Luxury. Binary. Juice. Is there a limit on what people will pay to nourish themselves through the medium of fruit juice (and, um, nutritional gel)? It seems as though MonaVie has set out to answer that question — a little social experiment if you will. “Let’s pack 19 fruits into a wine bottle (including acaí — wooo!), chalk it up to the Balance-Variety-Moderation philosophy, and charge about $45 per bottle.” MonaVie has been around for a few years now, but I just heard about it. Given that it is sold through a MLM (multiple level marketing) system, that doesn’t surprise me … maybe those peddling it are too ashamed to announce the price to potential customers. At any rate, I (reluctantly) can’t wait to try the stuff. Hopefully it’s coming to a martini bar near me someday soon.

I have a couple of questions for our readers: (1) Have any of you tried the juice? (2) What are your thoughts about products sold this way (is it an automatic turn-off or do you let the quality of the product speak for itself)?

It seems like the last thing the world needs now is a new brand of spring water. But if it’s being sold by a puppet dancing to Snap’s “Rhythm is A Dancer,” the folks at Drench spring water have me convinced otherwise. Their minute-and-a-half-long masterwork of a commercial, created by the U.K.’s Chi Advertising, is so exhilaratingly funny that it makes us thirsty for more. The ad features a hydrated hipster (aka Brains from Thunderbirds) who could just as easily serve you some Drench or serve you on the dance floor. We’d go with the former … that puppet’s pretty talented.

via Brand New

So many energy drinks, so little bladder control. For most health conscious people out there, the biggest problem with the plethora of Gator, Power, Sobe, and other prefixed aides and waters is that we all want to believe that they’re doing a bit of good to our addled bodies. If you’re going to reach for a bottle of vitamin infused H20, shouldn’t you be able to quantify the goodness? The team at Activate Drinks realized that for the average one-a-day pill consumer, you need to be able to see the proof in the neon colored liquid. As you turn the cap of the bottle, a packet of essential vitamins and minerals is released into the drink — the thought being that you store your vitamins in a cool, dry place, why shouldn’t the same logic be applied to your vitamin drink? The flavor options come in low-calorie concoctions such as: Vitamin, Antioxidant, and Immunity. We’re sure there are scientists that could tell us all about the effectiveness of this technique, but honestly, after this weekend, we’re just looking for something to make our kidneys usable again.

Warm weather means more than shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops…it also means it’s time to brush off that grill and start bbq-ing. Whether you’re a carnivore, herbivore, or omnivore, you’re going to need more than just fire and coal to make your flame broiled fantasies a reality. Every grill master needs some quality utensils — and we’ve got just what the doctor (or chef) ordered. This set of stainless steel folding grill tools from Sur La Table includes a brush, a pair of tongs, and a spatula with eco-friendly pakkawood handles that allow these cooking tools to become compact providing a sleek space saving solution to your searing situation. Also, they might be useful in fending off a mugging providing you can convince your would be attacker that the folding spatula is also a switchblade.

Related: Meat = Mine

Not since Frank Perdue and his poultry-looking family sold us on his “all natural” birds have we been so taken with an advertisement for chicken. Foster Farms has taken Dove’s “Campaign for Real Beauty” ads (the he ones where models of all shapes, sizes, and skin conditions teach us about the trickery of Photoshop), and applied it to tasty all-white meat. The ad is cute, but to be honest, we’re not sure which we’d go for: the untouched sock puppet chicken, or the unappetizing brand logo at the end. Ah, what the hell…it doesn’t really matter as long as it goes in the deep fryer.

Via swissmiss

I remember walking into A Salt and Battery the first year I lived in New York, and having heart palpitations when I discovered that at Easter, they do deep fried Cadbury Créme Eggs. As disgusting as that sounds, you shouldn’t knock it till you’ve tried it. I was transported back to that memory just now, when I was mucking around on the Goo-ology website, and watching a series of disturbed Creme Eggs seeking help for their mental problems and suicidal tendencies. Those eggs managed to escape vats of hot oil, though. Go give Eggs & Ladders a play, watch the brilliant UK ad spots under the ‘Fantasties’ section, and when you can’t stand it anymore, rest assured any Duane Reade or Rite Aid will have at least half a million of them in stock already.

I’m in Chicago right now, and it’s cold. Really, really cold. That means two things around the JS headquarters: lots of hooded sweatshirts, and warm drinks. Thanks to the folks at Two Leaves and a Bud Tea, we’ve been enjoying a fantastic blend of quality teas, like this one here, African Sunset. Only teas that are grown in single geographic regions using traditional growing methods are used — that means lots of time picking, testing, and tasting. It also means they never blend with less expensive “filler teas,” which is party of the reason these teas taste so delicious.

The company is based just down the road from Aspen, Colorado in a little place called Roaring Fork Valley. It was originally started because founder Richard Rosenfeld was frustrated with the US selection and couldn’t find the high qualities he so much enjoyed during his travels through Asia and India. We’re glad you brought some new and unique teas back with you. Thanks Richard!

Paper just got a little more obsolete. A week after Orange and UK ad agency The Alternative debuted a much buzzed about no touch interactive phone menu in the window of its Carnaby Street store, NYC's legendary St. Regis Hotel has taken the new-age menu up a notch.

The St. Regis is home to celebrated chef Alain Ducasse's Adour Restaurant and, despite the opulent old-skool feel of the sheepskin covered gold wine bar, ordering a drink is decidedly high tech. Created by Potion Design, an electronic touch sensitive menu is displayed onto the bar from a built-in projection system in the ceiling. Foodies can check out Adour's extensive wine list just by tapping their hands on the interactive menu before them. Once you've narrowed it down to a specific wine, a flower icon appears displaying info about the bottle on each of its petals; country, vineyard, grape varietals, and all that fancy sommelier stuff is displayed, literally, right at your fingertips.

Mary Poppins had it right. A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. Even better, what if the sugar is the medicine.

Designed in Barcelona by studio m, Happy Pills is a modern day collision between confectionary and apothecary. The store, literally wedged between two large buildings, might go unnoticed if not for the acid-pink Red Cross logo above it's door. Inside, the pharmaceutical design bend is consistent: jellybean filled pill bottles and fully-stocked "first aid kits" line the shelves, or you can self-medicate by filling up bottles with your candy of choice.

My personal fave are the handy "morning-afternoon-night" pill holders, just to make sure your sugar-toothing stays on schedule.

We know you love swinging by your local neighborhood chain restaurant for both the ambiance and the quality eats, but sometimes dining out can get a tad bit pricy. If only you could employ your own skillet skills to serve up the same sensational suppers in the comfort of your kitchen, you'd sure save a lot of scratch. While eliminating the waiter as the middleman between you and your meal sounds great in theory, T.G.I. Friday's doesn't just give out their top-secret recipe for their Jack Daniels Grill Glaze...or do they? Well, not exactly, but Todd Wilbur, the mastermind behind Top Secret Recipes, thinks he's figured it out. Wilbur has spent the last 15 years in mastering the practice of kitchen cloning, creating perfect clones of brand-name recipes and uncovering the most guarded of ingredients for everything from fast food to yoo-hoo. So just what are those ingredients? You'll have to go to his website to find out for yourself.

Our pals at Metromint are at it again. Back in March of 2006 they launched Spearmint (I’m still waiting on my stock options), then in early 2007 the super-genius mintologists launched Lemonmint and Orangemint — also stellar flavors. But who could have seen this one coming? Chocolate mint water, the most original beverage since mint water. Choco-mint is delicious. In fact, if you close your eyes and drink it, the essence of chocolate left in your mouth afterwards feels like you just chomped down a chocolate bar. Same great taste, zero calories. Oh my god! It will be in stores for Valentine’s day, and I’m telling you, it’s damn good.

Still looking for that perfect gift for the guy who has everything — and I do mean everything? Well, if he’s a scotch or whiskey drinker, here’s the answers. As most fine whiskey fanatics will tell you, it’s almost sacrilegious to water down your scotch with “regular” ice cubes. In fact, so much so that companies are storming the market with products that solve just this…problem.

The first I noticed was IceRocks. IceRocks are premium “spring water ice cubes”. These guys are willing to go so far as to let you water down your fine whiskey, but only with Evian-style ice. Anything less would be unconscionable.

The next two solutions to watered down whiskey are a bit less forgiving in their approach: fine whiskey should NOT be watered down. So in the interest of keeping your spirits strong (bad pun, sorry), have a look at the Ice Stones from Teroforma, a brand I’ve been working with lately, and a similar solution from Sippin’ on the Rocks, making an appearance on Thrillist today. Both offer a more natural and reusable solution to this quandary: rocks. Put rocks in your freezer and then in your drink, and they do the job of ice without diluting your whiskey.

And if your man who has everything doesn’t have fine whiskey, maybe you should add that to the list as well. Anyone care to recommend a favorite?

Scientists say that when you eat chocolate your brain produces the same chemical it does as when you're in love. Well since it is the season for giving, why not give your chocolate-loving loved one a double dose of that smitten sensation. We think they'll simply adore both the signature and seasonal brownie selections that the capable confectioners at Mari's New York have to offer. Blessed with the most delectable ingredients such as premium dark chocolate, Grade AA butter and Madagascar bourbon vanilla extract and available in flavors ranging from the classic brownie to Thai Coffee, these savory cocoa creations come individually wrapped inside of a signature baton box to preserve freshness so when your sweetie samples these savory snacks she's sure to fall head over heels...though maybe not for you.

If a constantly revolving door of roommates has left you with anything positive, it's probably the large variety of leftover liquor lingering around your kitchen area. While that sounds like a blessing in disguise, your lack of bartending know-how may be your own worst enemy. If you're wondering how you can turn those bottles of créme de menthe, tequila, and apricot liqueur into a savory concoction for Cocktail Hour look no further than Esquire’s Drinks Database. Just punch in the ingredients you have on hand and voila; the Drinks database will provide you with a list of libations that you can gear up to guzzle in no time.

Last weekend at Mercado Mundo Mix, a market-slash-fair that brings together up-and-coming stores and designers from the underground fashion world mostly in Sao Paulo, I got egged into trying a new super-carbonated and fizzy shot of vodka called Orloff Gas, which is an extension of the Orloff vodka family being pushed by Pernod Ricard Brasil (the same group that has Jameson, Chivas and Courvoisier). After much research on the Brazilian liquor-loving public, this 5-times-distilled sparkling liquor was developed for their penchant for both carbonated drinks and vodka. Vodka is a huge industry here in Brazil; many clubbers often replace the sugar cane rum called cachaca in their capirinha cocktails with it instead. In my taste test I had trouble discerning the bubbles from the actual flavor of vodka, and even on an empty stomach I didn’t feel the usual buzz I usually get from a shot. Well, bottoms up; I found out later it has a low 15% alcohol content. I’ll be sticking with the harder stuff myself, but from the smiles of the eager drinkers around me, Brazilians are liking this new fuel to power their nights out.

Photo via CEFET Campos