Spec’sology Blog - Entertain

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

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

For those who enjoy entertaining, having a well-stocked bar is pivotal to your success. A handcrafted cocktail can lighten the mood, schmooze the in-laws, wow a friend, or impress a date. Being able to mix a variety of drinks at home adds a certain swanky swagger to your hosting ego, and rightly so! It’s a heck of a lot cooler than only being able to offer canned beer and shots of Fireball. We’re helping you raise the bar a little bit! Starting a home bar may seem like an intimidating endeavor, but it doesn’t need to be. Becoming an amateur,

Kombucha. You’ve probably seen it in stores, and possibly had a friend tell you all about the magical health properties of kombucha. If you haven’t heard about this tonic and are wondering what the rave is about, here’s the 411. What is Kombucha? Kombucha is a fermented, slightly alcoholic (0.5%), lightly effervescent, sweetened black or green tea drink commonly intended as a functional beverage for its claimed health benefits. It’s often flavored with juice or spices to enhance the taste. So, there ya go – it’s fermented tea. While some of them are actually quite good, it’s definitely an acquired

Welcome to the second week of Spec’s Le Pour de France wine tour! We’re following the riders across France and giving you a rundown of the wine regions they’re in so as they’re pedaling you can be pouring glasses of regional favorites. We begin this week with the longest stage in the tour, stage 7, which is also the beginning of the delicious Burgundy wine region and then takes us into the Southwestern France wine region for some hidden gems! Burgundy Region Stage 7: Friday, July 12, Belfort – Chalon-sur-Saône, 230km Stage 8: Saturday, July 13, Mâcon – Saint Étienne,

The delicious hamburger is an American staple invented by Fletcher Davis of Athens, Texas, in the 1880s. Of course, Fletcher’s claim is one of many in a long list of hamburger inventors, but he’s from Texas, so that’s what we’re going with. Regardless of where it may have been created, the reason for its staying power is rather simple – it’s delicious. But why? It’s just meat, bread, and cheese at its most basic, right? Well, there’s actually a scientific name for what makes them so good and it’s called the “Maillard Reaction.” This reaction is a process that caramelizes

“One of my favorite times and places to drink a beer during the Summer is with friends and family at a barbecue. There is something comforting and classic about the smells and flavors of the grill alongside a crisp, cold and refreshing beer. Big name cold bubbles are sufficient enough grilling fuel, but a good helles is the better option!” What Is Helles? Helles is a pale golden lager centered on the subtle grainy sweetness of pilsner malt, accented by spicy, floral hop aromatics with a soft bitterness clean, smooth finish. Different from the hop-centric pilsner, helles is decidedly malt-focused,