To Have and Have Another
At some point, everyone wants to learn how to make a great cocktail and/or take a stab at becoming the voice of their generation. Precious few succeed at both. Author and cocktail connoisseur, Philip Greene celebrates in his new book To Have and Have Another a literary figure who did just that, accomplished man of letters and mixies Ernest Hemingway.
Night Caps at the Museum
In a Smithsonian Associates event held at the National Museum of the American Indian, Greene reacquainted Hemingway fans with the Lost Generation’s leading author in a seminar that combined biography, passage readings and adult beverages.
As a self-taught Hemingway buff and founder of the Museum of the American Cocktail, Greene provided a new lens to enjoy Hem’s work, taking the audience on a taste tour of the colorful drinks (and drinking buddies) that pop up throughout the Hemingway canon.
Old Man and the Seagrams
In a nod to effective advertising, Greene described Hemingway as the original “World’s Most Interesting Man.” Somewhere between hunting safaris, fraternizing with rum runners in Key West and hunting German U-boats in Cuba, Hemingway found time to put down some choice words as well as down a few choice refreshments. Greene treated the audience to some of Hemingway’s favorite concoctions while giving a mixology lesson on how to whip them up at your own home bar.
Check out these literary libations:
Jack Rose
2 oz Applejack or Calvados
½ oz fresh lime or lemon juice
¼ oz Grenadine (preferably genuine pomegranate)
Shake well with ice, strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with twist of lime or lemon peel.
The Americano
1 oz Campari
1 oz Italian (Sweet) Vermouth
1-2 oz seltzer water (to taste)
Add all ingredients to a rocks or highball glass filled with ice. Stir. Garnish with an orange wedge or a lemon twist.
Bottoms Up!
Philip Greene’s seminar gave everyone who has ever watched Midnight in Paris or read A Moveable Feast and wished they were there, the opportunity to saddle up with “Papa” at the bar and drink a cool one. For your next night in, pick up a copy of To Have and Have Another, fix yourself a stiff Tom Collins and get cozy with that Nobel Prize winning man of wealth and taste, Ernest Hemingway.
Please remember to read responsibly!
By: Richard Barry, Food Editor
Event photos courtesy of Molly McDonald
Richard is a freelance writer who enjoys building a healthy appetite with long runs around the city. When not logging the miles, he can be spotted training the palate at brunches, happy hours and food trucks.
