where the gin is cold but the piano's hot

It's the holiday season, and I want to share something marvelous with you: the gift of gin. What do you think of when someone mentions gin? I automatically start humming "All That Jazz." (No? Nobody?) Whatever it is you think of, it probably has something to do with old people. You are missing out, my friends. Here is a quick beginner's guide to gin-drinking.

Gin is not a very restrictively defined liquor. The number one requirement: It must be predominantly flavored with juniper berries and taste of juniper, although distillers often throw in anise, caraway, coriander, and other botanicals to achieve unique flavors. The vast majority of widely-available gins are made in the London dry style.

"Gin Lane": an 18th-cent. William Hogarth print

A Dutch doctor is credited with inventing the spirit as we know it. Its initial purpose was medicinal: The botanicals in the liquor were thought to treat a variety of illnesses. (Juniper-flavored liquor itself was used centuries earlier as a remedy for the bubonic plague, although we all know how well that one turned out.) Gin is cheaply and easily made, and became especially popular in England among the poor and degenerate during the 18th century. Concerned citizens were convinced that gin would destroy British society. Although it has declined in popularity, the word's negative connotations are still around, especially in the U.K. (Hang out with a poncy Brit  long enough and you're bound to hear him call someone a "gin-soaked trollop" eventually.) The ease of production also made gin a highly popular speakeasy drink in the U.S. during prohibition. So when you drink gin, you're actually participating in a long and illustrious tradition of debauchery.

Disclaimer: Gin IS one of those drinks that you'd better buy top-shelf or not bother drinking at all. When it's bad, it's really bad. Also, if you're a party girl that drinks just to get wasted, stick to the cherry vodka sours and shame on you. But if you like to have one or two good cocktails every now and again, I'd highly recommend you try one of the following:

Bombay Sapphire martini. Most people prefer their martinis with vodka, but I think that gin martinis are about a million times better. I've discovered I like mine extra dry with no olives, but to each his own.

Citadelle on the rocks. This French product is one of the best moderately-priced sipping gins out there. It includes 19 botanicals from all over the world (cardamom from India, lemon peel from Spain, grains of paradise from West Africa...you get the idea). Pour it over ice and enjoy.

Gimlet. This tasty little cocktail (basically liquor and lime juice) is good with any top-shelf London dry gin, or Plymouth gin if it's available. This one is good if you're feeling kinda noir; it was Raymond Chandler's drink of choice. Gimlets can also be made with vodka - Don't do it!

Tanqueray and tonic. This is the most classic gin cocktail and probably the biggest crowd-pleaser. Tanqueray is the best with tonic in my opinion. (Tanqueray Rangpur, which has a much limier flavor, is really great too, but most places around here don't carry it, alas.)

Fun fact: The gin and tonic has its roots in colonial India, where the British would mix quinine with carbonated water and gin to help protect themselves against malaria.

save the planet. drink scotch.

Interesting news from one of my very favorite places in the whole world: Drinking Scotch can help the environment. Yes, yes, yes - This is what I'm talking about.

Well, maybe not exactly. Turns out that two byproducts of the distilling process (pot ale and draff) can be used to produce a biofuel. And that biofuel can be used to power cars without even adapting the engines. Here's the description from the UK Guardian article, "Scottish scientists develop whisky biofuel":

The new method developed by the team produces butanol, which gives 30% more power output than the traditional biofuel ethanol. It is based on a 100-year-old process that was originally developed to produce butanol and acetone by fermenting sugar. The team has adapted this to use whiskey by-products as a starting point and has filed for a patent to cover the new method. It plans to create a spin-out company to commercialise the invention.

Don't get it? Me either. But who cares. This is sheer brilliance. And a great reminder of why I love the Scots so very much: Eventually they will find a way to incorporate whisky into every single aspect of daily life. Including driving to work in the morning. So, people, do  your part: Buy plenty of imported Scotch whisky to ensure these brilliant scientists have all the pot ale and draff they could possibly need in order to complete this important research.

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On a side note: I have long been confused about the correct spelling of "whiskey." I've always spelled it with an 'e', but I've seen it both ways. I finally decided to look it up, because it is very important to know these things. Here's the difference according to whiskydistilled.com:

You see, whisky (plural whiskies) shows that the product was made in either Scotland, Wales, Canada or Japan, whereas whiskey (plural whiskeys) shows that it was made in either Ireland or America.

So there you go. And feel free to speculate about why the spelling of this word is something that I've spent a lot of time thinking about. 

daisy buchanan, the waif

In baz tackles gatsby, I discussed some speculation surrounding the casting of Daisy Buchanan in Baz Luhrman's film adaptation of The Great Gatsby. The verdict is in: Carey Mulligan will be playing Daisy. (This announcement is actually a couple of weeks old, but I've been away from blogging for a couple of weeks due to an end-of-semester homework deluge. I'm baaaack!)

I haven't seen Mulligan in anything other than a BBC production of Charles Dickens' Bleak House, in which she was stunningly unremarkable and pretty. Daisy is a very bubbly, dark, charming, ironic, complex character - I would've thought that an older, more experienced actress (like Natalie Portman or Rachel McAdams, grrrr) would be better. Or at least someone who doesn't so strongly resemble an adorable orphan wearing costume jewelery.

Oh, well. I hope it's good. Although I want to go on the record as being highly disapproving of this whole Carey Mulligan business.

snow white and the twenty-one dwarves

There are THREE Snow White films in the works as we speak.

the huntsman, a la disney in 1937

Snow White and the Huntsman: The Wrap reports that Johnny Depp has been offered the role of the Huntsman in this Universal film, slated for 2012. In this movie, the Huntsman will be a central Robin Hood-like character. He will act as Snow White's mentor, teaching her how to fight and stand up to her evil stepmother (who will likely be played by Charlize Theron - fabulous!). No word on who will be playing Snow White, but between Johnny and Charlize I don't think it will even matter.


Untitled (The Brothers Grimm: Snow White): Tarsem Singh has been confirmed as the director of another Snow White adaptation. The script for this one is going to more closely follow the original German fairy tale, which is verrry dark and much more interesting than the Disney version. (It ends with Snow White making her evil stepmother put on a pair of red-hot iron shoes and "dancing" until she dies.) Here's the trailer from Singh's The Fall, which is one of the most surreal, beautiful, and unsettling movies I've ever seen - I highly recommend it! If this is any indication of what his version of Snow White will be like, it's going to be amazing:

Snow White and the Seven: Disney has been planning its own re-imagination of Snow White. This version is a martial arts epic set in 19th-century colonial China, with seven Shaolin monks instead of dwarves, to be choreographed by the dude that did The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The project was first announced in 2005 and was shelved, but Disney is reportedly about to get cracking on it again. Hence, Snow White movie number three.

Wouldn't it just make sense for them to all pool their resources and make one REALLY crazy-good movie? I'm thinking Johnny Depp running around the forest with a bow and arrow looking all cute, with epic kung-fu-fighting dwarf monks and a slightly-maniacal Snow White? Yes, please. Or I'm cool with just going to see all three movies - That works, too.

happy happy diwali

I was first introduced to the Hindu festival of Diwali by a particularly hilarious episode of The Office. The holiday has also been in the news lately because of President Obama's controversial trip to India. But what is it, exactly? Since I'm going to the Diwali celebration in downtown San Antonio this weekend, I decided I better find out. 

Diwali is called the "Festival of Lights" because the celebration involves lighting candles and lanterns. The multitude of lights are supposed to signify the banishment of ignorance (darkness), and the welcoming of knowledge (light). The religious significance of Diwali varies according to region and may be associated with the gods Rama, Kali, or Lakshmi, but the overarching theme is the victory of good over evil. (I think everyone, Hindu or not, should be cool with that.) Diwali celebrations also include the three things that all fabulous holidays have: fireworks, gifts, and feasting. Yesss.

I think we're going to have a great time this weekend! This is only the second city-wide celebration (it got started when San Antonio signed a sister-city agreement with Chennai, an Indian city on the Bay of Bengal, in 2008). Here's some info. and the website:

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Hemisfair Park by the Tower of the Americas
San Antonio, Texas

6:00 - 10:00 PM

*Live Entertainment

*Temporary Henna Tattoos

*1000 Diya Candle Floats

*Authentic Indian cuisine

*Spectacular Fireworks Display

http://www.diwalisa.com/

releasing diya candles into the S.A. river

If you want to know more about Diwali, here's a good site.

follow-ups: kanye goes zen, 50 cent finds a kindred spirit, more u.n. haterade, and taylor hunts me down

There have been some interesting, occasionally bizarre, developments regarding some of the things I've blogged about over the past few weeks. Here are a few that have come to my attention: 

In a tale of dubya, I mentioned that Bush feels that being accused of racism after Hurricane Katrina was one of the very lowest points of his presidency. One of the central figures behind those accusations was Kanye West, who extended an olive branch to Bush during a radio interview on Wednesday. West said he regrets pulling the race card and can connect with Bush on a human level. I've gotta say, I'm impressed.

phila is one tough cookie

In farewell, herbie, I climbed on my rhino poaching soapbox. So I was pretty beside myself to hear about Phila the black rhinoceros, who was shot nine times during the course of two poaching attempts and lived to tell the tale. She's since been moved to a zoo in Johannesburg. A movement to make 50 Cent Phila's honorary godfather has been gaining momentum in South Africa, including petitioning Nelson Mandela to contact the rapper on Phila's behalf.

chishugi, another tough cookie

In a few things to be angrier about than the ground zero mosque, I shared some information about the mass rapes in the Democratic Republic of Congo and gave a little piece of my mind on the United Nations. Last night on BBC World Service radio I heard an interview with Leah Chishugi, a survivor of the 1994 Rwandan genocide who is now working with rape victims in the eastern Congo. She also has a bone to pick with the U.N. because she's seen this type of inaction before. She cited a specific incident last month, when U.N. forces sat idly by while Congolese women were being raped and murdered less than an hour away from their camp. Her words on the U.N.'s current role in the DRC: "It makes me angry, it takes me back to 1994 because they left us to die...I don't know what they're doing, what they're protecting. They should be protecting people." Here's the radio interview.

no one is safe

And some of you may remember haterade: taylor swift, in which I mentioned that hearing Swiftie's songs over and over and over again is one of the reasons that I rarely change my tuner from NPR anymore. Well, it finally happened. NPR was playing Taylor Swift this afternoon. Granted, they were just reviewing her album, but they must've played a full minute of one of her new songs, and it happened: my ear drums started bleeding. She's found me.

a tale of dubya

Am I the only person looking forward to George W. Bush's memoir, Decision Points? It comes out November 9, and I'm deeply curious about what he has to say. The Washington Post reported on a few advance snippets, including:

• Bush seriously considered dropping Cheney from his 2004 ticket, describing him as Darth Vader (ha ha).
• His response when the CIA asked him for permission to waterboard Khalid Sheikh Mohammed? "Damn right."
• He describes accusations of racism in the wake of Katrina as one of the lowest points of his presidency.
• Bush stands by his decisions regarding Iraq. When it comes to the matter of the missing WMDs, however, he describes having a persistent sickened feeling.

Decision Points should make for an interesting read for both those who loathe and adore Dubya. My own feelings about him are very complex, and I won't bore you by attempting to explain them. Bush, at least, doesn't seem too worried about what people think. He wrote, "Whatever the verdict on my presidency, I'm comfortable with the fact that I won't be around to hear it."

And. in case you missed it:
- a report on an exciting upcoming movie project: baz tackles gatsby
- The Goonies 25th anniversary: ruth! ruth! ruth! baby? ruth!