this charming man
Ever since I went to La Belle Vie with guest drinker Rachel a few weeks ago, doing my write up has been hanging over my head. What held me up hasn’t been the usual excuses of being too busy or having come down with writer’s block, but simply that I could not remember what I had to drink that night. And it wasn’t because I had too many, I only had two drinks (which is really like four. It’s akin to how one human year equals seven dog years: one Johnny drink equals at least two Applebee’s drinks.) I remembered the drink was good, but that was about it.
But yesterday I found myself at Home Depot for the eleventieth time in the past few days. As I rifled through my purse for a receipt to return a Dap Cap (hint: though using your finger will cause it to become cancerous in California, it is still neater and easier than using a Dap Cap) I came up instead with a handful of loose tobacco. “What the…” I muttered and peered into my purse. Seeing the Dunhill cigarette tucked inside of my purse with it’s stuffing falling out I quickly remembered that I had ordered the This Charming Man that night with Rachel. Then it all came back to me.
This Charming Man is really a very pleasant drink. It is gin based, with creme de cassis, sour and cava. It is served – somewhat curiously – with a Dunhill cigarette chaser. The drink is very smooth, like many a charming man can be. But also like many a charming man, the drink did not leave me feeling completely satisfied (afterall, I did not have the urge to smoke the cigarette right there on the spot.) It was fun while it lasted, but when it was done I moved on to something with substance (a Parma to be precise) and the only remnant of my night with the This Charming Man was found in my purse days later. Not entirely unlike reaching for the car keys and coming up instead with a napkin with a stranger’s name and number scrawled on it. Just like I look at those with a confused look and cocked eyebrow, I did the same with the Dunhill cigarette in my purse. “Huh,” I muttered, and tossed out the Dunhill on my way to register 14.
Lush Jen