BITTERS

I was reading an article yesterday about the strange custom among residents of Wisconsin of drinking bitters by the shot.

It is so popular that bars get $4.50 per shot and one bar even has a deal with a distributor to buy 20 gallon kegs of the stuff so he can have the bitters on tap.

Now I knew that Angostura bitters were a tiny component of various cocktails.

My research showed they are absolutely necessary for a good Manhattan.

But I learned that a combination of Angostura and Peychaud bitters, as well as a number of other things make for a Sazerac cocktail - a New Orleans favorite.

I don't think I've ever had a Manhattan and I've never been to New Orleans or had a Sazerac and I don't think I'd ever tasted bitters by themselves.

So I went and found the bottle of Angostura bitters tucked away in our pantry and shook a few drops into a glass and tasted it.

Not bad, though I can't imagine drinking a shotglass full of it.

It tasted to me like a combination of sweet and bitter.

One of the Wisconsin drinkers said it tasted "like Christmas."

I'm not sure what I'll use them for.

I looked up "cooking with bitters" and learned that they don't react well to heat and that some recommended uses include a few drops in salad dressings or whipped creams or on ice cream.

I guess I'll experiment.

I'll let you know if I come up with anything sensational.

And if any of you Gentle Readers know of something to use them for, let me know.

EAT ITALIANO!

Today is Columbus Day in much of the country.

But several states and more and more cities are celebrating the second Monday in October as Indigenous People's Day, honoring the first people to discover what became America.

Whatever your feelings are I hope you won't give up the excellent food and wine the Italians have taught us to enjoy.

SHHHHH.

(Mum's the word)

STAR MAP

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

At last it is here.  

The end of another brutal week.

And what will the vote be?

I vote . . . . for the WEEKEND!

That reminds me - I'm due for a shower.

So, Gentle Readers, I will leave you with whimsical wishes for a weightless weekend, wending away the hours with weisenheimers and watchamacallits.

And never, ever forget to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

IT'S THERE, IN BLACK AND WHITE

One sunny day, at the San Diego Zoo.

Did you see them?

Look closer.

UP AGAINST IT?

I was looking at the concrete block wall in our back yard yesterday as the rain fell throughout the day and wondering . . .

. . . is this how that little Dutch boy felt

 when he put his finger in the dike?

But the monk in the corner protected us and no action was required on my part.