Tyler's Taproom
Carrboro, NC
www.tylerstaproom.com
I was drawn to the Peach Tea cocktail while out with friends last weekend to celebrate my husband's birthday. I'm a big fan of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, which is saying a lot since I don't like sweet tea in its natural form at all, by which I mean liquid so thick you could stand up a fork in it. Firefly is all the rage for mixing these days and Tyler's had three different drinks featuring it, if I recall correctly. This one also included peach schnapps, club soda, and Sierra Mist.
Does that last sentence seem strange to you? It didn't even occur to me on ordering, but two sodas is a rather odd choice of ingredients, especially when you could just add extra Sierra Mist if bubbles were the goal as club soda is just carbonated water. Sure, Sierra adds some citrus, too, but this drink would have been so much better if triple sec or a house sweet and sour mixer had been used instead. What I ended up with was a drink that tasted sweet and a teeny bit like tea on first sip but quickly faded away into plain soda. Horrible? No. It just could have been so much better if half the soda was cut out or better mixers were added in.
2 stars
Most of my posts on nightlife feature a specific cocktail that I’ve enjoyed rather than focusing on the atmosphere of the bar, club, or wine bar that I’m patronizing. Largely, that’s because I care more about what’s in my glass than I do what’s playing on the speakers. However, I am far more likely to enjoy neighborhood dive bars and wine bars than I am a club or anywhere with loud music. I’ll still give the latter a try, and if the beverages are inventive and fun, I’ll be back no matter the soundtrack!