Gin was the drink of choice last week

Hendrick's Gin Crawl

Ah, gin. A funny little liquor that treads the border between classic opulence or your grandmother's drink of choice.

Last Thursday night's Hendrick's Gin Crawl, however, leaned more towards the former than the later with unusual cocktails mixed by some of Charleston's premier establishments and bartenders.

Starting the night at Social, a small crowd delightfully dressed in 20th-century garb, toured a few of Charleston's favorite high-brow watering holes, including Club Habana, Halls Chophouse and O-Ku sampling each bar's specially concocted gin cocktail.

The crawl was certainly a quirky event, with each bartender offering a limerick to accompany the drink of choice.

A Hendrick's Gin rep noted that the company "likes to do things a little differently," before adjusting his ascot and sipping a watermelon-infused cocktail at Hall's Chophouse.

The evening culminated at Midtown, arguably a strange ending to an otherwise sophisticated affair, where Michael Moore of Rue de Jean took first prize for his gin cocktail and Luca Barwick of High Cotton was awarded top accolades for his limerick.

Gin & Jazz

Didn't get enough gin? Gin & Jazz: A Roaring '20s Party at Pepper Plantation took place Sunday in Awendaw to celebrate Theatre Charleston's 2010-11 season and support the League of Charleston Theatres.

As guests played badminton on the lawn, ladies elegantly sported dropped waist dresses and strands of pearls as they sipped frothy gin fizzes.

The gentlemen seemed a little more hesitant to relish the 1920s theme, most opting for, at most, a bow tie and boater hat.

The dining options seemed a bit random for the setting. One doesn't necessarily think of dining on hot penne pasta and meatballs in this oppressive August heat.

Charleston greats Charlton Singleton and Leah Suarez lit the stage with sweet, sultry summer music.

The crowd danced on well past dusk.