In-Flight Drinking

Texas-born cocktail brand takes flight on Virgin America

A Texas-born cocktail brand is taking flight: Austin Cocktails, a line of bottled vodka-based concoctions, is now available on Virgin America. The airline, named the Best Domestic Airline for Food in the Travel + Leisure 2014 World’s Best Awards, deemed Austin Cocktails’ Cucumber Vodka Mojito worthy of its passengers, who can kick back with the in-flight libation for $8.25.

But that’s only one of four flavors offered by the brand. Others include Vodkarita, Tea Twister and Paradise Found. All are made with vodka distilled five times, which is then infused with quality ingredients sourced from all over the world and sweetened with organic agave. The goal: shatter the stigma associated with the ready-to-drink category.

For anyone watching her girlish figure, this may be the most noteworthy: They all ring in at less than 100 calories a serving.

Virgin’s pick, the Cucumber Vodka Mojito, has a refreshing, lime-heavy flavor that gets better with subsequent sips. With its hint of cucumber, it reminds us of the cucumber-infused water you get at a spa, so we think it would make a fine spirit for a girls spa day or boozy bridal shower.

Vodkarita is exactly what it sounds like: a twist on a margarita made with vodka rather than tequila. We taste more of the orange than the lime, and it has a taste reminiscent of a flat orange soda.

Tea Twister has a very strong, sweet tea flavor, which Austin Cocktails attributes to the tea grown in the high-altitude volcanic soil of Kenya, which produces a naturally sweeter and bolder tea. Indeed. It also has a touch of natural lemon.

Our favorite is Paradise Found, a combination of vodka, coconut water, stone and citrus fruits, basil, and agave nectar. The basil makes it very fragrant, and although it’s fruit-forward, it’s not too sweet. We can imagine drinking it poolside or during a jaunt to the Hamptons.

Austin Cocktails is named for the city where it started. In December 2013, sisters and serial entrepreneurs Jill Peterson Burns and Kelly Gasink, who grew up in Dallas, launched their company in the hopes of making a craft cocktail as convenient as a glass of premium wine or craft beer.

The sisters lamented the fact that they, like most people, never had the ingredients available to make appealing and creative cocktails. Even when they did, the results weren’t balanced or consistent. Austin Cocktails are flavored by fruits and herbs — not overpowered by artificial sweeteners.

In October 2014, the bottled concoctions became available in Dallas, and you may have sipped on them at some of your favorite social events. Austin Cocktails are available at places such as PK’s Fine Wine & Spirits, Spec’s, Po-Go’s and Goody Goody. Suggested retail price is $14.99 per bottle.

Austin Cocktails has three new drinks scheduled for release in spring 2015 and will expand distribution to additional states next year.

Austin Cocktails are made with distilled vodka infused with fruits and herbs and sweetened with organic agave.

Photo courtesy of Austin Cocktails

Austin Cocktails are made with distilled vodka infused with fruits and herbs and sweetened with organic agave.

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Ice Cream News

Global ice cream brand Kelvin Scale makes creamy U.S. debut in Frisco

Kelvin Scale

Ice cream cones by Kelvin Scale

A unique new ice cream shop has made its U.S. debut right here in the Dallas area: Called Kelvin Scale Ice Cream, it's a dessert shop featuring ice cream, waffles, shakes, brownies, and ice cream cakes and it's now open in Frisco at 2650 King Rd. #750, in a former spa business near the intersection of Main Street.

Kelvin Scale was originally founded in India, where it has approximately 40 locations. The name comes from a temperature scale used by scientists that starts at zero — which they wink at with a motto that says "the Absolute Zero of additives."

Bringing it to the U.S. is a team of entrepreneurs who were impressed with the premium quality of the ice cream and other menu items, says spokesman Ram Bonda.

"We make the ice cream from scratch, not from a mix, with none of the additives or stabilizers used by some ice cream brands," Bonda says.

They also tout their use of A2 milk, a whole milk that has become popular because is supposedly causes less gas or digestive discomfort than regular milk — a claim that has yet to be proven. Nonetheless, A2 milk is more expensive.

They also do not whip in much "overrun" — the industry term for infusing air to make ice cream lighter (and less costly to produce).

"The texture of our ice cream is very creamy and rich, and you definitely get more with each scoop," Bonda says.

They offer an unusual selection of flavors, with global influences such as Belgian chocolate, Biscoff cookie caramel, cotton candy, and blueberry cheesecake. More exotic offerings include chikku, made from the sapota fruit which has a distinctly caramel flavor; lychee, from the floral fruit that's popular in Asian cuisines; and Rajbhog, a flavor that pays homage to an Indian dessert featuring almonds, pistachios, and saffron.

"We'll feature 24 flavors in the store, pulled from a total bank of 70 to 80 flavors, with flavors rotating in and out according to what's in season and trending," Bonda says. The company enjoys keeping tabs on social media and weaving in flavors that turn viral.

One scoop is $4.50, but additional scoops are a dollar, making it irresistible to get two scoops instead of one.

There are sundaes of all kinds, brownies solo or with ice cream, and an entire menu of waffle treats: waffles with Nutella, waffles with fruit, a red velvet waffle, and a waffle sandwich with ice cream sandwiched between two waffles.

Frisco was a natural place to introduce the brand in the U.S., Bonda says.

"It's one of most rapidly growing cities in the U.S., and it seemed like the ideal place to launch our flagship location," he says. "The location has an open kitchen so you can see the ice cream being made."

ice cream openings