The Red and Black

Issue date: 10/13/08 Section: Variety

Media Credit: Courtesy Firefly Firefly currently produces a Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, a muscadine wine flavored vodka. [Click to enlarge]

Athens just got a little sweeter with the addition of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka to the beverage scene this fall.

Firefly, a blend of the beloved southern drink and vodka, has turned sweet tea into a 70 proof liquor.

"It tastes just like your grandma's sweet tea, with a kick," said Scott Newitt, co-owner of Firefly Distillery, which is located in Charleston, S.C.

Inspired by various other tea-infused vodkas, such as green tea, Newitt started the company along with fellow southerner Jim Irvin in 2004.

"I grew up in the South and drank sweet tea like it was milk," said Newitt, who originally hails from Louisiana and graduated from LSU.

They brewed the first batch of sweet tea vodka in 2006, with Irvin, a Vanderbilt graduate, crafting the cocktail and Newitt focusing on the marketing aspects.

The vodka hit the shelves this summer, with heavy marketing down the South Carolina coast.

Throughout tourist season, Firefly used college intern programs to plug the brand at Clemson and University of South Carolina.

Likewise, McDonald's national marketing campaign for sweet tea helped Firefly cash in on a southern favorite.

"Sweet tea was in the air," Newitt said of Firefly's success.

Firefly, created with all-natural tea and sugar, has spread to the Classic City via word-of-mouth and fans have been drinking it by the jug.

"Most bars are having a hard time keep[ing] it on their shelves," said Adam Zuckerman, the Athens brand representative for Firefly.

Zuckerman first tasted the product in Charleston this summer and e-mailed the company about marketing it to the Athens crowd.

"The response in Athens has been exactly what I thought it would be: big," Zuckerman said.

Throughout Athens, a wide variety of bars are serving the vodka with a number of mixers, including lemonade (an Arnold Palmer, or rather a John Daly of sorts), limoncello and even just straight water.

"I think it's awesome," said Brian Miller, a junior magazines major from Charlotte, N.C. "Sweet tea is my favorite drink and plus alcohol is a winner."

Some fans of the spirit, however, prefer it straight up, including owner Newitt, who likes his Firefly sweet tea on the rocks.

The Firefly brand continues to grow, with the beverage expanding throughout the South into Florida and Tennessee, and has crossed the Mason Dixon Line to New York.

Additionally, Firefly recently ventured out West, with the brand now available in Nevada and Colorado.

The company continues to concoct new ideas, with peach and coffee vodkas soon to be offered to the public.

"It's truly the only southern vodka out there," said Newitt. "And I thank y'all for drinking it."

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