"Va-Va Voom" Star of the Day

Barbara Payton
The story of a beautiful starlet that lost its shine is always tragic, and the tale of Barbara Payton is no exception.

Born in Cloquet, Minnesota on November 26, 1927, Barbara Lee Redfield came from a modest, blue-collar background.  She grew up to be a stunningly gorgeous woman, and, following a quickie marriage at age 19, decided to leave home to capitalize on her good looks in Tinseltown. She headed for Hollywood in 1948 and, within a short time, was placed under contract by Universal, where she began the typical starlet route of bit parts.  Pretty soon the renamed Barbara Payton was earning several thousand dollars a week in the early 1950s, becoming the "It" Girl of her day.  The gossip magazines followed her relentlessly, mercilessly reporting her sordid personal details.

Cocktail Recipe Du Jour

The Singapore Sling
I previously wrote about the effects of a night with the cocktail, but how do you make a Singapore Sling?

D. A. Embury stated in the Fine Art of Mixing Drinks: "Of all the recipes published for [this drink] I have never seen any two that were alike."

Some sources say the "original recipe" contains gin with cherry brandy and orange, pineapple, and lime juice.  Others use gin, Cherry Heering, Bénédictine, and fresh pineapple juice, primarily from Sarawak pineapples which enhance the flavor and create a foamy top.

Crushing on John Payne

Mmmmm.....

Cockail Quote o' the Day

"The trouble with the world is that everybody is three drinks behind."

- Humphrey Bogart

Bartending 101: Your Guide to Garnishes

Finishing your drink with the right garnish can make or break your cocktail.  (And no one wants a broken cocktail!  I mean, I'd still drink it, but I wouldn't enjoy it as much.)  As a bartender, I've met plenty of finicky people whose order is so detailed, especially specifying the garnish.  They not only are the visual finishing touch to a cocktail, but the taste of the garnish effects the drink.  So if you're stocking your bar, you want to make sure you have these accouterments ready to make the best cocktail service for your visitors!

Lemon slice
These are probably the most popular, usually added to gin and tonics, but can be requested for various other drinks.  You want to cut off both ends.  Then slice the lemon in half.  Lay each half down and cut in to half-moon slices.  Lay each half-moon slice down and cut in to the flesh at the middle, only halfway, so that the slice will stay in place on the glass's rim.

Lemon twists
This is primarily the rind used for its essential oil.  To make lemon twists, cut off both ends of the lemon. Insert a sharp knife or spoon between the rind and meat of the lemon and carefully separate them. Cut the rind into strips. The outside of the lemon is where the flavor lies. When adding a lemon twist to a drink, slowly rim the edge of the glass with the outside of the lemon twist and then drop the twist into the cocktail.

"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

I can't believe I haven't featured William Holden yet, after all the other posts about him...so here he is, our star of the day:

William Holden
William Franklin Beedle, Jr. was born in O'Fallon, Illinois in 1918. His family moved to South Pasadena when he was three. After graduating from South Pasadena High School, Holden attended Pasadena Junior College, where he became involved in local radio plays. He was spotted by a talent scout from Paramount Pictures in 1937 while playing the part of an 80-year-old man, Marie Curie's father-in-law, in a play in a small private theatre. His first film role was in Prison Farm the following year.

He was renamed William Holden after his talent scout Harold Winston's ex-wife, Gloria Holden. Holden's first starring role was in Golden Boy (1939), costarring Barbara Stanwyck, in which he played a violinist-turned-boxer. This gave him the eternal nickname in Hollywood of "Golden Boy."

After a few more film roles and a stint in the army during World War II, he made his name known when he landed the quintessential role in Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard (1950).  Initially the role was to go to Montgomery Clift, but luckily Holden snagged it, earning a Best Actor Oscar nomination.

How to Make the Perfect Vodka Gimlet

The Vodka Gimlet seems pretty straight-forward as cocktails go, but there's actually some small nuances that can change the entire taste.  So take it from me, there's a not-so-perfect way to make it, and a PERFECT way to make it.  Here's MY way:

Pop Quiz, Hot Shot: When someone orders (or asks you for) a Vodka Gimlet, what's your first question to ask?

BoozeQuest Research: The Best Bloody Mary

I'm reposting "vintage" posts that had previously only appeared on the now-defunct blog SorryIGotDrunk.com.  This is a follow up to the 8-part series called "BoozeQuest."  Please enjoy.

We at the Booze Quest Labs have been taking the past couple months researching the best Bloody Mary in Los Angeles. It's been quite painstaking and extensive, but I think I've found the perfect mixture of tomato juice, spices, garnishes, and any other item that can make an outstanding cocktail. Here are my findings:

Jerry's Deli, Studio City, CA:
Glass: daiquiri glass
Consistency: watery
Strength: weak. Probably less than 1 shot of vodka
Garnish: lemon wedge
Analysis: Seeing the paleness of the cocktail got my hopes up that it would be a stronger drink, but it was just water that made the Bloody Mary at Jerry's so washed-out. I barely tasted any kick or spices, so it tasted essentially like a watery tomato juice. Even after adding Tabasco sauce, it still was not tasty enough.
Final score: 3/10

Crushing on Clark Gable

Look at Clark in his nice little turtleneck and his big ol' eyes and bushy brows.  Yum...

Holiday Windup

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while.  The holidays kicked my ass.  Thank goodness my family drinks so I could survive the exhilaration of tons of family and lots of food and booze.  (And thankfully one of my family members gave me this sign as a Christmas present!)  While dry out and get back in to the swing of things, check out these previous posts of holiday seasons past...

Early in to starting the blog back in "ought-5" (2005), I was delighted to find these old holiday ads.

Later that year, my Christmas recap was kind of a downer, due to budget restraints.

In 2007, I was pretty pissed of with the media's portrayal of Christmas.  

In 2008, I reflected how horrible the "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" kids' special really is.

Later that same year, I was feeling really nostalgic and introspective, reflecting on Christmas when I was a kid.

I had quite the turnaround this year, as my Christmas and New Years was full of lots of family, food, and cocktails.  I hope all of yours was just as good!