I like old movies, a lot. There are whole periods of my life when I didn’t sleep much and mostly spent my nights watching them. Not just the classics, but the mid-range stuff too. Hours spent learning how to be a fella from Bogart, Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Jose Ferrer. It is crazy how much influence movies and books from your formative years have on who you become, or at least who you try to become. There are a handful of these films that are truly old friends. Those few ragged VHS tapes that traveled with me, always ready to keep me company at 2:57 AM. Liam has “a thing” with 3 minutes later than that so I had to change the time to mollify him. One of those came to mind the other night as I was thinking about drinks, so join me as we stand and make the Pink Lady.
There are lots of things in life you aren’t prepared for. Hell, I haven’t been ready for most of the things that have happened to me. One of the things I most admire in a person is the ability to pull things together and face whatever challenge comes to them, especially when they aren’t prepared or don’t feel up to it. It is a whole lot easier to beg off or ignore what needs to be done or just say no. Saying yes and deciding to do the thing, knowing the responsibility and that you can’t let people down, that is hard. Let’s raise a glass to the folks who turn their faces toward the wind and sail on, weather be damned. So, join me as we stand and make, the Chin Up.
We stumbled upon this one a couple of weeks ago and it caught my attention. It comes from Sasha Petraske’s Milk & Honey bar in New York and is a cross between a Negroni and a Gin Sour. I don’t care for Negronis, but I love Gin Sours, so I thought that maybe this one was for me, plus it is said to be “the ideal drink to introduce a novice to Campari!” Since, I have struggled with Campari I figured I’d give it a shot, plus it has whole white grapes in it and when I got home I found that Laura had gotten fresh white grapes at the store today, I figured it was a sign. So, join me as we stand and make, the Enzoni.
Jimmy said there’d be “good days and bad days and going half mad days” and I suppose it is true. I know that I have more than my fair share of half-mad days. I have had some damned good days though, along the way. Today, I am thinking about one of them in particular. One of my weird best days, a day on the road, seeking adventure and passing the time on the north coast of Africa in Tunisia. On this particular day, I remember drinking mint tea, plenty of that, some lovely Carthaginian White Wine and a refreshing gin and tonic, along with several liters of water. It was hot, dreadfully so. When I think of that wonderful day, I always think of a particular drink, one that I, not only, did not have that day but that did not even cross my sun-dazzled mind. We will get to the why in a bit, but first, join me as we stand and make, the Negroni.
When this all began, I thought it would be fun to make some drinks from home, since I wasn’t going out anymore. We had already been staying home, only going out for essential things and such, for about 6 weeks, I figured it would help to pass the time. Plus, I was getting low on our stash of “Is It Vinegar Yet?” fine wines and I was sort of enjoying writing my little shouts into the darkness. So, I started making a cocktail a day and sharing it with you. Part of it was to use up a bunch of alcohol that I had collected over the years, part of it was an excuse to be able to make jokes or social commentary in whatever we are calling “these uncertain times” this week. Part of it was to pass the time, learning new techniques, practicing things I had learned in classes, sharing the experience with the family. Mostly, it was to stay connected to the world. To reach out everyday and say something, to be heard, to hopefully entertain some folks and to feel that love coming back. Some times it has felt like a job, most days it has been one of the things I really look forward to, my little corner of happiness. The simplicity of the ritual. Laying out the tools and ingredients, mixing the drink, trying to capture a decent shot and then searching for the right words, typing them out on my phone’s keyboard. It has been a pleasure that I figured I would continue for a few weeks until the world seemed normal again. That was 75 cocktails ago and things are definitely not normal yet. I’m listening to Leonard Cohen today and reflecting on a lot of things, so if you came for the jokes, you might want to skip this one, it may get darker before the sun comes out. It may not, who knows? Honestly, this stuff is usually just sort of stream of consciousness and I may get all positive in the coming moments. Let’s find out together as we stand and make, the French 75.
A couple of weeks ago, I shared a drink called the Army & Navy, that I shamelessly stole from my buddy @bitterbotwin on instagram. It is a super lovely drink and I encourage you all to make it. It reminded me of a wonderfully refreshing coconut lemonade with a kick, and I like that. The more I thought about it and the more of them I enjoyed, the more I wanted to experiment with this drink. Laura was super supportive, because she loved the original and every time I made a variation, she got to enjoy a “control” drink. I kept playing around with different ideas and this time it paid off. So join me as we stand and make this cheekily named tribute combining land and sea forces, Her Majesty’s Royal Marine.
“When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” Well, mostly. My early forays into drinking were far from sophisticated. There are some drinks from those days that I have not revisited, many with good reason, but maybe it is time, being National Iced Tea Day, and all. I guess it is only fitting that we make a Long Island Iced Tea.
If you are into cocktails and you are not following @bitterbotwin on Instagram you are missing out on some phenomenal stuff. I hate to copycat, but his knowledge of drinks and presentation just makes you want to try them and sometimes, I do. So, in a blatant rip-off, I mean homage to what Joe is doing, I present the Army & Navy.
Part of the fun of being an adult is getting to make your own rules, for the most part. So, if I want to try something new and I have the stuff, I can do that. If I want to go into a full blown cocktail at 10 AM, who is gonna stop me? You? Societal conventions? Propriety? D. None of the above? I’ll tell you that a cocktail before breakfast is terribly efficient, getting that alcohol down your gullet early, pre-coffee, with no annoying foods to get in the way of your weekend buzz. So how do we do that? Easy, you start the day with a classic Martinez.
There is a theory that you can define eras of modern history by examining the advertisements of the day. That society’s perceived needs and their remedies say more about what the people were really thinking than the official record. If that’s true then it is safe to say we are in the age of the limp dick. Seriously, every third commercial asks “Do you struggle with erectile dysfunction?” There are so many that even if you are flying the flag at mostly full mast you begin to wonder, am I ok? When do I get to join the club and try one of the dazzling arrays of male enhancements? Well, this is not a new problem and today we are gonna mix up a drink inspired by one of the 20th century’s more interesting cures, the Monkey Gland.
