sarawak, it's cause for celebration! =D

It seems that our government has saw it fit to remodel the pricing structure of cigarettes to a more auspicious number, no doubt inspired by the 08/08/08 overload during the Beijing Olympics. The price of premium cigarettes will be imposed a Sin Tax (TM) of RM 0.03 per cigarette. This makes the existing RM 8.20 for a 20 pack increase to RM 8.80.

Very auspicious! I'm sure I'll be very lucky and not die a horrible death in the accursed clutches of lung cancer just coz the price for cigarettes has been raised by 60 cents to RM 8.80. Thank you!

Oh well, the tobacco tax has increased again. So, what else is new?

At least I have a stockpile of duty free cigarettes thanks to Cheryl.

HDS:

2002: There is a random post about university life and a really interesting post that will not be linked from here. Sorry, you do not have Level Six clearance to view that post. ;)
2003: I think I would classify this as site news now but I seemed to be wittier back then, no doubt due to certain cognitive function boosters. ;) It's a thing I used to do back then - basically a teaser post for the next day with the bulk being updates about my life.
2004: Radio (blog?) silence.
2005: Blog silence.
2006: My Pièce de résistance of 2006. I tried to kill myself and lived to blog about it while hospitalized by using the WiFi from the hotel next to the hospital and a notebook. I am pretty fucking impressed by my dedication to the blog back then. ;)

Camel Turkish Royal is a premium brand of cigarettes available in the US which was been kindly furnished to me for a review.

The back of the flip-top box contains the familiar Camel C-Note for 1 dollar cash which is redeemable for Camel products in the US.

Camel Turkish Royal opens up to reveal fine lattice work on the filter and the words "Turkish Royal" imprinted down the length of the cigarette.

Camel Turkish Royal is a nice and smooth smoke, with a satisfying aftertaste.

The most interesting aspect of this cigarette is the attention to detail on the Camel Turkish Royal cigarettes.