By Nora Devin, News Correspondent

It’s safe to say that our tea-stained, yellow-toothed founders of yore would think twice before throwing barrels of Absolut Boston into the Charles.
The vodka company has deemed Boston worthy of our very own flavor of liquid freedom and has in turn created Absolut Boston, a black tea and elderflower-infused vodka served out of a Green Monster-colored bottle.
Boston is the third city Absolut has honored in this new trend, following New Orleans and Los Angeles. Each city-flavored beverage was created to raise money for a local charity organization, Boston’s being the Charles River Conservancy, which strives to keep our infamous dirty water clean.
Only 10,000 bottles of the herbal vodka were released on our fair city, so one can expect its life will be fleeting. To make sure we got a piece of the action we stopped by Stephanie’s on Newbury, who have added three Absolut Boston-based cocktails to their repertoire.
Much like tea, these uniquely-flavored cocktails take getting used to. They are foreign at first, intriguing at the halfway point, and by the time I reached the clear glass bottom I found myself Googling the nearest location of the elderflower so I could conduct a little self-muddling.
Stephanie’s offered us the cocktails off the menu: their mojito (one part Absolut Boston vodka, two parts soda water and a splash of lime juice laced with simple syrup and garnished with mint leaves, $10.50), a concoction for lovers of the grape drink (one part Absolut Boston and two parts white grape juice, topped with ginger ale, $10.50) and presented in the irresistible martini glass, the Absolut Boston Tea Party (one part Absolut Boston and two parts lemon juice, laced with a simple syrup and garnished with a lemon twist, $12).
But our favorite cocktail of the evening came not from the menu, but from the goodness and creativity of the bartender’s heart. He fashioned together the perfect drink for a warm summer’s eve: a nameless bubbly cocktail secretly disguised as a thirst-quenching iced tea. Served in a big pint glass with a straw made for slurping, the drink was a mix of unsweetened iced tea, Sprite and Absolut Boston.
Perhaps the best thing about Absolut Boston is its ability to be mixed, or not mixed, making it delightful for everyone. If fancy cocktails aren’t your thing, and mixers don’t factor into your college student budget, Absolut Boston can be enjoyed simply on ice with a bit of water. It’ll taste like the strongest and most rewarding iced tea you’ve ever had. Absolutely.