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Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/580366
www.cheersonline.com 7 October 2015 • DRINK CULTURE TACO BELL UNVEILS 'SPIRITED' CONCEPT You want a glass of wine with that Chalupa or Gordita? It's now possible, at least at the two new Taco Bell Cantina locations. The fi rst of these concepts opened in September, one in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago, and the other in San Francisco. These two Taco Bell Cantina restaurants will be the fi rst of the Mexican fast-food chain restaurants to serve alcohol. The San Francisco restaurant will serve beer and wine only; Chicago will serve beer, wine and sangria, plus drinks such as the Mountain Dew Baja Blast, Cantina Punch and Cantina Margarita freezes. These can be spiked with 1 oz. of Captain Morgan white rum or Ketel One vodka for about $6 plus tax, or with Don Julio tequila about $7 plus tax. The Cantina restaurants will also feature a new tapas- style menu of shareable appetizers—including nachos and rolled tacos—during designated hours each evening, in ad- dition to the full standard Taco Bell menu. The new concept is part of an urban-themed redesign program to simplify and modernize Taco Bell city locations. In addition to the new alco- hol menu, the urban initiatives include eliminating drive-throughs, opening the kitchens and improving technology for guests.. Taco Bell, which is owned by Yum Brands, is on track to add 2,000 stores to its portfolio by 2022. The chain is now evaluating expansion plans for additional urban markets, as Taco Bell says it's striving to build or remodel about 600 restaurants a year. JACOB'S CREEK TOASTS DJOKOVIC Australian wine brand Jacob's Creek in late August held a wine tasting and cooking demon- stration featuring Novak Djokovic. The Serbian tennis ace—a three-time consecutive Australian Open winner—is the star of Jacob's Creek's "Made By" fi lm series. Jacob's Creek was the offi cial wine partner of the U.S. Open Tournament—which Djokovic would later win. Held at the Astor Center in New York, the event was to introduce Jacob's Creek's Two Lands, a recent collaboration between the Australian winery and noted Napa winemaker Ehren Jordan. The line, which includes pinot grigio, chardonnay, shiraz and cabernet sauvignon, is described by the brand folks as "California craft meets Australian character." Djokovic, who grew up work- ing in his family's restaurant business, assisted celebrity chef Casey Thompson with cooking some gluten-free pasta with shrimp and kale. The #1 ranked men's tennis player showed his softer side when putting the shrimp into the hot pan. "Poor shrimp, I don't like seeing the eyes, honestly," he said.—MD Tennis star Novak Djokovic and celebrity chef Casey Thompson served up some pasta at a recent Jacob's Creek wine event.