In early 2020, I was inspired by the rye-mezcal drink that I just had in New York City as well as others like the Racketeer (already on Kindred Cocktails). I began tinkering, and after a few iterations over the course of two nights, I picked my favorite (see the notes for the first iteration). For a name, I was inspired by the Racketeer which reminded me of something I found in my town's library's historic room: a folder on the Pinball Racket. This Winter Hill Gang ploy was to go into establishments and strong-arm offer to put a cigarette, candy, jukebox, or pinball machine in; moreover, they told the store and restaurant owners not to worry about its upkeep or finances. I learned a lot more about organized crime than I did about my intended goal, namely the rum distillery that existed in Somerville, MA, up until Prohibition.

The pilot light in the 60-year-old gas oven is now back in full operation !!

After an oil change in the blue car, this now lights up the day.

Enroute WestPac, one gets Midway Over.

To all those who have enjoyed WestPac.

For all the Second Class Middies.

When I was looking through my drink database, I spied Tony Iamunno's Butterfly Sting with its Punt e Mes-Swedish punsch combination and wanted to improve on it. I recalled the Swedish punsch-apricot liqueur combination that I first discovered in the Havana Cocktail and then the apricot-Punt e Mes duo found in the Slope. Thus, I set my Muhammed Ali tribute riff in motion. For a spirit base, I split things up with a funky Jamaican rum and a rich Cognac, and for a name, I opted for the Handcuffed Lightning from Ali's quote, "I done wrestled with an alligator, I done tussled with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick; I'm so mean I make medicine sick."

Created for my #SecretSanté drink on Instagram for my chosen internet bartender, Zach M. @allequalparts from Augusta, Georgia. I set out to figure out what his cocktail interests were by perusing a few dozen of his posts. After gathering up his favorite spirits, modifiers, and bitters, I set to work and fit it to a 1919 Cocktail structure. His interest in both rye and Old Tom gin made me think of my Call of the Wild, so I knew that the combination could work. Two sweeteners that he included in his cocktails were Benedictine and pineapple syrup, so why not both? Dry vermouth seemed necessary to balance the drink instead of something more bitter like Punt e Mes or oxidized like Oloroso sherry which both might drown out the pineapple notes. Finally, his sponsored post for Angostura Cocoa Bitters rounded off the recipe. For a name, I dubbed this drink after the nickname of one Augusta's most famous residents, Woodrow Wilson, which also seemed fitting since the 1919 aspect fell in the middle of his presidential term. That nickname was the Phrasemaker after his mastery of language and his not needing a speech writer during his career.