Champagne on ice! The drink that is "sweeping St. Tropez."
Having just returned from the sun kissed shores of the Aegean Sea on the Bodrum Peninsula of Turkey and the cosmopolitan metropolis of Istanbul, I can confidently tell you what summer's hottest beverage is... at least amongst suntanned, bejeweled Euros and Turks. From the open air restaurant (which turned into a mellow nightclub at some point during our dinner) on a hilltop overlooking Istanbul and the Bosphorus, the owner of the Sunset Bar & Grill, thrust Cabernet sized wine goblets full of ice and champagne into mine, Napper's and our dinner companion's hands claiming that Moet Ice is, "the drink that is sweeping St. Tropez!" And that he can consume 8 of them in an evening without feeling drunk. Hmm.
Initially it seemed almost sacrilegious to put ice in champagne. But with one sip, and then another and then the goblet of icy, sweeter than normal champagne was gone and we found ourselves wanting another.... sweeping St. Tropez and a small troop of Americans!
Later in the trip Napper and I found ourselves at Macakizi Hotel on the Bodrum peninsula.
Macakizi is a boho chic property with a plum location (more to come on the hotel) on one of our favorite bays with stunning views and crawling with hot pink bouganvilla and ritzy Turks. On the weekends, come 4pm, the music is turned up and the Moet Ice is popped. Napper and I found the perfect perch above the seaside deck where we tapped our toes to the club music and gave each other knowing looks as the goblets of ice were filled with champagne and the Turks got rowdy. "Sweeping St. Tropez" and Macakizi which we're quite convinced aspires to be St. Tropez.
Make like a ritzy Turk and toast the summer with Moet Ice. On the rocks. Cheers!