Root by Art in the Age
March 1, 2010 // Food & Drinks







A few hundred years ago settlers picked up the recipe for a beverage called Root Tea, which was the combination of roots, spices and herbs that fermented and became alcoholic. A couple hundred years later prohibition started to kick in so Root Beer was created to fill the gap of this product, recreating the flavor it lacked the alcholic contents. Cut to present day where Art in the Age have decided to start creating Root Tea again, alcohol content and all, calling it simply Root.

I actually tweeted about Root and the folks over at Art in the Age sent me an entire bottle to sample, which totally surprised me, I was expecting one of those tiny, hotel sized bottles. Upon opening the bottle I couldn’t quite place the smell, though it was frustratingly familiar. Of course that smell was root beer, but more like a full bodied, pungent root beer smell. You might even say it was a little magical, like something you might read about it in Harry Potter.

Tasting it is quite a treat, and though it’s similar to root beer, it’s nothing like it. Root beer is overly sweet and fizzy, while Root is deep and full-bodied to taste. I can definitely taste the anise, and maybe a bit of the lemon, though it’s really hard to put a label on the exact flavor. Honestly it tastes like herbs and roots, which is a wonderful thing to try. I’ve been drinking it with Hendricks, bitters and a bit of tonic water to even things out. The first night I had one of those I was warm and toasty for the rest of the night.

I think what’s really exciting about Root is that no one (to my knowledge) is making a product like this. I didn’t even know anything like this existed until a few weeks ago. This novelty is definitely a part of it’s allure, but I can definitely say that the flavor is amazing and something that’s worth trying.

Plus look at that bottle! How rad is the design? I think if you brought this to a party or gave this to someone as a present you’d win major bonus points. I’m going to have to bring my bottle to work, otherwise my co-workers might beat me up.

Bobby

New Photos from Kim Høltermand
March 1, 2010 // Photography





I’m sorry, but the desire to post Kim Høltermand’s work all the time is maddening, the man is a genius. The images above are taken from a new series he did called Prism and once again he applies his trademark style to another gorgeous location. It’s amazing how he can turn a simple shape into such an awesome looking photo. I love that all of the photos in the set are basically the same, but by taking them at different times of day the color and lighting shifts, giving them an entirely new feeling. This is meant to be a bit of random beauty for your day, so enjoy it, and if you’re unfamiliar with Mr. Høltermand’s work, be sure to visit his site.

Bobby

Urban Outfitters x Quoddy Deck Shoe
March 1, 2010 // Shoes



I’ve been on Urban Outfitter’s press release mailing for a little while now and so I get a bit of a jump on what’s coming out next, which is always fun. So last week I got to see a preview of their spring and summer collaborations, one of them definitely caught my eye.

The shoes above are a collaboration with Quoddy, the Maine based manufacturer who’s been handmaking shoes since 1909. These are described as “Quoddy for UO Deck Shoe” so my guess is this collaboration is much like the one they did with The Brothers Bray. Quoddy designed the shoe but their constructed in China for less and UP distributes them. I don’t know if this is true, it’s just my guess. Update: Whoops, my guess was wrong, and I quote, “the shoes are made in Maine with the same materials and construction process as the Quoddy’s main line.” Good to know.

Either way I definitely love this shoe and I couldn’t find anything on the Quoddy site that was quite like this, so I’m pretty excited. I think the color choice is spot on and that these would be damn comfortable to wear around all summer long. I guess we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled for when they launch.

Bobby

Daniel Carlsten Illustration for Dwell
February 28, 2010 // Design + Illustration + Magazine

I got the newest issue of Dwell a couple weeks ago and when I was flipping through it I came across the beautiful illustration you see above. My first thought was “Who did this?” and I looked and it was a guy name Daniel Carlsten. But why did that sound familiar? Because I posted about him last November, you might remember his extremely awesome invite for Acne.

I don’t know what it is about this illustration that excites me so much. Everything seems psuedo-realistic but still has this playful character to it. Honestly the scan above doesn’t do it justice, but this is probably one of my favorite illustrations that Dwell has run in the past year or so. Be sure to pick up the newest issue and check it out for yourself.

Bobby

Sushi Cat
February 27, 2010 // Design





I thought it would be kind of fun to start posting silly flash games on here on the weekends. Most weekends I like to try and relax and playing these is a good way to not think about things.

For today I’ve found an awesome guy called Sushi Cat, where you’re tying to fatten up a skinny kitty so that he can get to the kitty girl of his dreams. The game is played like Plinko, that game you see on The Price is Right, except you drop a kitty and you want to gobble yummy sushis. I wish I was this kitty.

I had to put the game under the cut because it automatically starts playing with sounds, which be slightly obnoxious on the front page of the blog. Have fun playing and let me know if you dig this kind of thing.

Continue reading Sushi Cat…