Last week, Domaine Select Wine Estates hosted a party at New York's Classic Car Club as part of the launch of its Classic & Vintage Artisanal Spirits line. The line includes small-batch spirits, both imported and domestic, among them Armagnac Castarede from France, and one brand that I was particularly excited to sample, Tuthilltown's Hudson Valley, New York bourbon, whiskeys and apple vodka.

For the event, brand ambassadors The Tippling Brothers created cocktails that were inspired by a hot car. The tables were set up near their four-wheeled inspiration, a Bentley GTC, a 1965 Shelby Cobra replica, 1957 Porsche and a 2006 Lamborhgini Gallardo, among other cars -- each carefully watched by an attendant who almost never stopped rubbing the exterior with a chamois. (Here, one attendant take a very short break in a 1966 Ford Mustang Fastback.)

I just received the recipes for the cocktails, all of which were quite tasty, but my two favorites were both inspired by a Ferrari F430 -- which, sadly, didn't make an appearance at the event. Try these at home, but nowhere near whatever car is in your garage, please! And check out the photo gallery for more recipes.

Eve's Cup

1 oz G'Vine Floraison (A wonderfully floral French gin, must try straight up first.)
1 oz Averna
4 leaves of mint
Half a sprig of rosemary
tonic
1 barspoon chopped apples
Rosemary and apple garnish

Guerillas in Manhattan

2 oz Tuthilltown 4 Grain Bourbon
.75 oz sweet vermouth
.5 oz Orgeat
.25 oz fresh tangerine
2 slices fresh banana
2 dashes angostura
Garnish with brandied cherry

Ownership is a double-edged sword -- it's yours, and you loved it enough to buy it. But if you're bored, or something goes wrong, or you just want a change, you may sometimes wish you could give it back and try something else. If you're in the NYC - NJ - LI metro area, you can do this with luxury cars by joining Vulcan Motor Club. Founded in 2007, the club focuses on "placing a select fleet of the world's most prestigious high-performance and luxury vehicles at your disposal." Membership tiers vary from a $1,240/one-time 5-hour drive to a $28,800/year plan that allows 40 days of annual use and 40,000 annual miles with access to the full fleet of 12 cars, with several membership levels in between. You can get in touch for more info, and also check out Vulcan's blog.

This economy is not kind to the small car museum. While all museums have been affected in the economic crunch it seems like museums that are given over to small and specific collections are especially vulnerable. We've seen other car museums face closure and now the Ark-La-Tex Antique and Classic Vehicle Museum in Shreveport, Louisiana will become the latest to shut down and auction off its inventory. There is not enough interest to maintain the museum.

It is currently closed but offers group tours for students and the elderly and will do so until the auction on June 6, at the museum, located at 601 Spring St. The building has also been put up for sale and is listed for $1.85 million. It was originally a miniature vehicle factory when it was built in 1927 and served as a car dealership and a nightclub before becoming a museum in the mid-1990s.

Last year I saw a study that the sound of a luxury car engine aroused women and now there is a study that shows that the car makes the man when it comes to looks too. The Telegraph writes up a study that showed women pictures of the same man sitting in two cars, a silver Bentley Continental and a battered Ford Fiesta. Surprise, surprise the women, who were aged between 21 to 40, chose the man in the Bentley.

The research from Dr, Michael Dunn, of the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff, has been published in the latest edition of the British Journal of Psychology. His study also shows that men are more impressed by how a woman looks than what she drives. Dr. Dunn says that women still look for wealth and status because they are seeking a man in "better condition to rear healthy offspring." He says that this basic human trait is not likely to change even as women acquire more independence and wealth. Dr. Dunn, who drives an old Ford himself, will now do research to find out if luxury items help make up for "the attractiveness-diminishing effects of age."

Are women more shallow than men? Dr. Dunn's final quote for the Telegraph: "Let's face it - there's evidence to support it."

Luxury car company, Bentley has found a new way to help keep jobs, it has put its employees to work making furniture. The factory in Crewe employs a team of skilled woodworkers to make the gleaming walnut Bentley dashboard and wood trim. The Daily Telegraph reports that 140 members of the staff are using off-cuts from the walnut wood to make cabinets, occasional tables and furniture for the reception area at the Crewe factory. It also plans to use the furniture in Bentley showrooms and could even come out with a line for the public if there is enough demand. One of the cabinets is on display at the Geneva motor show. It's a clever move for the company which has recently had to cut jobs and slow production to keep pace with a decline in orders.

Along with unemployment rates and the deficit, Bentley prices are on the rise, too, at least in the UK. Starting in April, Bentley will raise prices by 5% in the United Kingdom, citing the pound's weakness as compared to the Euro (about an 18% depreciation in the past year). So aspiring Brits will now be paying between around £120,000 and £245,000 for those new wheels. There is no expected price increase beyond Great Britain.

From the barn to the auction block, a rare Bugatti Atalante 57S that had been tucked away in a barn for half a century had its moment in the sun this weekend. The car was auctioned off in Paris as part of the Bonhams Retromobile sale. The estimated value had been listed as high as £6 million (about $8.8 million) and the official estimate was between 2.75 million euros and 4 million euros. Bloomberg reports that it sold for 3.5 million euros ($4.53 million). The two-seat 1937 Bugatti Atalante 57S coupe was one of 17 vehicles of its type and had just 26,284 miles odometer. This number was far less than the $7.92 million that, as my colleague Jared Paul Stern reported, another 1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Atalante coupe sold for last summer. That car, however, was in much better shape, the new owner of the barn Bugatti is facing a restoration bill in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

This is ridiculous.

Remember the $350,000 Swarovski-studded Mercedes-Benz at the 2007 Moscow Millionaire Fair? Well, they've done it again.

The above photo is from the Tokyo Auto Salon 2009, and it features a customized Mercedes-Benz SL600 (aka the Luxury Crystal Benz) covered in 300,000 Swarovski crystals. We don't know how much it costs, but frankly, we weren't about to purchase it.

Even Barbie wouldn't get in that gaudy thing.

[via Luxury Launches]

Talk about a great way to ruin a beautiful car -- paste pink Swarovski crystals on every visible surface. More than 300,000 crystals cover the car's hood, trunk, license plate, and even wheel rims, forming roses, hearts, ribbons, and lots of general over-the-top girliness to symbolize the beauty of marriage. Even the interior features crystals next to the shift knob and on front and backseat throw pillows (what?).

Designed by Zheng Zhiren the car is currently on display in Taiwan and is apparently a big hit. It's valued at approximately $306,000.

The latest tourist attraction at Walt Disney World in Florida is a treat for the grown-ups The Indy Racing Experience lets parkgoeers get behind the wheel of an Indy racecar that were used in past Indianapolis 500 events. The Walt Disney World Speedway is a one-mile, paved tri-oval located just outside the gates of the Magic Kingdom. that is also home to the Richard Petty Experience Participants are suited up in authentic driver fire suits and aafter being strapped in by the Indy Racing Experience pit crew, they get to feel the speed, g-forces, and the pressure that comes with IndyCar racing. Those who prefer not to drive can take a ride in a two-seater driven by an Indy Racing League driver. The driving experience costs $399 for eight laps. The passenger experience is $109 for three laps.

[via The Guardian]

The Detroit Auto Show in January was once the place to see all the hot cars for the next model year but things are changing. This year three marquee brands, Land Rover, Ferrari and Rolls-Royce have opted out of the 2009 Detroit Auto Show in January. Why the change? Partly it may be because these brands don't sell a lot of cars in the Midwest. While the show offers a chance to impress journalists from around the world, they can probably pick up many of those same journalists at the Los Angeles show or in Europe. Not that Los Angeles is immune either. It is said that the L.A. show will have nearly 20% fewer exhibitors than it did last year. Exhibits are also less lavish and automakers are cutting back on the perks they offer for dealers as well as for those in the automotive media industry such as dinners, parties and sometimes hotel rooms for the shows. The Chicago Auto Show will also shrink in size by 15,000 square feet for its 2009 show and there are cutbacks planned for the New York show as well.

Mercedes-Benz makes holiday gifts for the whole family.

New this year, Mercedes-Benz has released a new gift collection in Brilliant White, with many items perfect for kids.

This little car will make any rugrat smile as he or she scoots around the brick driveway in style. Brand loyalty starts in the cradle, as they say, and this is a smart move for Mercedes-Benz.

"The high-profile whisper wheels fitted as standard on genuine Mercedes-Benz multi-spoke rims minimize the noise level."

The Brilliant White collection also features bicycles, hats, clothing, and a really great sled. See the gallery below for Luxist's favorite items from the new collection.

[via eMercedesBenz]

Lamborghini is planning a single-make race series and the star of the show will be a competition-spec Gallardo LP560-4 called the Super Trofeo. It's all decked out with race-specific goodies like special adjustments to the chassis, ABS brakes, and wheels plus a more powerful 570hp engine (weee!). The series starts in May and each race will include 30 cars owned privately and by dealer teams, plus one celebrity-driven vehicle that will change at each event. €200,000 will get you in with a car and parts package, plus trackside support and admission to the luxury Lamborghini Village at each location.

It looks very likely that in the near future Rolls fans will have the option of owning an all-electric version of the Rolls-Royce Phantom. Tom Purves, the Rolls-Royce CEO, has revealed that he'd not only like to build an electric Phantom but thinks it would fit in perfectly with what a lot of Rolls customers are looking for. Thanks to the technology used in the new BMW Mini-E the hard part of developing an electric engine that measures up is already done -- it's really just about refinement and tweaking a few technology details.

No word yet on when an electric Phantom can be expected but it sounds like it could be as soon as the next few years.

I've seen the occasional Mustang or Camaro police car before and thought that the cop driving it must feel pretty special, but that's nothing compared to how awesome the Italian police must feel: they just got a brand new Lamborghini Gallardo.

The Gallardo LP560-4 is all decked out with the usual police decals and lights, plus they managed to squeeze in all the high tech police equipment like radio and video equipment, gun racks, and even a cooler (for body parts?!).

It's not Italy's first law enforcement Lamborghini (Rome has had one for awhile) but still! Pretty awesome.