A Gentleman in Moscow

Punch the ceiling dance! Our gentleman is one of the most likable characters written in the last 50 years. I'll admit that Samwise Gamgee was pretty darn likable. A BFF who can cook potatoes all those different ways and be willing to put themselves in harm's way?  I can barely get a friend to text me back about going to happy hour. You'd think I just proposed a drink at Mt. Doom. Actually Mt. Doom sounds like a cool bar.

A Gentleman in Moscow has a historical context, set in Stalinist Russia, but wait, its not as depressing as it sounds. I assuming some Broadway guys have some sort of Stalin! The Musical doing pre-production workshops in La Jolla. They did a successful Jimmy Buffet musical so torture is not taboo anymore. The actual propaganda slogans already sound like Broadway songs: "Friendship of the Peoples" and Motherland is Calling" sung by Kristin Chenoweth and Patti Lupone. Hey, this thing writes itself.  Anyway, think the opposite of this cheesy scenario and read this book, it is fantastic. It would make a great book club book for those of you well adjusted enough to be in a book club.  Even on your own it could be a nice balm for the winter blues.

This is the perfect cocktail for this book in more ways that one: Very Merry Bourbon Alexander: 1 ounce bourbon, 1 ounce creme de cacao, 1 ounce half and half, one egg white, dash of simple syrup and dash of salt.  Combine ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake hard (I'm a maniac anyway but you'll want to with that egg white) garnish with a little nutmeg, a cranberry or two and spring of rosemary.