Spec’sology Blog

Thanksgiving is coming up soon, and this year why not kick up the fun by infusing your holiday dishes with a little something extra! We talk a lot about food and wine pairings, but did you know that if it pairs well you can cook it right into the dish? We’re talking everything from bourbon to beer to biscuits and birds! We’ve put together some of our favorites to help you add a splash of palate pizzazz to your plate! Rosé Cranberry Sauce Ingredients 1 ½ cups Rosé12 oz fresh cranberries2 cups sugar1 red pear1 pomegranate1 orange juiced1 orange, zested

The holidays can be a stressful time. Decorating the house, preparing for guests, hosting guests, feeding guests, and buying presents for everyone all while trying to embrace the holiday spirit can take a toll on even the cheeriest residents of Whoville. A great way to cut your gifting stress down (sorry, but we can’t do anything about your uncle-in-law clipping his toenails in the living room) is to shop Spec’s vast collection of gift baskets! And as an extra bonus, you can just simply call in your order and pick it up at your convenience. Order a Pre-Made or Custom

“Shall we retire to the study for cigars and brandy?” You’ve heard this before in a movie and they always make it sound so relaxing, but what happens if you have no idea what you’re doing when it comes to pairing a cigar with a fine spirit? Well, you either get it wrong and everyone notices, or you get it right and everyone notices. Either way, people are going to find out whether you know what you’re doing or not and, depending on the company, judge you accordingly. So, instead of fumbling around in the smoke-filled dark, why don’t we

Perhaps you’ve heard, but sugar is one of the culprits that leads to your morning after, regret-filled headache. Thankfully, there’s an easy and delicious way to combat the effects of dehydration due to alcohol - pickle juice! That’s right, this salty water is the key to retaining water and keeping you hydrated into the morning. It’s an easy to use cocktail ingredient most of us have at home anyway and makes for some truly unique and tasty beverages. Here are a few ways to work this lifesaver into your next happy hour - you can thank us later. Tequila Pickleback

If you’ve been planning your Halloween party since November, the last thing you want to do is serve your ghoulish guests common cocktails. The Halloween theme doesn’t stop at the bar; if anything, it gets amped up a notch or two. Spec’s has you covered with delicious recipes for everything from creepy cocktails to spooky shooters and petrifying punches! (if all else fails, just throw a bunch of candy and liquor in a blender and see what happens!) Candy Corn Shooter Ingredients 1pt Creme de Banana1pt White Chocolate Creme Liqueur 1pt Orange Curacao Directions Layer liqueurs in order of mention

With cooler weather starting to arrive, it’s time to roll up that flannel sleeve and embrace the taste of the season! No, we’re not talking about pumpkins; there have been enough pumpkin flavored items unleashed on us in the last month to properly summon The Great Pumpkin King a dozen times over. Instead, we’re talking about the often-overlooked apple. So, join us as we dive into the season were the glorious apple shines as the star ingredient in this list of seasonal of cocktails! Apple Pie Moscow Mule Ingredients 4 oz Apple cider4 oz Caramel apple vodka 1 bottle Ginger

When stocking your home bar or even just ordering a drink, the words “liquor” and “liqueur” can appear confounding similar. Besides looking and sounding the same, they also have a lot in common in that both are alcohol, both are fond in stores and at bars and both are used to make cocktails. The key difference between these two is how to use them and how much to use - as mixing them up will lead to an atrocious concoction! We’ll explain the difference and recommend some popular liqueurs to get you started mixing them into your cocktail repertoire. What

The best part of having a fall wedding, besides the lack of sweltering summer heat, is the taste of fall sprinkled throughout the event. Whether it’s leafy table toppers, seasonal flowers, or orange bridesmaid dresses (you laugh but we’ve seen it!) The one component you shouldn’t skimp with the season on is the bar. Having a list of available cocktails makes everything from ordering and budgeting to serving and pleasing guests substantially easier. But what to have on your cocktail list? Seasonal is key here and we’ve got some fantastic fall cocktails that are sure to please every side of

Coffee cocktails have come a long way since the 1940s/50’s Irish Coffee and 1960’s White Russian (made famous by The Big Lebowski), and the Espresso Martini of the 1980s/90’s. This is in part to the evolution of coffee culture itself. From first-wave drip coffee, to Starbucks, to today’s craft “third-wave” coffee and the canned cold brew trend. These different styles of coffee have given us the ability to mix them into cocktails never before possible, but certainly delicious. Thankfully, you don’t need to work at a bar or coffee shop to add the rocket fuel to your Friday fun. We’ve

Lobster, the most decadent of crustacea, has been delighting humans since 1984. Ok, more likely since humans first discovered them dwelling below the surface of the ocean. Timelines aside, lobster is ridiculously tasty! Always has been, always will be. But did you know there are different kinds of lobster? As a general rule, if it has front claws it’s a cold-water lobster. If it has no front claws and five appendages, it’s a warm-water lobster. Types of Lobster There are four types of warm water lobster and 2 types of cold-water lobster. Warm water lobsters, also called rock lobster or

Ladies night doesn’t have to mean packing yourself into a bar with a couple of gal pals and fighting the crowds to and from the bathroom on a Thursday night. I get chills just thinking about it! So instead, why not have a Girls’ Night In? We’ve got a collection of delicious cocktails that’ll have you on speed dial as the host with the most and the queen of drinks and hijinks! Skinny Strawberry Green Tea Mojitos With frozen strawberries instead of ice, this is a cocktail that keeps on giving! Ingredients 4 oz. white rum4 fresh strawberries8 frozen strawberries1

It’s still prime grilling season (outside of the occasional tropical depression) and that coupled with Oktoberfest means lots of flame-kissed meats! Whether you’re serving dogs in buns, sausage links or bigger cuts, a good mustard is something you should absolutely have at hand. So, is there a “better” mustard for certain things? What makes them different? It’s time to take a quick bite into this centuries old condiment. Mustard is a mix of mustard seeds and liquid that’s ground into a paste of various textures. The differences in mustards are the types of seeds (yellow, brown or black) and liquids