Your Moscow mule cocktail may look pretty in a copper mug, but officials in Iowa say that using copper containers for this beverage, and similar drinks, could be hazardous for your health. 
 
 Recently, Iowa's Alcoholic Beverages Division issued an advisory stating that pure copper mugs should not be used to serve Moscow mules or other acidic beverages with a pH below 6.0, including fruit juices, vinegar and wine. Traditionally, Moscow mules contain vodka, ginger beer and lime and have a pH well below 6.0, the advisory said. 
 
 When copper comes into contact with acidic foods and beverages, copper may leach into the food or drink. Ingesting too much copper can lead to copper poisoning, the advisory said. Symptoms of copper poisoning include abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting and jaundice, or a yellowing of the skin, according to the National Institutes of Health. [Top 7 Germs in Food that Make You Sick] 
 
 The Alcoholic Beverages Division said it issued the advisory because of the recent rise in popularity of Moscow mules, which has led to questions about the safety of copper containers for this beverage. 
 
 But Moscow mule enthusiasts need not despair — you can still use a mug with a copper exterior, as long as the interior is lined with a different metal, such as nickel or stainless steel. Mugs with these interiors are safe containers for the cocktail, and are widely available, the advisory said. 
 
 Original article on Live Science. ||||| Latest Drink Recipe Southbound Suarez Man, there are few things out there more polarizing to people than creamy drinks. And it’s funny, you know, because I think it’s a pretty universal thing that our mouths just water at the sight of a creamy cocktail. Look at a properly made Ramos Gin Fizz. Or a White Russian. Or Egg Nog. How delicious do they look? But then there’s this guilty feeling that I think kicks in for most people, where it’s like, “I can’t justify drinking something that contains a bunch of fucking cream.” And I get it, I totally do. Personally, I also try to save up those points and spend them during the holidays. But there’s no getting around the delicious factor. So what about alternatives? I like almond milk in my coffee. I even make my own at home. But one creamy substitute that I can’t live without in my life is horchata. See the previous post for more on that. Anyway, as someone who has been making drinks for almost half of his life at this point, I had to try making something with horchata. My partner in crime at Clyde Common is a gentleman named Benjamin Amberg. But we all call him (among other things), simply Banjo. Banjo and I have a great way of working on cocktails together. It’s very collaborative, and nobody gets too attached to an idea if a better one comes along. (I wrote more about this process for Playboy, check it out) And so it happened that we started working on our new horchata cocktail. And, of course, we broke out all of the typical formulas that we’d both seen on menus before: aged rum and horchata; aged tequila and horchata; variations on a White Russian with horchata instead of cream. And none of them were working, and we were about to scrap the whole idea. But then we had a thought: what if instead of a flabby, creamy drink, we did something more bright and citrusy? We certainly hadn’t seen that done before, and we know rice milk isn’t going to curdle the way cream would. And suddenly, within minutes, we’d assembled what is quickly becoming one of our most popular new drinks, the Southbound Suarez. Named after our favorite song on our least favorite Led Zeppelin album, I like to think the same stands of a reminder of just how tough this one was to create. Southbound Suarez 1½ oz. reposado tequila 
 
 ½ oz. agave syrup 
 
 ½ oz. lime juice 
 
 1 tsp. Becherovka 
 
 1½ oz horchata Combine ingredients with ice cubes and shake until cold. Strain over fresh ice in an Old Fashioned glass and garnish with a lime wedge. 
 
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 A side project, an experiment or just a simple curiosity that turned into a delicious phenomenon that we're still serving to much delight at our bar, barrel aged cocktails explore the gentle manipulation of a drink's flavors over time. This post details the inspiration, the history and the methods behind my barrel aged cocktails. 
 
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 The problem with living in Oregon is the absence of little wooden shacks by the sea that sell cases of fresh ginger beer stacked on back porches. But with some readily-available ingredients, a recipe I've been revising for several years - and a few free minutes - I can easily transport myself to a little fishing boat on the ocean as I sip a Dark and Stormy made with fresh, house-made ginger beer. 
 
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 About Me 
 
 My name is Jeff Morgenthaler and I'm the bar manager at Clyde Common in Portland, Oregon. 
 
 I've been tending bar since 1996 and writing about it since 2004. I started tending bar while getting my degree in Interior Architecture, and slowly I came to the conclusion that bartending was what I really loved, and that I might as well drop everything and focus on being a professional bartender. Over the years I have strived, both behind the bar and with this website, to elevate the experience of having a drink from something mundane to something more culinary. 
 
 The writing I do here is intended as a work in progress. My recipes are like my opinions: they are constantly being revised and refined as I work them through my mind and my fingers. Comments and participation are encouraged, so please don't feel the need to tread lightly here. ||||| Four more Chicago barsElixir Lounge, 3452 N. Halsted, Halsted's Bar and Grill, 3441 N. Halsted, Hydrate Nightclub, 3458 N. Halsted, and Replay, 3449 N. Halstedhave said that they will stop selling Russian products, according to a statement released today. 
 
 And a fifth bar, Parlour, has also pulled products. 
 
 The four bars that issued a joint statement said they "have been monitoring the unfolding events in Russia and we are extremely outraged by the open attacks of the government against the rights of the GLBT community. Effective immediately, we will be pulling all Russian made products from the shelves at all of our establishments. We have been working with our distributors over the past few weeks to identify a premium spirit produced in a country that recognizes and respects the importance and equality of every citizen of the world." 
 
 The statement further announced that the bars would be serving Reyker Vodka, produced in Iceland, and that "the Chicago based Reyka Vodka brand team is making a generous donation to Equality Illinois, an organization which tirelessly fights for equal rights not just here in Illinois, but globally, wherever the equal rights of the GLBT community are compromised." 
 
 Christine Calhoun of Parlour on Clark posted on Facebook that the bar "has also pulled Stoli from our shelves. We proudly serve Halsted Vodka!" 
 
 Both The Call, 1547 W. Bryn Mawr, and Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted, yesterday said that they would also be removing Stolichnaya and other Russian products from their shelves. 
 
 "I had been following the various news reports about what was going on in Russia," said Sidetrack co-owner Art Johnston. "It's hard to believe that they could carry out and enforce that kind of a law, but they did." He added that there was no way he could in good conscience continue to serve Stolichnaya or any other Russian products at the nightclub. 
 
 Businesses that imported and distributed Stolichnaya for Sidetrack have been huge supporters of the LGBT community, Johnston said. "They've always been quite responsive to us, so it's not a move that we take lightly." 
 
 Johnston also emphasized that the decision was a matter of conscience and not an effort to ignite a widespread boycott. "The purpose of this was not to say that we we're better than other businesses. Other businesses have their own concerns and may not be in the same position to do something like this." 
 
 Stolichnaya's corporate owners, Luxembourg-based SPI Group, today released an open letter from their CEO, Val Mendeleev, expressing its opposition to the laws. 
 
 "I want to stress that Stoli firmly opposes such attitude and actions. Indeed, as a company that encourages transparency and fairness, we are upset and angry," said Mendeleev. "Stolichnaya Vodka has always been, and continues to be, a fervent supporter and friend to the LGBT community. 
 
 The ownership of the Stolichnaya trademark has long been in dispute between SPI and the Russian government. Mendeleev's statement attempted to distance SPI from the Russian government, which it insisted had no ownership or control over Stolichnaya. The statement also explained that the vodka's ingredients came from Russia and were distilled and bottled in Latvia. 
 
 "We fully support and endorse your objectives to fight against prejudice in Russia. In the past decade, SPI has been actively advocating in favor of freedom, tolerance and openness in society, standing very passionately on the side of the LGBT community and will continue to support any effective initiative in that direction," said the statement. 
 
 Stoli's response: 
 
 www.queerty.com/read-an-open-letter-from-stoli-premium-vodkas-ceo-to-the-lgbt-community-20130726/ . 
 
 Dan Savage's detailed report on Russian vodkas and connections with Stoli 
 
 slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2013/07/24/why-im-boycotting-russian-vodka .
– One of the most talked-about cocktails this week is the trendy Moscow Mule, but for all the wrong reasons. You can thank Iowa. The spate of headlines was kicked off by an official state health advisory warning that the drink, usually served in a copper mug, poses a health risk if the wrong kind of mug is used. For the uninitiated, a Moscow Mule has vodka, ginger beer, and lime, and thus is acidic, explains Live Science. The problem is, you're not supposed to serve acidic beverages in mugs with a copper interior because it raises the risk of copper leaching into the drink. Solution? A mug with a copper exterior is fine, but make sure the interior is made of stainless steel, nickel, or some other alternative. The advice isn't new, but the state felt compelled to issue the advisory given the "recent popularity of Moscow Mules." (A cruise through Instagram proves the point.) Iowa's warning is based on an FDA advisory from a few years ago. Specifically, it says that drinks with a PH level of 6.0 or under should not be served in pure copper mugs, and the Mule falls into that category. For the record, so do fruit juices, vinegar, and wine, notes the Daily News. (Some might prefer a little food poisoning to this cocktail ingredient.)