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TOUCHÉ, CRISTAL: JAY Z
BUYS “ACE OF SPADES”
CHAMPAGNE
Remember when Jay Z used to
name drop Cristal champagne
in his music? Well, after a
brand executive hinted that
hip-hop stars were tarnishing
its image in a 2006 article
that ran in the Economist, the
entrepreneur cut the brand out of his songs and boycotted it from his sports
bars. Still, a rapper who has an equally famous wife, a penchant for yachts,
and a friendship with President Obama needed some type of champagne in his
repertoire, and his new favorite in recent years became Armand de Brignac,
a pricey French-made brand known for its metallic bottles including its Brut
Gold edition which sells for $300 a pop. On Nov. 5, New York-based Sovereign
Brands announced that entertainment mogul Jay Z, born Shawn Carter, was
buying the luxury brand, whose 30-liter bottles can set buyers back as much
as $200,000. It was featured in Jay Z’s music video for “Show Me What You
Got” in 2006 and it’s now also a popular choice in clubs and among athletes
who are shown celebrating with the telltale bottles after games. It is nicknamed
“Ace of Spades” because of its logo (the spade symbol you see in playing
cards, with a large “A” in the middle), and its shiny metallic bottles make quite
the shimmering display at parties. If Cristal didn’t fall out favor, the deal with
Armand de Brignac, whose new owner has a marketable face known around
the world, might not have happened.
WALLY AMOS IS BACK BAKING AS THE COOKIE KAHUNA
HONOLULU, HI (BlackNews.com) — After nearly 40 years as the world’s
leading baker of the gourmet cookie empire,
Wally Amos is back in the kitchen rolling out his
newest cookie company, The Cookie Kahuna.
Based exclusively in Hawaii, each batch is
handmade with quality ingredients and baked
by The Cookies In Paradise Bakery. Amos said
it’s the quality of the ingredients he uses and the
fact they are baked by hand that has kept the
integrity of his cookies. “We only use Guittard
chocolate and butterscotch chips, lots of real
butter and pure vanilla extract, he said, crediting
his Aunt Della’s recipe she baked for him as a
child. “People tell me they can still remember the
first taste they had of my chocolate chip cookies
from decades ago.” Not far from a cookie, Amos always has a book in-hand.
He continues his passion for Read it LOUD!, a nationwide literacy campaign
he developed over 10 years ago. Today, each cookie bags bears the message
to parents to read aloud each day to children from birth to age six. An eternal
optimist, Amos said his newest company is his greatest venture allowing him
to regain his foothold in the cookie universe. The Cookie Kahuna comes in
three flavors: Original Chocolate Chip, Butterscotch Chip Macadamia Nuts and
Chocolate Chip Pecan and are sold online at www.thecookiekahuna.com.
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