Grain Alcohol with Grapefruit Juice
Happy Pynchon in Public day all! I confess I am not doing my drinking in public this evening, but I did at least read Vineland on the train this morning … Continue reading Grain Alcohol with Grapefruit Juice
Recent Posts
Gwenhidwy’s Drink
As you should all already know, the Pynchon in Public Podcast team have planted the glorious tombstone/nosecone on their quest both madcap and meticulous through Gravity’s Rainbow after the rocket. … Continue reading Gwenhidwy’s Drink
A six-pack of Dos Equis
Vineland hasn’t gotten much of a run around here, I think because I can barely remember what happens in it. Something to do with Reagan? And ninjas? Clearly a reread … Continue reading A six-pack of Dos Equis
Torpedo Juice
During WWII, US Navy torpedos were fuelled on 180 proof grain alcohol. So were the sailors. The torpedos had an easier time stomaching the stuff. Alcohol was (and is) more-or-less … Continue reading Torpedo Juice
Montrachet
Early on in Gravity’s Rainbow, while we’re still huddled behind London blackout curtains with relatively recognisable characters and fairly coherent plots, Jessica sits up while Roger sleeps, “filling with a … Continue reading Montrachet
Green Beer
Early in Against the Day, the young Franz Ferdinand is hanging out in Chicago for the World’s Fair. Greenhorn private security agent Lew Basnight is tasked with protecting the Archduke, … Continue reading Green Beer
Soju Wallbanger
It’s time for that old favourite game again: drinking things Guardian commenters say you shouldn’t. Last time it was vodka with milk, vegetable soup, and watermelon juice. Today it’s the … Continue reading Soju Wallbanger
Brandy Alexander
Just post-Slothrop’s troubling moment with the really-too-young Bianca (discussed with great thoughtfulness and insight on the latest Pynchon in Public podcast), our dubious hero finds himself weaving through “newly-risen roisterers” below decks on the … Continue reading Brandy Alexander
Aged Bourbon
Tommy Boy turns eighty today, and while I won’t say that counts as officially old, it is a pretty creditable age. No doubt he’s got another book coming together, as vivid … Continue reading Aged Bourbon
Cheap Claret
Claret first enters the etymological record as a British nickname for Bordeaux red in 1700, not too long before Mason & Dixon gets started. The slang would then have been sixty-some years in use … Continue reading Cheap Claret
Italian Beer
On page 724 of Against the Day, we find sinister (likely orange-faced tiny-handed) plutocrat Scarsdale Vibe touring northern Italy with his faithful manservant Foley Walker hunting bargains in Renaissance art. The hunt … Continue reading Italian Beer
Mavrodaphne
One spring late in Against the Day, Auberon Halfcourt and Umeki Tsurigane find Yashmeen, Reef, and baby Ljubica on the Greek island of Corfu. They dine “in a taverna down … Continue reading Mavrodaphne
