Clik here to view.
Was Champagne Created by the Devil?
Everyone is asking it: was Champagne created by the devil (providing your belief system has a devil in it–if not, just fake it for now) to entrap people into getting loopy and lustful as the old year...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk, Shirley #2
In the post below, I mention my theory on the Bronte sisters as wild wing-ding women, and while some might disagree, those disagreers are probably also the people who no one invites to parties, and who...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Alibi Baby
Alibi Baby, by Stewart Sterling (who I’ve never read before, as far as I know. Which may not be too far, as the old pulp writers played pretty fast and loose with nom de plumes and such) falls into the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Naked Fury
I probably shouldn’t start off by lying, so I’m going to tell the truth (which happens at least 69.7% of the time): even if the book I’m quoting wasn’t written by Day Keene, I probably would have...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Travels with My Aunt
As the political, um, talk is reaching its election-year-in-January proportions (talk which I’m sure by the actual election will reach astronomical asinine-ness), I thought I’d throw in a Cocktail Talk...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Alexis Soyer Week, Part 3
I’m going to skip the preamble for this post (you can catch that in Alexis Soyer Cocktail Talk I and Alexis Soyer Cocktail Talk II) and get right the quotes, which are again taken from the superb Soyer...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: House Party
I suppose I should in the below attribution attribute this quote to Patrick Dennis, as he wrote the book House Party under the nom de plume Virginia Rowans. And Dennis was an interesting chap, the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: The Black Pearl
This elegant bubbly number from Good Spirits has a certain savoir faire that gets the point across without becoming all Herb Tarlek about the occasion. By which I mean to say that it’s sexy without...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Waltz Into Darkness
Way back on March 10, 2009, I posted about Cornell Woolrich, the noir-mystery-darkness master, quoting from his book Fright. I’m aghast that it’s the only Woolrich quote I’ve had on here, as I think...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Black Alibi
I’ve had some Cocktail Talk from Cornell Woolrich here on this blog already, and sung his praises. Which are deserved, cause he created the whole genre of “noir” as much as anyone, and was a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: The Ponce de León
This refreshing number with a kick will not make you younger, or provide you (after you drink, say, three) with a vision that takes you to the fountain of youth. However, however, however, if you do...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: The Blushing Bride
It’s wedding season, I do believe, evidenced by the lacy white outfits I keep seeing women wearing (usually accompanied by a bunch of other women in really oddly colored and shaped outfits – poor...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: Summer Dream
Sometimes, in summer, it’s too hot for me to even write up a new, clever, headnote (anyone who shakes their head at “clever” please leave the room). And sometimes, I read another headnote from a book...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: The Pensiero
Hello late August! You might think in late August, where, for let’s say at least 85.4% of the readers of this blog, it’s pretty hot, that I wouldn’t dare suggest making a drink that means “thought.”...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Ralph the Heir
I recently picked up a couple Trollope books I hadn’t read before (which is rare – if you don’t know of my Trollopean love, go check out past Trollope Cocktail Talks), thanks to Powell’s, and as...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Casino Royale
Well, if you don’t know Casino Royale from the movies or books, where have you been hiding? It’s the first James Bond-ing, for super-spy sake! Here’s a secret between us, though. I actually hadn’t...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: Nicholas Nickleby, Part I
Published originally in 1838 (that’s when it started publication, at least, as it was a serial as many books were back then), Nicholas Nickleby hasn’t yet been featured in a Cocktail Talk post, which...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cocktail Talk: The Way We Live Now, Part I
Trollope, how I love thee, let me count the ways . . . okay, that would take too long. But just check out all the past Anthony Trollope Cocktail Talks, and you’ll read about my swoons until you are...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: Bombay Punch
It’s the holiday party season, and you’re probably thinking, “what should I serve as I unwrap presents, or in any way enjoy the holiday season with family and friends?” Well, there are lots and lots of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What I’m Drinking: The Ponce de León
Hey, the year of 2018 is coming to a close (you may have known this, and if not, well, congrats on your ability to disconnect from world events), which means another year – 2019, unless I’m...
View Article
