Still more Manucheladas

Still more great publicity on the Manuchelada is rolling out with this latest missive from Edmund Tijerina:

Tasty
One of downtown's swanky nightspots, Suede Lounge, is getting some attention for creating a special drink for the NBA Finals.
It's called the "Manuchelada" and it's a version of the classic michelada.
The recipe from general manager Sarah Hartman and marketing guy Matt Scherer features Heineken (because it's supposedly Manu Ginobili's favorite beer), lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and some other seasoning in a Twang-rimmed glass.
Enjoy one during the next game. Or before. Or after.

Five more copies for my mother....

Most publicists never want to take center stage when it comes to representing their clients, but getting a mention in Andi McDowell's weekly media column in the San Antonio Business Journal has to be a big highlight for me. Andi's column showed how Chris Day, my boss at Twang, and I worked with Sarah Hartman, the general manager at Suede Lounge, to create the famous Manuchelada, named after the famous Spurs star, Manu Ginoboli. In the words of Dr. Hook,,, "I'll have to send five copies for my mother."

(P.S. The words to the Dr. Hook song was written by the late Shel Silverstein, author of "The Giving Tree" and "Where The Sidewalk Ends."

The birth of the Manuchelada

As the contract public relations manager for Twang, you can imagine my joy when the producers at WOAI wanted me to do a segment on NBA related drinks on Friday. With the help of Sarah Hartman, the general manager at the Suede Lounge on Houston Street, we created the "Manuchelada" for the SA Living show. As Sarah knows how Manu likes Heineken, we created a version of her michelada recipe for the segment by subbing the more traditional Dos Equis beer for the Dutch brew. In addition to the manuchelada, we also created drinks for Tim Duncan called the "Timmy," and a tribute to Eva Longoria and Tony Parker. For those who missed the segment which aired at 10:50 a.m. on Friday, here's Sarah's outstanding recipes.....

The Manuchelada

Rim glass with Twang chili-lime salt
Fill with ice in a pint size glass
Squeeze the juice of one half lime onto ice
Shake half a teaspoon of celery salt and a half of a teaspoon of pepper into glass
Add two dashes of worchestire sauce to the mix
Add three to five dashes of Tabasco (according to taste)
Pour Heineken over mix
Shake in large shaker and pour back into glass


The Evi-Toni

Rim glass with Twang orange or tangerine flavored rim sugar
Fill with ice
Add 1.5 ounces of X Rated Fusion Liquor
Pour ¼ can of Red Bull and one ounces of cranberry
Shake in large shaker and pour into large martini glass


The Timmy

Rim eight-ounce martini glass with Twang banana flavored rim sugar
In a mixing glass, add 1.5 ounces of Malibu Rum
Add three ounces of pineapple and three ounces of cranberry
Shake content and pour mix through strainer into Highball glass

The history of the Potato Fiesta pix

Inspired by attending the San Antonio Fiesta's "A Taste of New Orleans" two weeks ago, my 15-year-old daughter, Kate and I created this special crown for the potato. Few realized that in 2008, this modest veggie is the "UN Vegetable of the Year." So, knowing that a few of our favorite restaurants serve bland French fried potatos, we thought it was best to build a campaign around great recipes featuring my client Twang and their line of seasonings with the simple spud. After all, the world's top veggie deserves a little spice, especially Twang's chili-limon seasoning.

What all fries deserve is a little Twang

Few people realize it just yet, but the United Nations has decreed that 2008 is the "International Year of the Potato." As the publicist for Twang, I am going to help the media discover that the simple spud is such an important veggie. And, my goal is to convince them that all potatos should have some simple Twang seasoning especially with French fries and a burger.

Twang and Mike's Lemonade

With the completion of Twang's special packaging deal with Mike's Lemonade http://www.mikeshard.com/#page=home.asp, I am look forward to getting the word out about my client's special flavoring for the adult beverage. Chris Day, my boss at Twang, did a great job of convincing the beverage distributor to promote their drink with his company's seasoning. I spoke to my good friend, Andi Rodriguez, the columnist for the San Antonio Business Journal, who suggested that we tie in a Fiesta tag. Fiesta http://www.fiesta-sa.org is a good reason to take a spring vacation in San Antonio, and most people take a couple of days off to celebrate.

Roadie to Houston proves inspiration for Twang

I am in Houston today on "bidness" on behalf of my client -- Twang (www.twang.com). I am going to meet with some restaurant business development and marketing types to promote Twang and to get some contacts for future articles. Last night, I walked from my hotel on Richmond Street to the Scott Geritners Sports Bar to have a burger and a fries. The fries were pretty good because they used Lowry's Seasoning on it. However, as I told the manager there are better seasonings such as Twang's chili-lime flavoring or pickle salt. So, the trip has given me the inspiration to pursue the idea of fry seasonings. And, I will continue to work with my friend and client, Paul Weir, the owner of the Longhorn Cafe, to get him to season his fries. Weir's burgers, especially the mushroom burger, is one of the best ones in San Antonio, but his fries need some special seasoning. It will probably take a game or two of racquetball to get him convinced.

Riverwalk Hilton to feature Twang green beer salt for St. Paddy's Day

If you have plans to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in two weeks, plan on stopping for a pint at Dirty Nellie's pub in the Hilton Palacios del Rio hotel. The famed Irish pub will feature the lime beer salt of my client, Twang for its margaritas and draft beer. Victor Cervantes, the hotel's food and beverage manager, tried some samples yesterday, and he loved the flavoring so much that he is going to add it to all his bars just in time for the patron saint of Ireland's official feast day.

Victor also helped Twang by using their Cocktail Candies flavorings on several drinks during a segment on WOAI's Living Show in early February. Gotta say that I appreciate Victor's help in promoting the Twang brand.

Calling all michelada lovers

Just spoke to my friend John Griffin, the dining editor for the San Antonio Express News, http://www.mysa.com, about Micheladas. As the publicist for Twang http://www.twang.com, I have been working with John on restaurants that make a good version of this drink. The inspiration for this came after celebrating the birthday of Katie Hotard, one of my St. Francis CYO hoopsters. I don't want to name the restaurant but when I ordered a Michelada, the waiter gave me a drink with some salt, a shot of Clamato and the beer. Then, this restaurant billed me 50 cents for the extra tomato juice. So, I told John about what happened at the restaurant and their so called Michelada. In March, the Express News is running a story on Micheladas, and I have helped John find some great bars that feature the drink. If you know of a good place in San Antonio that features this drink, please give me a shot via email at mailto:mattscherer@gmail.com.