
“That’s the thing about him, he just goes till he can’t go no more.” he said, staring toward the horizon. “As far as the sea foam shows, as long as the Zephyr’s wind blows, out there is where he goes…” he trailed off as he stumbled into memory. I was not quite sure how to take that. What did he mean? Who was he talking about? That’s when I heard that shrill whistle above the waves and looked to see a long tailed white flash wheeling on the breeze. “Ah, that makes sense then.” I thought to myself as I turned and walked back up the pier toward the comfort of land and the safety of a darkened bar. It’s funny how chance meetings work, if you let them. So, in the spirit of unintentional inspiration, won’t you join me now as we stand and make the Bosun Bird.
This tropical-esque take on The Last Word comes to us from Jason Clapham who created it as the “Cocktail Member” for the St. Edward’s School MCR in Oxford. Nope, that is not the name of some, swanky underground bar, is it the Middle Common Room reserved for post graduate students who teach at St. Edward’s. That’s right, it is a preparatory boarding school with strong connections to the nearby University of Oxford in that famously United Kingdom. In addition to his duties behind the bar, Mr. Clapham also serves as the Head of English for the school, an equally noble position. As the spouse of a teacher, I fully understand how service to our youth can give one a greater appreciation of the medicinal effects of strong spirit and the need for the occasional escape from the classroom. That said, I want to take a moment to recognize just how wonderful this entire concept and situation is. We all know that there are a number of ways that the U.S. educational system could be improved and I am confident that having a member of staff serve as the cocktail member, carefully curating a menu for their fellow educators would be a bold step in the right direction. You may disagree, but you would be wrong. Anyway, let’s mix this one up and see how the journey treats us.
Grab your tins and toss in 1 ounce of Jamaican Aged, Rum, I went with Smith & Cross, 1/2 an ounce of Green Chartreuse, 1/2 an ounce of Triple Sec, 1/2 an ounce of Luxardo Maraschino liqueur and 3/4 of an ounce of freshly squeezed lime juice. Add some of that artisanal ice and give it a properly reverent shake to the beat of “Shadowland” from “The Lion King” in a backwards nod to Oxford and the great C.S. Lewis. When your tins are well chilled and beginning to frost, double strain into a coupe and garnish with a pair of Luxardo Cherries on a pick, because, sometimes more is just enough.
Oh, but isn’t that lovely. A beautifully nuanced take on this classic. The triple sec and lime juice absolutely elevate this one while adding and interesting dry, tropical taste. As solid as it is, I question my rum choice. Smith + Cross is absolutely wonderful, but it is also Navy Strength and I think this one would be better served with a lower octane Jamaican Rum, I think I will make it again with a Myers’s Dark or a Coruba to take a bit of the edge off and complement the other flavors better. That said, this is a super solid construction and a credit to any menu.
The Chartreuse and Luxardo give this drink sort of a long finish, just like the bird it is named for. The White-tailed Tropicbird is known for its distinctive, long tail feathers and its habit of staying on the wing almost constantly, approaching land only to mate and nest. Sailors called it the Bosun Bird because its distinctive call reminded them of the Boatswain’s whistle used to pipe messages on board their ships. They can fly for months at a time, diving into the sea for food or sometimes catching flying fish from the air. That sort of life fascinates me. Always on the wing, learning to rest flying along with one eye open, presumably. Only being tempted to leave the sky and put down short-lived roots by the wiles of the opposite sex and the primal need to continue the species. It is hard to imagine, that level of freedom and exhaustion.
Of course, we do the same thing. Running too hard for too long, trying to live up to the expectations and needs of this modern life. Like the Bosun Bird we take to our metaphysical skies and plod on, day after day, week after week, month after month. Never really feeling the weight we are carrying till we come back to land and set the burden down for a moment. It is easy to lose sight of why we took to the sky in the first place, of what shiny thing we were chasing out there. The journey can become lost in the need to keep moving, running from one crisis to the next we forget the destination and begin to focus on staying in the sky for one day more. Just one more shift, one more day, one more week, one more month, one more year; the goals slowly shifting. I get it. I really do. I have run too hard for too long too many times and I can tell you, sometimes, you just have to land. The Bosun Bird is made to fly for months at a time, specially designed to do that particular job with aplomb, but that is not you. So leave the near perpetual flight to the birds and set your feet back on the ground, lay down your burdens for a moment. Nest in with the ones you love and let them know you can’t fly just now, but you will be back in the sky, chasing that wind once you have had a few moments of peace and rest. As a dear friend reminded me recently, you have to remember to put on your own mask first. We are all in this together and none of us are getting out anyway, so look out for those who are most important to you by looking out for yourself and, as always, stay safe, stay hydrated and stay sane, my friends.
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