Nice Whisk(e)y: Shame About The Size! Behold a wonderful, almost infinitely explorable repository of miniature bottles of whisk(e)y; a Japanese one-guy Smithsonian that's quite probably the only resort for those looking for labels of ancient and/or abandoned delights. American straight whiskey fanatics (like me) will be specially surprised. Worth exploring, though exploration isn't easy: it's full of unexpected riches, but never easily had. [
Previously offered in the course of a classic languagehat post.]
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Mar 10, 2004 -
9 comments
Poor, Much-Maligned Alcohol Gets A Good Word: It's quarter to three, there's no one in the place/Except you and me,/So set 'em' up Joe, I got a little story/ I think you should know... And the story is something, if you're a drinker, you probably already know. (
I was so surprised by this article I wondered if it was sponsored by the booze industry. But then I mixed myself another drink; read the wonderfully-named, probably Guinness - and poteen-fuelled - Dublin Principles and drank its health anyway!)
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Nov 3, 2003 -
16 comments
The Spirits Of The Times: Whatever's Next? In an unstable marketplace, good old spirits have been undergoing an extraordinary renaissance since 1988, with 2003 the best year yet. And growing. With summer over and
thoughts turning to the more warming libations, I wonder what the next big drinking craze will be. My bets are on the wonderful, underrated
fruit brandies, distilled directly from fruit juices with nothing else added:
kirsch,
framboise,
mirabelle. Mmmm... The best
eaux-de-vie, in my experience, are those from
G. E. Massenez and above all (though they're quite expensive and alcoholic) from the Swiss
Paul Morand distillery. (
Flash req.) An ice-cold
Williamine, served in a shot glass surrounded by an old-fashioned tumbler full of shaved ice: oh what bliss on an autumn night, after a late dinner with old friends!
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Sep 27, 2003 -
12 comments
The Last Bastion Of Serious Sexual Discrimination: Booze! Do men and women really have different tastes when it comes to drinking?
What does it all mean? Do girls really like girly cocktails? Do men hate sweet, fruity drinks? Are rye and malt whiskeys, cognac, red wine and beer resolutely
masculine? Are gin, cocktails, liqueurs, white wine and champagne eternally
feminine? Is vodka neutral? Is a gin and tonic always truly gay? Is tequila bisexual? Too neat? Perhaps. I wonder whether guy booze, girl booze and gay booze can ever be satisfactorily mapped out...
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Sep 2, 2003 -
96 comments
You've Come A Long Way, Baby: Unfortunately, you picked the wrong one, dear old
Old-Fashioned, dean of cocktails.
Robert Hess's definitive essay on the ever-changing ways of making one shows just how contentious a
cocktail recipe can be. It also bears sad testimony to how the great classics are being fruited up, iced up, fizzed up, shaken till obliteration and generally girlied, dumbed and boozed down. So how do you stand on the cherry, the pineapple and the orange? And don't even bother commenting if you're a seltzer fan! ;)
posted by MiguelCardoso
on May 21, 2003 -
51 comments
Can I Have A Glass For This? Yes, you can.
Riedel make the
best glasses in the world (well, with
a little competition...), painstakingly suiting each drink to the best shape and size of container, for the benefit of nose, mouth, eyes and hold. A very recent addition, not yet found on their official list, is the
bourbon glass, made with expert advise from Fred Noe, of the legendary Noe family, overlords of Jim Beam. Form means content indeed! More's the pity that the great majority of drinks are served in inappropriate glasses and therefore never fully enjoyed.
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Dec 21, 2002 -
62 comments
Does Beer Really Equal Democracy Equal The U.S.A? Max Rudin's somewhat wild assumptions only make this article of his more interesting. But is it true that beer in North America overtakes all the usual class, status and income boundaries? If so, it certainly sets it apart from Europe, where all the old preconceptions and habits still prevail and (at least in the Southwest) a glass of wine is always cheaper than a beer. So I guess the question here is: just how
political can beer be? [
As a chaser, the British expert Michael Jackson's list of the ten great beers of America seems authoritative and tempting, if a tad disloyal to the cask-conditioned real, live ales of England and Scotland...].
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Jul 15, 2002 -
20 comments
For Lent, I'm Giving Up Not Drinking Cocktails - What About You? I collect cocktail books but there are two web sites* that are just as good as the best bartender's bible. The first is
Dale DeGroff's. The second, sadly discontinued but still invaluable, is
Paul Harrington's. Both are very personal and reveal a deep knowledge and love of this quintessentially American and civilized art form.
Cocktails may very well be the only truly democratic and universally accessible pastime. They can be made at home quite cheaply by anyone and be just as delicious as the very best served in the very best bar to the richest imbiber in the world. Not to mention their incredible
Valentine's Day potential... so what's it to be, pal? *
Webtender, Drinkboy and Esquire's cocktail guides pale by comparison
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Feb 13, 2002 -
53 comments
So When Can The Boy Start Drinking Then? From February 1 you'll have to be 16 to order an alcoholic drink in Portugal. We Portuguese were the last bastion in Europe - with no age limit at all - but have finally given in the to pressures from the European Union. Yet young people here enjoy drinking but rarely get drunk.
Age limits
vary wildly all over the world and the debate on
the ideal drinking age rages on. The U.S. is still the strictest country of all. And yet public displays(and tacit approval)of drunkenness seem to be far more prevalent in the stricter countries than in those who have more liberal legislation. So what should be the
minimum drinking age? [
The main link, in Portuguese, refers to the political battles that preceded the new law. Interestingly, it reports the Portuguese government resisted EU pressure to limit 16-year-olds to beer and wine, more or less saying "alcohol is alcohol - you can get drunk on anything - so it would be silly to limit young people's choices." ]
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Jan 25, 2002 -
40 comments
Are you drinking too much? Daniel Lieberman is a psychiatrist at George Washington University who has posted a clinically-tested questionnaire which measures personal relationships with the demon drink. Unlike the usual amateur "are you an alcoholic?" tests on the Net it seems methodologically sound and non-judgemental. I don't know about scientific - but it may actually be useful in a Socratic, "know yourself" sort of way.
It does take about 10 minutes to fill out - enough for half a gin and tonic - but it's free, well set out, and will probably leave you feeling slightly less guilty about your drinking habits than before.
So...chin-chin!
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Sep 11, 2001 -
9 comments
