Peachy Keen

A golf outing led to a peachy discovery. Nik Pappas ordered a cocktail with Crown Royal and iced tea at the course and was delightfully surprised by the strong yet refreshing combo.

“I thought, Oh my God, this is fantastic,” says the co-owner of Pav’s Creamery. “I can instantly think about turning it into an adult shake.”

Pav’s is known for its alcoholic adult shakes, but Pappas was hesitant about how customers would receive a peach tea sorbet shake with Crown Royal Peach Whiskey since most of the shakes on the menu are made with vanilla or chocolate custard and don’t always use hard-hitting spirits.

“Eighty-five percent of our business is women. Whiskey is a male-dominated market,” he says. He was overwhelmed by the responses, as the first Facebook post announcing the creation received more than 1,300 shares and 600 comments. “I didn’t think it would go as viral as it did. I was blown away by how many people were coming down just to get it.”

In late March, Pav’s officially launched the shake ($9.50) that starts by making an iced tea sorbet using unsweetened Arizona iced tea and adding sugar. Workers then blend in peach slices that punch up the juicy notes in the Crown Peach. The result is a thick shake with fruit bits, an optional whipped cream topping and quite a kick.

“It’s got a real good summer flavor. The whiskey, two shots in a 24-ounce cup, you get the flavor for sure. But it’s not overpowering,” Pappas says. “[It’s] a more unique way of trying a whiskey.”

Smack in the core of the hype, popular Crown Peach was in short supply and ran out in Ohio, so Pav’s paused the shake. Its absence only made customers thirsty for more. Crown Peach returned to Ohio in July, and so did the shake. But this time, Pappas made it a permanent menu item — its most unique adult shake on the menu to date.

“[It’s] easy to drink,” he says. “It’s something that you could sip on, sit outside and watch the day go by.”

Cuyahoga Falls, Green, North Canton & Portage Lakes, pavscreamery.com

Another Boozy Option

Dragonfly Winery

Try This: Wine float, ($6). Wild blackberry ice cream with chocolate or an orange creamsicle sherbet-ice cream mix gets blended, and a cup of Dragonfly’s blackberry or peach apricot wine gets poured into it. “It’s a nice nightcap,” says manager Sean Craney. “It’s the best of both worlds.” 215 Market St. W, Canal Fulton, dragonflyontheriver.com