Category: Bon Vivant’s Companion

229. Drink for the Dog Days

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#229 Drink for the Dog Days

This would probably be better suited for another time in the year, given the title, but I wanted to try out another of his “Temperance Drinks” because they’re usually relatively interesting. And it was!

Well, for the news that keeps dogging Trump, the Comey business will not end! Now the Senate Oversight Committee (both Republicans and Democrats) is requesting all records of any conversations President Trump and former FBI Director Comey had, whether or not they involved threats, loyalty pledges, coercion, state secrets, etc… Hopefully something good will come of this.

#229 Drink for the Dog Days Ingredients

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114. Jersey Cocktail

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#114 Jersey Cocktail - Hero

Another cider concoction this week. This is actually the original cocktail that the 115. Soda Cocktail was based on, just with cider instead of soda water. I guess they must have drank this in New Jersey?

There was a big thunderstorm that rolled into New Jersey Friday night, which I found a number of stories on. However, that’s a pretty lame piece of nes. But, what happened during the dark stormy night? That’s a little more interesting. Someone dumped a body on a residential street, wrapped up Laura-Palmer-style in a bag. Did anyone hear or see anything? “Residents said they could only hear thunder and lighting last night, and heard nothing else out of the ordinary.” MYSTERIOUS!

#114 Jersey Cocktail Ingredients

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209. Stone Fence

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#209 Stone Fence - Hero

Back to Jerry Thomas! Finally! That’s all I’ve got in the way of an introduction this week. But it’s good to be back. I will say, however, that I really like this name for a cocktail, even though it is not super descriptive, and even though I kind of hated the cocktail itself.

In fence news, some Virginian convicts discovered this weekend that breaking out of prison is harder in real life than it is in the movies. They used a propped up bench to start their climb over two razor wire fences, but quickly got so tired and frustrated that they just sat down and waited to be apprehended. Wah wah.

#209 Stone Fence Ingredients

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69. West Indian Punch

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69. West Indian Punch - Hero

Here’s another variation on JT’s Brandy Punch (after last week’s Barbadoes Punch). I, for one, didn’t know that preserved (not candied) ginger was a thing, but apparently it’s pretty common in British-esque countries. And is very tasty. I’ve eaten many a “clove” or two on their own once I found it at our local British food store. It’s a pity it’s not more common.

One of the biggest news stories today is Wikileak’s release of details on CIA hacking tools that can snoop on your phone, computer, and even your connected TV. This is not super surprising, as the spy agency is just that — a spy agency — but it will definitely pose problems for the western organization (ugh that’s a stretch) as some of the tricks of their trade are now revealed.

69. West Indian Punch - Ingredients

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70. Barbadoes Punch

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70. Barbadoes Punch - Hero

This is one of the many variations on JT’s Brandy Punch (which was delicious). It is notable for being one of the drinks I never thought I would actually make, due to the required additional ingredient — guava jelly. Because who has that? That’s not a thing! Then, one of our friends brought back some guava jam as a gift from a tropical trip so… problem solved! Technically jam not jelly I suppose but close enough.

The only news that I could understand about Barbado[e]s itself was this which does not merit repeating here. So, instead, some regular news. Scientists have found what they think are the oldest micro-fossils yet, dating back to 3.77 billion years ago. They are probably bacteria that lived around hot volcanic vents in the ocean’s floor. Cool!

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106. Bottle Cocktail

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106. Bottle Cocktail - Hero

So, turns out this is pretty much the same as one of his others, the Brandy Cocktail, just in a bottle. I guess if you made it the actual size he wanted (we cut it down considerably) it’s more useful as a separate recipe, for storing and whatnot. Aged cocktails are certainly a thing now, though I haven’t yet tried the little bit of this we have left, so I don’t know if it improved with age. Either way, I got to use my new bitters!

Not really any keywords to go on for this one. Hm. It’s also really tough for me to not always default to “terrible things that are happening with our government.” So, instead, let’s go for “interesting things that are happening with other governments.” Earlier this week, Kim Jong-Un’s half brother was killed in Malaysia. The mystery surrounding this continues, as a somewhat exciting intrigue/conspiracy plot with North Korea suspected of carrying out the killing. If it weren’t real life, I’d enjoy reading it in a spy novel!

106. Bottle Cocktail - Ingredients

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130. Porter Sangaree

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This is an alternate version of one we’ve already tested, the Ale Sangaree. This one is better.

Hopefully, the most important thing that will happen today in the news is the Super Bowl, this afternoon between the Patriots and the Falcons. Being from New England, my choice here is clear, and so I will be a porter of Pats spirit even here in LA — or let’s face it, most places — where people kind of hate them. At press time, the odds are 61% in favor of the Pats (according to FiveThirtyEight) so I’m okay with that. Have fun watching!

130. Porter Sangaree - Ingredients

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134. Whiskey Toddy

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134. Whiskey Toddy - Hero

Ol’ Jerr-Jerr is playing fast and loose with these cocktail names. First a Flip that doesn’t seem to be a flip. Granted, I don’t really know what a flip is supposed to be, but still. Now, it’s a… cold toddy? Since a hot toddy is basically any alcohol with water, sugar, and maybe citrus, I guess this is an acceptable cold toddy but who really wants to drink that?

Neither of these words lends itself to even a vague connection with the news, so instead, a top story today. A shooting at a mosque in Quebec yesterday left six dead and many others wounded or in critical condition. However, they’ve now detained two people in connection with the attack, one a suspect, and the other a witness (the man who dialed 911). To me, though, it seems odd to detain a witness, is that a typical procedure? I don’t know much about police work, and I know even less about police work in Canada, but hopefully it will lead to resolution quickly and effectively. I should have made this drink with Canadian whiskey, in solidarity.

134. Whiskey Toddy - Ingredients

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176. White Lion

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176. White Lion - Hero

Okay, so I thought this was a wintry drink, due to where it was in the book, as well as its name. It is not. This also marks the last use of the raspberry syrup (may it rest in peace) that I made a while ago. A poor last use, in my opinion.

While I could probably find a lot of news about white people, or talk about the movie Lion which is getting a lot of Oscar buzz and is a movie I really want to see, instead I found this story first, so here goes. In Japan, two animal handlers were mauled by a lion from Shonan Animal Production, a company that owns animals for use in film and television. Unclear as of yet if this was provoked, or just lions being lions. After all, they are wild animals.

176. White Lion - Ingredients

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150. Brandy Flip

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150. Brandy Flip - Hero

Oddly, this has nothing to do with the other flips that we’ve done so far, which generally use egg whites, as I understand it. Which I thought when I chose this one for today, still in the depths of winter. Oh well. This, instead, has a different, singular feature, which is the worst.

The “Search for MH370” switch has now been flipped from on to off, three years after the Malaysian Airlines plane went missing. The officials in charge decided early on that if the wreckage was not found after 120,000 square km were searched (Wolfram Alpha tells me this is a third of the size of Germany) that they’d have to call it off. And, they’ve hit that limit. One day, we’ll be able to magically map all the oceans and be able to find it, but until then, it will remain a mystery. I for one, though, didn’t realize how much wreckage (primarily in Africa) we had actually found of the plane, so we actually knew a bit more than I thought.

150. Brandy Flip - Ingredients

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