The View from the Cheap Seats + Left Hand
“The View from the Cheap Seats: Selected Nonfiction” by Neil Gaiman is, as always, just a book full of awesome. It is a varied collection of nonfiction essays on a multitude of topics. I am always struck by the wide variety that Gaiman is able to write so exquisitely upon. But, I am also repeatedly in awe by the depth of his observations and the manner in which he expresses himself – so clearly, but also so unmistakably Gaimanesque. (I think I just made up a word, but you all know what I mean). His opinions, thoughts, and observations make me see the world in a whole new way and allow me the opportunity to turn my own thinking on its head. An easy book to read in spurts and fits, but also lends itself to a full-fledge binge read-a-thon. (Published by William Morrow, an imprint of Harper Collins.)
Left Hand
(As seen on Instagram via @drinks_only )
I guess I always regarded Neil Gaiman’s work as looking at everyday things with another part of your brain. It is noticing a common moment or object, and instead of walking right by it, getting close, and magnifying it in a way I just can’t seem to do. Trying out the drink Left Hand only made me realize that all these ingredient are tastes I love, but I just wouldn’t have put them together like this. However, now that I have, I cannot un-see it… or un-taste it. Give your non-dominant side a chance and get this drink all stirred up, settle down into your best reading spot, and devour this read and drink.
Left Hand
- 1.5oz Bourbon
- 0.75oz Sweet Vermouth
- 0.75oz Campari
- 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters
Stir with ice, pour, and garnish with citrus peel.
“Good malt whisky tastes of one thing; a great malt whisky tastes of many things. It plays a chromatic scale of flavor in your mouth, leaving you with an odd sequence of aftertastes, and after the liquid has gone from your tongue you find yourself reminded of first honey, then woodsmoke, bitter chocolate and of the barren salt pastures at the edge of the sea.”
