How to Make An Apple Martini?

24. June 2011 · Comments Off · Categories: Food · Tags: , , ,

Apple martinis have been a mainstay for quite some time. The growing nightlife and evening happy hour is having a tremendous effect on the way bartenders make drinks. Now, these bartenders are starting to be called so called mixologists that are proficient in mixing different drinks together. The apple martini is no different than a bunch of different mixes and drink names available.

The apple martini has always been a popular cocktail containing vodka, apple juice, apple cider with a sweet and sour mix. Although, it’s a very sweet and refreshing drink, it has the tendency to creep up on people. Some different mixes include the Washington Apple Martini. It’s filled with ice, uses a martini glass, Crown Royal whiskey, an apple mix as well as some cranberry juice. This is a really nice drink to make and it’s best served on chill and shaken not stirred.

Another specialty drink is the Smirnoff Apple Martini. More liquors nowadays have different flavors to add a certain sweet taste, and the Smirnoff has an Apple liquor that provides a kick to your drink. Simply take 1 1/4 ounces of the Smirnoff Green Apple Vodka, 1/4 apple schnapps, a splash of sour mix, and a slice of green apple. This is very popular drink that you’ll see in the clubs, bars, and lounges. The focus is more so on liquor mixes than the actual adding of apple juice or apple cider.

Apple martinis are widely popular even on small screen and big screen. For the widely popular series “Scrubs”, it’s a favorite drink of character Dr. John “J.D.” Dorian. More recently with the movie “Social Network” loosely based on the making of popular social network, Facebook, there was a scene that involved apple martinis. Before the movie, the actual creator of Facebook did not even so much as drink an apple martini. However, after the premier, he not only drank it but made it part of the Facebook logo. These types of messages add a certain young and modern vibe to the rather middle aged drink. As more mixes come about, the apple martini will continue to have a stay in worldwide popular culture.

Solar Landscape Lighting

24. June 2011 · Comments Off · Categories: Green Energy · Tags: , , ,

Solar landscape lighting gives people the added flexibility in outdoor landscape design of not having to worry about how to hide the wires and where to place electric sockets. Now you can place your lights however you please, as long as the solar panel can be connected to them and gets enough sunlight.

Here are a few tips you can incorporate into your outdoor design if you’re looking for ideas of what you can do with your lights.

Spotlights

Spotlights are some of the most versatile forms of lighting and they can take a garden from mundane to spectacular. If you have trees and bushes in your backyard, place your solar lights at the base to cast long, dark shadows. You can also use any other structure, like a statue or birdbath and use the lights to draw attention to it. For added functionality, point the lights to a fence or around the edges of your property, and link them up to security light sensors. This will automatically deter any unwanted intruders from entering, and provide you with aesthetic value as well.

Ambient Lighting

This is the lighting best associated with evening parties on the lawn, and family barbeques. Installing these lights will give you the most savings, as compared to regular electric lights, even though the cost of installing larger solar panels might at first seem daunting.

Since a garden is a large area to cover, you will need larger solar lights, which translates to larger solar panels. The most common panels used in this technique of landscape lighting are top of pole mounts; this means you will have to place you solar lights in positions some distance from the ground. Once installed though, you can enjoy a well-lit garden even after dark.

Foot Lamps

Place foot lamps across your walk way to illuminate the way to your home, even if it is an unpaved path, foot lamps have a way of giving a warm, inviting touch to the entrance of your home. It is important though, to keep them pointed upwards during the daytime so they soak enough solar energy, but apart from that, this option allows you the most flexibility.

If at some point you decide to use these lights somewhere else, or that you need to place fewer or more of them along the path, you can simply by pulling them out of the ground and placing them where you want to.

With solar landscape lighting you will never have to deal with the hassle of electric wires and underground trunking. That leaves you free to explore your creative potential. Best of all they can be moved whenever you want to change the atmosphere of your garden, be added or taken away with ease.

Not only are they convenient but they will save you plenty of money in electricity bills thanks to them being solar. Once they have been purchased, there is no other running costs. Just site them and leave them to it, it couldn’t be easier.