Booze and a Book: An Inoculation Against Winter
Tara Avery
For those of us not in the position to take midwinter jaunts down to the Caribbean or Mexico or the Greek Islands, summer is around the corner? Right? Any day now?
The problem with March is its sheer unpredictability. Christmas has been over a long time, and vacations at the beach seem interminably far in the future. Will spring come early enough to warrant flip-flops and iced coffees? Or will it snow, just as you’re airing out your lightweight jackets and unpacking your cotton dresses? Both? In the same day?
In New York, on Monday March the second, temperatures hovered around -9°C, with a wind-chill making it feel closer to -18°C. On Saturday, the high was 21°C. Yes. Notice the lack of a minus in front of that number. Still, if you can’t be bothered keeping up with the weather-schizophrenic month of March, allow me to let you in on a secret:
Cocktails. Or, rather, cocktails and chick-lit. Close the blinds, turn up the heat, hell, lay out a towel and prance about it your bathing suit if you feel like it. Mix up a beautiful, refreshing cocktail and pluck out one of your favorite easy reads. Throw in a dash of romance! An exotic locale! You’ll be halfway to the holidays in the time it takes to remember if March came in like a lion or a lamb.
The best part about this midseason adventure? No judgment. I’ll give you a couple of my favorite cocktail recipes, and throw in a smattering of book recommendations, but feel free to make any summery beverage your heart desires. And if now is the time you dig out that box of romance novels no one knows you keep hidden under the bed, more power to you. Enjoy your vacation. I know I’ll enjoy mine.
Mojito
1.5 oz white rum
12 fresh mint leaves
1/2 lime
7 oz club soda
2 tbsp. simple syrup
(or 4 tsp. sugar)
Gently muddle mint leaves and squeeze lime in a cool tall glass. Pour sweet syrup to cover and fill glass with ice. Add white rum, club soda, and stir. Garnish with a lime wedge and a few sprigs of mint.
Sangria (by the pitcher, naturally)
1/3-1/2 bottle red wine
3 oz Triple Sec
3 oz Apricot Brandy
3 oz Cinzanno
Lemon-lime soda
Fruit (apple, orange, peaches, grapes, pears…)
Mix ingredients in a pitcher with ice, top with lemon-lime soda. Add slices of your favorite fruit. This is my personal recipe, and to be fair, amounts are pretty subjective. I usually make it to taste. And then I make some more.
Book Recommendations
Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella.
A Hopeless Romantic by Harriet Evans.
Sweet Love by Sarah Strohmeyer.
Elegance by Kathleen Tessaro.
Other authors to look out for: Jill Mansell, Louise Bagshawe, Jennifer Weiner, Kristin Harmel, Marian Keyes.