Beer and cupcakes

Last night I went to Redlight Redlight’s Pinklight Bazaar, which was packed with people in “classy & sassy attire” flipping through vendor goods and gnoshing on cupcakes. The vendor area was too packed for me to elbow my way through, and since I was low on the cash anyway, Hao and I eventually planted ourselves at the cupcake corner of the bar.

So, what beer does one drink when eating a lovely coconut-vanilla cupcake? I opted to go light, with one of my most favourite beers, the Hitachino Nest White Ale. The hint of spice and orange peel in this clean, crisp beer was lovely in washing down the cupcake, and I was finished with my glass too soon. Instead of continuing along the line of witbiers, I made the mistake of getting a frambois-type concoction that was too sweet–I ended up not finishing it. A shame.

Judging by the attendance, the event seemed like it was quite a success–there were worries among my crowd of falling through to the bakery downstairs–but like I said earlier, due to the crowd, I didn’t really get to paw through the goods that were featured by the craftswomen for sale. In any case, the cupcakes were lovely.

The Joy of Drinking

In my faltering little Last.fm group Library Lust, I wrote up a bit about a book I recently finished, The Joy of Drinking, which discusses the social history of alcoholic drinks in a wry manner, thanks to the style of author Barbara Holland. According to The Washington Post, Holland wrote the book “as a protest against the decline of social drinking and the rise of broccoli, exercise and Starbucks.”

The Joy of Drinking is itself a joy of reading as Holland chronicles the discovery and rise of alcoholic beverages, which she rightly argues led to human civilisation. She touches upon the drinking habits of famous historical figures, such as Winston Churchill and Queen Victoria, as well as that of the common man and woman, with most of her focus on the United States.

At 160 pages, it’s a slim book, and you can preview the beginning chapter at Barnes & Noble. It’s a wonderful read, but have a drink handy, as reading about New England applejack and a myriad of other drinks makes the mouth want to sample. Holland included recipes on how to make some of the beverages she talks about, including applejack, if you have the time and curiosity.

And if you do, let me know. I’d love to be a guinea pig.