The Goat Pen

Shit gets me nothing in NY.

Hell, that's nothing. Went to an Italian restaurant and told them that I wanted to visit Italy and they were so enamored with me, they gave us warm bread with pesto and olive oil and did not put it on my bill.

Impressive.

Anybody seen my gum?

Yeah. Hedge got it and put it in his juicer with three stalks of celery, an apple and a tart persimmon.

So he really is whipped?

There can be no doubt.

All the brothas talk that noise about Alize, which is nothing more than vodka and passion fruit juice. Go into the liquor store and a liter of Alize costs like $20.00. Fuck that. Get you a carton of Minute Maid's passion fruit juice, add a reasonable amount of Absolut or even Gordon's and you've pretty much got three times as much for about $3.00 less. Overrated and over-priced. This is not much different from that Tanquery and orange juice phenomenon that Snoop Dogg and his peers kept pimpin'. I gotta tell you... Tanquery takes like German Shepherd piss. There are at least twelve good, dry gins that trump it. And anything that mixes with basic orange juice isn't worth the chatter.

All that said, there's not much that tops a good brandy and Dr. Pepper. Reliable and low-maintenance. Just stay away from the cheap-O brandies like Christian Brothers and Paul Masson.

I'm with you on being skeptical of the latest liquor fads, but I fall out with you over Tanqueray. I still think it is the smoothest, cleanest tasting gin out there, and I've tried aplenty. Some outfit in North Carolina is making gin now, called something like Cardinal or some shit, I haven't tried it yet but I heard it was OK...

"I hate to brag, but I got free chips and salsa before my meal."

Don't forget to mention the free service, although admittedly that's such a commonplace occurrence with you it's hardly worth mentioning on a case by case basis...

How does Hizzy know what german shepherd piss tastes like or should I not ask?

I don't care for gin. Or, rather, it's way down on the list of liquors I reach for:

Scotch
Bourbon
Non-bourbon whiskey (Canadian, American, Irish)
Rum
Vodka
Brandy
Tequila
Cognac
Ouzo, Drambuie, spiced rums, and other liqueurs
Gin
German shepherd piss (always have to mix that with something)

The top 3 or 4 vary depending on my mood, but currently my list would be:

Scotch
Tequila
Gin
Bourbon (mainly b/c I've gotten into Old Fashioned's lately)

I don't really drink congnac, brandy, rum or liqueurs, although the MIF got me a subscription to some magazine called Imbibe so I might be trying some new stuff this year...

I saw an article in a recent NYTimes Magazine talking about hangover cures. From the article:

"Josey Packard, a bartender at Boston’s Drink (it took the prize for Best American Cocktail Bar at the 2011 Tales of the Cocktail festival), suggested just the thing. “The very best experience I have ever had with a pick-me-up, the absolute best,” she said, “was the classic cocktail called the Electric Current Fizz”

The cocktail, which appears in George Kappeler’s 1895 treatise, “Modern American Drinks,” is in two parts: a Silver Fizz — a tall cocktail made of gin, lemon juice, sugar, an egg white and soda water — paired with a variation on the Prairie Oyster. Kappeler instructs readers to make the fizz first and to “save the yolk of the egg and serve it in the half-shell, with a little pepper, salt and vinegar.” Packard recommends a few lashings of Worcestershire and Tabasco instead of vinegar. “Shoot the yolk,” she says, “then enjoy the fizz at your own pace.”

Also from the article:

" Worst Hangover Remedy, Ever

“Take the juice of two quarts of whiskey . . .”

Eddie Condon, jazz musician, bandleader and nightclub impresario. "

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magaz ... drink.html

hedge wrote:The top 3 or 4 vary depending on my mood, but currently my list would be:

Scotch
Tequila
Gin
Bourbon (mainly b/c I've gotten into Old Fashioned's lately)

I don't really drink congnac, brandy, rum or liqueurs, although the MIF got me a subscription to some magazine called Imbibe so I might be trying some new stuff this year...

I saw an article in a recent NYTimes Magazine talking about hangover cures. From the article:

"Josey Packard, a bartender at Boston’s Drink (it took the prize for Best American Cocktail Bar at the 2011 Tales of the Cocktail festival), suggested just the thing. “The very best experience I have ever had with a pick-me-up, the absolute best,” she said, “was the classic cocktail called the Electric Current Fizz”

The cocktail, which appears in George Kappeler’s 1895 treatise, “Modern American Drinks,” is in two parts: a Silver Fizz — a tall cocktail made of gin, lemon juice, sugar, an egg white and soda water — paired with a variation on the Prairie Oyster. Kappeler instructs readers to make the fizz first and to “save the yolk of the egg and serve it in the half-shell, with a little pepper, salt and vinegar.” Packard recommends a few lashings of Worcestershire and Tabasco instead of vinegar. “Shoot the yolk,” she says, “then enjoy the fizz at your own pace.”

Also from the article:

" Worst Hangover Remedy, Ever

“Take the juice of two quarts of whiskey . . .”

Eddie Condon, jazz musician, bandleader and nightclub impresario. "

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magaz ... drink.html

I take a look through Imbibe from time-to-time myself. They're pretty good about hipping you to the newest brands of drink out there.

When traveling I like to drink what the locals drink. In Italy a few months back, I frequented a dive bar close to the hotel and did grappa shots with some longshoremen types. I sorta liked it in the moment, but wouldn't consider even buying a bottle to have on my bar now.

It's like a sazerac in NOLA or ouza in Greece or Boone's Farm in Chapel Hill...

Heh. Fucker.

I have been drinking a lot of Glenlivet lately.

I did try a cheaper scotch called McCelland Islay on Friday night. I drank half of the fifth. I thought it was quite tasty for the price.

The truth of the matter is when you're really ready to get a good buzz going and your options are limited, you can dress up most any liquor and enjoy it. That said, if you've got the means and the options, it's best to know what you're getting and/or what you should be getting.

I like Glenlivet a lot myself, although I don't drink it very often. Maybe once every two-three months I'll have a couple of glasses. And I never mix scotch. Ever.

I got a bottle of Glenlivit 12 yr old single malt a few months ago. It's not bad, but nothing special. Haven't had their blended in awhile. I usually go with a Johnny Walker when I get a blended. Even the JW red is pretty good, but I usually buy the green or gold. Been awhile since I shelled out for the blue...

Glenfiddich.

Hendricks is the gin I'll drink...when I drink it. I really like Tito's vodka, too.

I just had one of my staff bring me back some grappa when she came back from Florence. Paint thinner mixed with high grade jet fuel. Never again.