Sweet tea vodka: drink of the summer?

The first sweet tea flavored vodka seemed like a quaint idea, the second indicated a trend. Because liquor reps can sell my boss at Metropolitan anything, we've got both the existing sweet tea vodkas on our bar, the first: Firefly, and the runner up, Sweet Carolina. Firefly is made in South Carolina. The producer of Sweet Carolina is White Rock Distilleries in Maine, which sounds decidedly less authentic. Sweet Carolina is so new few have tried it, but Firefly already has a strong fan base online. My unscientific tasting (I had both weeks apart and only as parts of Arnold Palmers) indicates that Sweet Carolina seems to have a heavier tea flavor and be less sweet.

I first heard about Firefly six months ago from my brother in Georgia (it figures that the trend would start down there, doesn't it?). He excitedly related a tale of drinking Firefly mixed with lemonade all day. They go down so easy, he said, you don't realize until you stand up. That's what she said.

The alcoholic Arnold Palmer (originally a non-alcholic, half tea, half lemonade drink named after the famous golfer who loved it), is disturbingly easy to drink. It's also super refreshing. With a sweet tea vodka Arnold Palmer in your arsenal, you'll never have to say "it's too hot to drink" again. Though just 70 proof, sweet tea vodka proves dangerous because it's so light when mixed with lemonade.

The back of both bottles suggest mixing the vodka with spring water. Both are smooth enough you could actually pull this off. I've asked around a bit and haven't found any bartenders or bars featuring sweet tea cocktails yet. Let me know if anyone runs across anything good.

I spent way too long lately trying to come up with the perfect drink for sweet tea vodka, but I think I may have it. The sweet tea mojito.

(First things first: I think we need a better name. Something southern and summery. The "magnolia mojito" and "the débutante" are leading contenders.) I tried a limited experiment, replacing the lime of a traditional mojito with lemon. I left out the sugar, figuring the vodka would be sweet enough. It wasn't perfect, but trust me this is going to be summer's greatest cocktail when tweaked. Right now I'm thinking the perfect recipe should be:

One slice of lemon, mint, and one packet sugar, muddled. Add ice, sweet tea vodka, and soda water. Garnish with lemon. Call me when it becomes famous.