George Strait Praises New Celebrity Wine & Spirits Marketplace, GrapeStars

Sounds Like Nashville readers know that we’re big fans of George Strait and his Código 1530 line of finely-crafted tequilas. Since launching the brand a few years back, the biggest problem has been helping his fans all over the country figure out how to buy a bottle or two.

Fortunately, an app called GrapeStars has come to the rescue. Billed as “The Home of Celebrity Wine and Spirits,” GrapeStars connects fans with more than 200 celebrity-backed wine and spirits products and provides the ability to order the products directly online pursuant to local regulations.

Music and film stars have become very important players in the booze biz, and GrapeStars is your clearinghouse to products backed by luminaries ranging from Aviation Gin from Ryan Reynolds to Adam Levine’s Santo Puro Mezquila to Marilyn Manson’s special brand of absinthe he calls “Mansinthe.” In the world of country music, Strait is joined by Kenny Chesney and his broad line of Blue Chair Bay Rum which we have shared with you in the past. (Well, we didn’t actually “share” it with you, because we wanted to keep it for ourselves!)

Código 1530’s offering of five different expressions of tequila are fairly widely available across the country, but there are certainly instances when you’d rather just place your order online and have it delivered ‘strait’ to your door. Download the GrapeStars app from the App Store or get it from Google Play, and you’ll just be a few clicks away from wine and spirits shopping from your own living room. Once your Código 1530 arrives, try mixing up one of these cocktail recipes that George Strait has so graciously shared:

La Paloma

• 2 oz. Código 1530 Blanco tequila
• 2 oz. fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice
• .5 oz. lime juice
• 2 oz. club soda

In a shaker filled with ice, add tequila, lime and grapefruit juice. Shake and strain into a Collins glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Garnish with a slice of grapefruit.

Blanco Margarita

• 2 oz. Código 1530 Blanco Tequila
• 1 oz. Triple Sec
• 1.5 oz. lime juice
• .5 oz. agave nectar

Rim rocks glass with salt. Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and serve over ice. Garnish with a lime.

Añejo Manhattan

• 2.5 oz Código 1530 Añejo tequila
• .75 oz. sweet vermouth
• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir. Strain into a glass and garnish with an orange twist and cherry.