Full Article: Miami Herald

Published: 10/13/20, 2020

Remember going out? Twerking the night away until dawn? Rubbing shoulders with strangers in dark clubs with throbbing music and pulsating lights?

We’ll wait.

While Miami nightlife isn’t quite how you remember it these days (limited capacity, face masks, constant hand sanitizing, keeping your distance), you can still remember the days of pre-pandemic yore with a new booze that just hit shelves.

Introducing … E11EVEN Vodka, named after the six- year-old, erstwhile dancetastic 24/7 so-called ultraclub that’s been a magnet for such VIP partiers as Leonardo DiCaprio, Travis Scott, Snoop Dogg, Nelly, Rob Gronkowski and the Hadid sibs. Don’t call E11EVEN a strip club, even though performers have been known to dress rather, um, skimpily at times.

Alas, the downtown venue is still closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, but you can still pull down your mask, drink this ultra premium booze that carries the club’s name, close your eyes and dream.

“Like everything we do at E11EVEN, we must put the safety and well-being of our employees and guests first,” the club, which has been shut since March, says on its site. “With an abundance of concern for every member of our E11EVEN family near and far, and following the directive by Mayor Suarez and the national authorities, we must temporarily suspend operations.”

Insert suffering face emoji here.

Local entrepreneur Nikki Simkins, CEO & Chairwoman of E11EVEN Vodka, thinks this made-in-Miami product is what we all need right now.

“I have loved seeing what E11EVEN has done for the city,” Simkins said in a release. “I knew that the energy, spirit and vibe of the E11EVEN lifestyle was one that would translate flawlessly into a bottle.”

Ah, yes, the bottle: Leave this baby blue-flecked, frosted-glass beauty out at the bar front and center. Make it your Zoom background if you must, so you look like the 305 baller that you are.

How this vodka is formulated makes for a softer finish: It’s handcrafted in copper stills, distilled six times from Florida-grown non-GMO corn, then refined through a seven-step filtration process.

You’ll detect a bit of sweetness with notes of citrus and chocolate, then hints of vanilla and cracked peppercorns. Then feel that Miami buzz wash over you.

“On a scale from One to Ten, be an E11EVEN, be your best self, get the most out of life, and ignore the naysayers,” reads the description on the website. “It’s all about Crushing The Day, Owning The Night – then going back for more. E11EVEN Vodka was born to be the life of the party.”

While one day you’ll be able to sip it on site until dawn, for now you can order the 80 proofer online at 11vodka.com, where other fancy club merch is for sale. Or buy a bottle for $29.99 at such stores as Jenny’s Liquor, Primo Liquors, Gulf Liquors, Crown Wine & Spirits, Grove Liquors and Portofino Wine Bank.

E11EVEN Vodka is also currently behind the bars at such operational restaurants as Nobu, Estiatorio Milos, Casa Tua, Novikov, Sherwood’s Bistro, Kiki on the River and Red Rooster. Many of these places are also offering cocktails to go.