Drink like the Great Gatsby at Serendipity 3.

The Great Gatsby is back. The classic F. Scott Fitzgerald tale of beautiful people with first-world problems has been given the Baz Luhrmann treatment. Starring Leo DiCaprio as Gatsby, with music by Beyoncé and Kanye, the movie has received mixed reviews. But who cares? We're watching for the over-the-top parties, the fabulous costumes, and the train wreck that's bound to happen.

After that movie, we're going to need a drink. Serendipity 3 is only too pleased to oblige. They've concocted two fabulous pre-Prohibition cocktails -- perfect for before or after watching Gatsby.

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Courtesy Shellback Rum

Tony Abou-Ganim teaches Daiquiri 101.

The daiquiri, a favorite of Ernest Hemingway and President John F. Kennedy, was rumored to have been invented by an American mining engineer who was in Cuba during the Spanish-American war. Named after a beach in Santiago, Cuba, the drink simply combined rum, lime, and sugar (ingredients readily found in Cuba) to make a potent and refreshing libation.

Now, the "daiquiri" is mostly a bastardized version of itself -- a hellish anti-freeze-colored concoction of cheap grain alcohol or rum and corn syrup-laden mix, blended into a slushie-type substance, and served in a plastic container with a sippy straw. That, Tony Abou-Ganim quips, "is alcohol abuse".

Abou-Ganim, author of the books The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails and Vodka Distilled, has teamed up with Shellback Rum for an "All Hands on Deck" tour to show people how easy it is to make classic rum cocktails at home using fresh ingredients. The mixologist loathes those sugary pre-mixes and is on a mission to wipe them off the planet -- one beautiful drink at a time.

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Spring is rather a moot point in Miami. After all, our temps tend to turn from wintery (a brisk 70 degrees) to summery -- all in one hot minute. For all intents and purposes, it's already summer 'round these parts, which means cold beers, beach days and sweat. Lots of sweat.

For the dirt on the latest and greatest summer beers for 2013, we spoke to Diego Escobar, owner of famed Abraxas Lounge, one of Miami's best beer bars (and recently named on our top South Beach bars list). He gave us the skinny. So here's what you should be stocking up on:

See also:
- World of Beer Opens in Midtown Monday: Lots of Events Planned
- Miami Brewing Company to Start Canning Big Rod Coconut Ale

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Wikimedia CC

It looks like 32 (or 128) ounce jugs of brew will have to suffice for now.

Beer geeks across the state of Florida have tears in their beers as the bills legalizing 64-ounce growlers didn't make the final cut when the Florida legislature ended its session last Friday

Senate Bill 1344 did not make it past the Commerce and Tourism committee and the House's version, HB 714, died in the Business and Professional Regulation Subcommittee.

See also:
- Florida Legislator Trying To Legalize Growlers So You Can Drink More Good Beer
- Beer Growlers: A Waste of Your Tax Dollars

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Kayelee Jacobs via Instagram

Front row, left to right: Miami Madness, Peach and Mojito Florida Weisse; Back row, left to right: Passion Fruit Dragonfruit, Strawberry Rhubarb Florida Weisse

While the upper U.S. West coast has a beer style to call its own (Cascadian Dark Ale), it appears that the craft beer movement in Florida has spawned a new style of beer: the Florida Weisse.

The second annual Berliner Bash on the Bay in Gulfport, Florida, was recently held on April 20 and several Florida brewers took the opportunity to showcase what exactly the Florida Weisse is all about.

See also:
- Miami Homebrewers to Compete in First -Ever Berliner Bash On the Bay in Tampa Tomorrow
- Wakefield Begins Collaboration With Cigar City

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As the mixology movement takes root across Miami -- classic, pre-Prohibition era cocktails are all the rage. Old favorites like the Blood and Sand, the South Side and the Manhattan are making a stiff comeback, re-introducing the masses to gin, bourbon and other liquors too often shelved in favor of flavored vodkas and sweet liqueurs.

One lesser known classic is the Singapore Sling, a libation invented early in the 20th century at the Raffles Hotel in Singapore, reportedly by Hainanese bartender Ngiam Tong Boon. This lightly fruity, gin-based concoction is a perfect summertime drink for combating the Miami heat.

See also:
- Miami Cocktail Company's Low-Cal Concoctions
- Tongue & Cheek: Cheeky Food, Playful Cocktails (Scrumptious Pictures)

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With World Cocktail Week running from May 6 to 13, it's the perfect time to pause and take stock of Miami's rapidly improving mixology landscape. More than a few creative minds are hard at work creating craft cocktails, leaving the Red Bull vodkas and Jack and Cokes in the well-deserved dust. One such artist is Sergio Fernandez, an award-winning bartender and the man behind Doma Polo Bistro's soon-to-launch mixology menu.

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All photos by Zachary Fagenson

Beer snobs, you are not alone.

If you are what you drink, then most of South Florida's beer snobs are fruits or just plain bitter.

Hoppy, pungent IPAs and light, easy-drinking pilsners infused with berries or citrus garnered the longest lines at the Miami New Times' Brew at the Zoo on Saturday night at ZooMiami.

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WOB Midtown via Facebook

Stocking the coolers and getting the swag together.

Sure, it's a chain. But it's also the home of over 500 bottles and 50 rotating drafts of craft beer, making World of Beer a welcome addition to the neighborhood (and a place to add to your happy hour bar rotation).

Located in the Shops at Midtown, this Tampa-based chain also features live music, tap takeovers, a board game lending library and free wi-fi.

Although they do not serve food,World of Beer allows meals to be brought in from neighboring restaurants (many of which deliver directly to WOB). With Sakaya Kitchen, Lime, Mercadito Midtown, Five Guys, The Daily Melt, and others all within arm's reach of the brew palace, everyone in your group can get munchies tailored to their liking. Imagine never fighting about going out for burritos or Asian-fusion ever again.

The taps open at 3 p.m., Monday, May 6 and there's entire week's worth of celebrations and deals planned. Here's the entire schedule:

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Courtesy photo

Commercial brewers from across the county are teaming up to create the ultimate Miami collaboration beer: Conjunto, which literally means "group." The idea was Tony Albelo's, the man behind Grovetoberfest and Sprung beer festivals.

The collaboration includes both Miami breweries and brewpubs: Wynwood Brewing Company, Miami Brewing Company, Most Wanted Brewery, Abbey Brewing Company, Titanic Brewery and Gordon Biersch Brewery.

See also:
- Craft Brewja Arwen Lehman's 2013 Beer Predictions
- Wynwood Brewing Company to Open in June

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