The Macintosh of wines.

I picked up a bottle of America’s best-selling Blackstone Merlot because the price was right. You can easily find it for $8 or $9 a bottle. There are a lot of wines out there in this price range, but there’s a reason this is the best-selling merlot.

This is a wine almost anyone can enjoy. The fruit flavors–dark cherry and plum–have a nice pop, with a creamier taste in the middle. The back end is a little heavy on the tannins, but the quality remains excellent for a wine in this price range.

Because of its medium body and unobtrusive nature, Blackstone Merlot has pairing potential for a variety of foods–pastas, red meats, etc. If you’re going over for dinner and aren’t sure what’s being served, this merlot has a good chance of pairing well.

If you’re looking to drink more wine or enjoy it only every once in a while, Blackstone Merlot is a pretty safe bet for a delightful wine experience.

Not leaving Las Vegas.

When ESPN began airing the World Series of Poker, they elevated gambling to sport. But when a Las Vegas Casino hosted a beer pong competition last weekend, they elevated beer pong to… also sport.

According to an article from the Mercury News, 400 teams from around the country bounced into Vegas for the competition hosted by the Flamingo, most clad in matching uniforms. The top prize for the tournament was set at $50,000.

The official beer of the tourney was good ‘ol Pabst Blue Ribbon. I’ve had my share of PBR, but mixing this hipster juice and jocks’ favorite drinking game could only result in a unique blend of competitiveness and complete apathy.

In what must be the most sissy-inspired rule change of all time, losers at the tournament were NOT required to drink. While the tournament’s very existence signals that pong is moving off of college campuses and onto the mainstream bar scene, critics are still foolishly trying to curb college binging.

Tall, strong and vodka-some.

In 1952, a champion mixologist first made the drink. Thirty years later, the Milwaukee Brewers took the nickname “Harvey’s Wallbangers” because of their manager’s first name.

If you like Orange Dreamsicle (and want to get a decent buzz), give ol’ Harvey a try.

THE HARVEY WALLBANGER

3 oz vodka

1 oz Galliano

6 oz orange juice

Mix the oj and vodka in a large glass with ice (this is one of the few mixed drinks that truly calls for a pint glass). Then pour in the Galliano. Let most of it settle, but leave a little floating on the top right before you serve.

Galliano is a complex spice liqueur with a vanilla bent. It’s also a bit costly, so you could substitute a lower-quality vanilla liquer knock-off. But if you want the real Harvey Wallbanger experience, you’re going to have to get real Galliano.

Look, Rick Bannon, animals doing people things!

Yay, football! Yay, beer!

Despite a general ban on drinking alcohol in Iraq, troops will be allowed to party during the Superbowl. A report on strategypage.com said that each soldier will be allowed a couple of beers, but not all of them will accept.

Some troops in Iraq, when they learned of the Super Bowl exemption, wondered if they ought to pass it up. That’s because many soldiers are liable to be called away from the game to deal with some kind of emergency, and they fear that, after months without a drink, two beers might give them a buzz that could dangerously impair their performance during an emergency.

Troops afraid to drink? Things on the ground seem far worse than we thought.

Combat zone drinking has been generally banned since commanders began following the Navy’s lead… let your sailors hit dry land before they get all liquored up. The Super Bowl Exemption is an effort to boost morale.

Hard to find, wonderful to have.

One of the better indicators for a quality of vodka is its price. Sure, there are some $30 bottles that fall short of expectations and Smirnoff costs about twice what its worth. But Sobieski vodka is a jewel because its quality is head and shoulders above its price.

At around $10 for a bottle, I expected a mid-grade vodka with a dicey finish and more burn with flavor. I was wrong on both counts. I opened the bottle of the Polish Sobieski and took a long whiff before noticing even the slightest uncleanliness on the vodka.

This vodka has no kick-back on the finish, no burn as it crawls down your throat. It made for excellent mixed drinks and was decent straight. It highlighted the flavor of drinks really well.

If you’re looking for a jewel in the rough, Sobieski is choice. In fact, it’s one of the most enjoyable vodkas I’ve ever had, regardless of price. The only problem is finding the stuff–only the best liquor stores seem to carry it.

Don’t show this one to the kids.

Bye bye, champagne!

Now, the classic morning-after-New-Year’s drink is Mimosa. Just mix up your champagne with some orange juice and serve it with breakfast.

But perhaps you’re looking for something more exciting and a little harder-hitting. Hair of the dog, you know. Try mixing it with Guinness to make a strangely tasty champagne cocktail called Black Velvet that is usually served at Irish weddings.

BLACK VELVET

2 oz Guinness

2 oz champagne

Pour champagne into flute and then add Guinness. Watch out for the frothy head.

The way i see it, you’re going to have to make at least six of these to use up a whole bottle of Guinness. At that point, you’re working up a pretty good buzz, so it’s best just to roll last night’s drunk into today’s.

Cheers.

What makes New Year’s Eve a true Alcoholiday is its dedication to drinking. I mean, it has its own mascot drink in champagne. You stay up all night, you kiss strangers at midnight–this has Alcoholiday written all over it.

TOP TEN REASONS TO GET DRUNK ON NEW YEAR’S EVE

10. You don’t want to be the Sober Sally, do you?

9. Counting down is much more fun when you’re drunk.

8. So is saying, “Look at the size of that ball!”

7. Go out the same way you came in.

6. There’s nothing worse than being up at 1 a.m. and not being drunk.

5. No work tomorrow (invitation for a hangover).

4. If you’re going to resolve to drink less next year, you’ve got to get it all out of your system tonight.

3. You might have to kiss a dude at midnight.

2. Your friends think they’re funny when they call from the East Coast and brag about being in the new year before you.

1. Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve.

Happy New Year!

Champagne tends to be higher quality, although their are some good sparkling wines out there. True Champagne tends to be more expensive and is the classier choice for the conscientious party-goer.

The terms have become pretty much synonymous in our contemporary drinking lexicon, and the boozebuzz adheres to using champagne as a blanket term for both Champagne and sparkling wine.

So, if you’re hitting up a house party or get-together for the special night, what’s the best bottle to be popping at midnight?

If you’re a high roller, Dom Perignon is the only choice. The brand carries its own reputation of class and quality. But you’d better be prepared to pay big time for a bottle.

For a mid-range choice, the most popular option is Martini-Rossi. At around $35 a bottle, it’s the real deal. You won’t be turning any heads at the holiday party, but you’ll be treated to a quality sipper as the year turns over.

For a real find among the American options, pick up the Scharffenberger Brut. It’s less than $20 a bottle and has scored in the 90s with multiple wine publications. This is a diamond in the rough for wine lovers.

Or, if you figure you’re gonna be pretty well drunk by midnight anyway, just pick up that bottle of Cook’s or Andre’s and chug it straight. That’s the boozebuzz way.