Offbeat Tastings a Feature at Exotic Wines & Liquors

For those who've "been there done that" when it comes to wine or beer tastings, Lindenhurst’s offers what might be the "next thing." Vodka tasting.

At least this past weekend, when - amidst the hustle and bustle of Labor Day shopping, getting ready for back to school and clean-up - Linda, a representative for Firefly Sweet Tea-Flavored Vodka, was on hand to give Exotic’s customers a little taste of the good life, Southern style.

Lindenhurst residents will be familiar with Exotic Wines and Liquors, a two-decades-old family-owned and -operated business that carries a full range of domestic and imported wines and liquors.

The shelves at 111 West Hoffman Avenue are stocked with a wide range of products, including vodka, rum, whiskey, gin, red and white wines, along with a variety of champagne.

Less well known is the shop’s weekly "tastings" of wines and liquors.

The tasting of Firefly’s Sweet Tea-Flavored Vodka was a typical example. There was peach-flavored tea, raspberry-flavored tea, mint and lemon, and "standard" Southern-style teas, all flavored according to the recipes at Firefly Distillery, located on Wadmalaw Island, 30 miles south of Charleston, South Carolina.

Firefly is designed to be a hand-crafted, sweet tea-flavored vodka, according to the company, keeping true to its Southern roots with tea grown on a plantation five miles from the distillery and blended with Louisiana sugar cane, all based on the Southern penchant for highly sweetened tea drinks.

“The raspberry drink is...refreshing...served over ice on a hot summer's day,” said Geoff Green, a UK resident visiting the area during the Labor Day weekend who had a taste last Friday at Exotic.

His wife Geraldine had a different season in mind: “I thought the peach-flavored vodka was a perfect drink for a cold winter's day in front of a log fire, especially at Christmas with family and friends."

According to Linda, sweet tea with vodka makes an excellent mixer, particularly with citrus flavors. Popular recipes are Firefly Sweet Tea Flavored Vodka with water, Firefly with lemonade (any flavor), Firefly with ginger ale, a Firefly Mojito (Firefly with muddled mint and lemon). Or perhaps half Firefly and half Gran Gala Orange Liqueur, with a dash of sour mix and Sprite?

But whether FireFly is your cup of tea or not, Exotic Wines and Liquors will keep offering offbeat tastings to pique their current customers' interest, and attract new customers.