From @andrewstroehlein.bsky.social , a few years in the future: Why the US Collapsed www.internationalaffairsfornormalpeople.eu/why-the-us-c...

Super cool!

Anyone else want to weigh in on the great nut debate? What's your ranking? (This post inspired by thinking about the time years ago when I dissed Brazil nuts on FB and more people than I thought possible came out to defend them.)

Got talking nut preference with my partner this morning. Imagining a nut mix of equal proportions where you can only eat one kind at a time, what's your order? Here's my mine: Pecan Hazelnut Almond Cashew Peanut Walnut Pistachio Brazil (except I wouldn't eat those at all)

Come hang with me in Chicago in February!

I can see the weaponizing of smugness and beavers. But not saying "sorry" is just inconceivable.

Bumping this My Tiny Bottles episode from earlier in the week. It's a deep dive into the "vodka diplomacy" that happened during World War II and after. Find out why Jim Beam launched a vodka brand in 1942, that time NYC bartenders to boycott Moscow Mules, and what made Stoli so unique at launch.

"Shred" and "recorder" are not meant to occupy the same conceptual space AND YET.

This recipe was delicious! I took a cue from @sazeracla.bsky.social and used a couple slices of bacon and the leftover beef broth from Christmas dinner. It was a perfect excuse to drink the half bottle of 2000 Burgundy leftover from Christmas too!

Anyone can nominate or vote in the #hugoawards and here's how: https://reactormag.com/anyone-can-vote-in-the-hugo-awards-and-heres-how/

Jesse nails it again. I sure wish we were giving him less to work with though.

Online cocktail class tonight at 7:30 pm! 10 recipes and an hour of education and entertainment for just $14 with coupon code Blue5. (Note: You do not need a smoking cap or gun, other methods and sources of smoky flavor are included, so there will be recipes you can make.)

You should go read my whole thread about Bottle #126: Dark Eyes Vodka, which dives deep into vodka history during and after World War II. But one of my favorite bits of research was this amusing essay, which I liked so much I transcribed it for my Patreon (membership not required).

It’s January of 1942. The US has recently entered World War II. And Clear Spring Distilling Company, a Jim Beam subsidiary, has just released a brand-new product. It’s called Dark Eyes Vodka, and Bottle #126 is Grandma’s tiny bottle of it. Click the link or read it thread style below! 1/

Nice article from @karanewman.bsky.social about how Canadians are adapting to (and thriving under) US liquor bans. Speaking of which, I'm putting together a group of folks who want to learn about Canadian whiskey with me this winter/spring - if you're in GTO and interested, let me know!

Wise words here.

'The ethics of agave' | Drinks Retailing drinksretailingnews.co.uk/analysis-the...

OMG

I realized today that My Tiny Bottles eps on YouTube don't have links to the eps where I actually taste the bottles. Since I've got a few sniffles and not much brain, I'm going through all the old ones and adding them in. If you want to see what I've found & tasted so far, here's the master list!

The Constitution does say that war powers belong to Congress. But there are important exceptions, like if the president really, really wants to go to war. Or it’s the weekend. Or it’s January. Or he thought he saw a spider. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

Tonight we repurposed last night's pasta course leftovers into a dish. Mushroom fettuccine from the leftover mushroom dough tossed with the ravioli filling, topped with roasted mushrooms, dollops of chestnut-onion sauce, hazelnuts, sage, Parm and shaved black truffle. 1/2

New Year's Day is for cooking fancy food for and with friends. I had the first course - an amuse bouche of shakshuka deviled eggs.

At a friend's, and they asked me to assess these gifted cocktail mixers. They were not good. Citric acid featured prominently in the ingredient lists of all three, but of course none of the cocktails they proclaim to make have citrus in them, so WTF?

Okay, this one from @lollardfish.bsky.social was a very good time.

New Year's Eve is for music. (with @lollardfish.bsky.social)

We're not quite sure how two bottles of Dom ended up in our cellar. But since they did, NYE seemed like a great excuse to compare them. Happy New Year!

Maybe turned to yes.

Here's a bit of one of those.

Ugh. It's one thing for people to commit crimes against cocktails. But it's another entirely when they're doing it with your recipes, right in front of you. Mixing instructions matter, people. Yes, grilling a steak and boiling one are both cooking, but...

Is there a #duvetknowitschristmas equivalent for other people's showers? Trying to get clean while solving a logic puzzle with unmarked dials and knobs offers its own kind of holiday joy.

This definitely reflects a lot of the complaints I hear about Toronto!

And they just announced that we'll have a 90 minute taxi time. My son is on a different flight, which got cancelled, and his rebooked flight just got delayed from 5:15 to 7 pm. Fingers crossed he actually gets out eventually. Winter travel is so much fun.

First time I've had to walk through a snow storm to board my plane.

Tasty food and awesome wines tonight!

I'm done dinner and guests are gone, so there's still time to get a cocktail request in!

For those of you who missed this yesterday - I made the Mayo Nog! And wrote a bunch of words about it.

Merry Christmas, Bluesky! I'm celebrating by gifting cocktail recipes. Reply or repost with an inspiration for me - an ingredient you don't know what to do with, classic you want a riff on, food you want to pair with, mood, occasion, or etc and I'll give you a recipe! Zero-proof/NA cocktails too. 🍸

Mincemeat tarts with filling from my butcher that actually includes meat!

Merry Christmas, Bluesky! I'm celebrating by gifting cocktail recipes. Reply or repost with an inspiration for me - an ingredient you don't know what to do with, classic you want a riff on, food you want to pair with, mood, occasion, or etc and I'll give you a recipe! Zero-proof/NA cocktails too. 🍸

Since this is the most viral thing I've ever posted on Bluesky, I figured I had better actually try it. Read on for Mayo Nog, the thread. 🧵 1/

In case you need some Christmas dinner conversation starters/enders

Fun read! I esp liked the implications of this paragraph in terms of wine valuation at the time. "Smoking Bishop had a base of Port. Smoking Cardinal had a Champagne base. If you want to know what was held in higher esteem, consider that Bordeaux (claret) was the base for the Smoking Archbishop."

The aforementioned dinner, and tonight's allotment of cheese (plus the unexpectedly but delightfully) somewhat sweet wine.

As suits the holiday season, we bought too much cheese. And then my partner opened up a wine he thought was dry only for us to discover it is actually "moelleux." So we're adding a cheese course after dinner. Some things are meant to be, I guess!

Happy Tibb's Eve, everyone!

Okay, I don't usually share this kind of thing, but this made me LOL.

My rosemary Christmas tree needed pruning, which combined with the date offered a perfect excuse to make my Solstice cocktail, Longest Night. Apologies for the wash line, my BF forgot the camera drinks first.

Signed! Canadian friends are urged to do likewise.

Never have I had such a startling transition from exterior to interior shots. I highly recommend you give these photos a scroll!

Little scientific support for 'there is no safe level of alcohol intake'. JOURNAL OF WINE ECONOMICS, 2025, 20(3): “How Much Is Too Much? A Methodological Investigation of the Literature on Alcohol Consumption and Health” by S Castriota, P Frumento & F Suppressa wine-economics.org/wp-content/u...