Vodka is down, red velvet is up and did Twinings pull a New Coke with Earl Grey?
> Vodka is down (or is it) -- the vanguard of expert bartenders are sneering at customers who order vodka. Is a dirty martini the worst drink ever? Toronto restaurateur Jen Agg's "Vodka is Stupid" essay started the anti-vodka campaign back in February: "If your desperation for flavor has you drinking olive brine, just drink gin. Please."
> Red Velvet is higher than gas -- TCBY announces a new red-velvet flavor.
> The Baltimore Snacker has returned to Maryland -- read the award-winning blogger's piece on Maryland Fried Chicken
> The chairman of Nestle apparently talked trash about organics (Grub Street)
> Twinings has pulled a New Coke on its Earl Grey, apoplectic critics say. (via Grub Street)
> Catch up with the Del Monte story, which begins here, with excerpts from the company's press release announcing its suit against the Food and Drug Administration:
"Del Monte Fresh Produce, N.A., Inc., a subsidiary of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., filed suit on Monday, Aug. 22, against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland to seek an injunction that would lift an FDA rule restricting the importation of wholesome fresh cantaloupes into the United States.