PrintSober Thoughts about Pink Elephants
One of the uncomfortable aspects of talking and writing about spirits and cocktails is the dark side of the topic. While other parts of the culinary world have unfortunate consequences that accompany over-indulgence—obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, to name a few—perhaps none has as an immediate, visible and potentially deadly a flip-side as does the consumption of alcohol.
I’ve been thinking about this recently, thanks to a post at the excellent Drink Boston blog titled “The Pink Elephant in the Room,” which questions why drink writers rarely (if ever) mention the intoxicating aspect of enjoying beer, wine and spirits. With two recent articles in the New York Times exploring the ugly side of alcohol consumption—Sunday brought us “Starving Themselves, Cocktail in Hand,” a look at the double-threat of heavy drinking and eating disorders; and on Tuesday, the paper ran “When People Drink Themselves Silly, and Why,” an exploration of binge drinking—and with another alcohol-sodden St. Patrick’s Day coming up on the calendar, talking breezily about the enjoyment of fine libations without looking at all aspects of the issue becomes even more difficult.
Imbibers of craft beer, fine wine and classic cocktails are accustomed to holding forth on blogs and online forums about the pleasurable aspects of good drink: the flavor, the aroma, the craftsmanship, the history. But as Lauren Clark, author of the Drink Boston post, points out, the buzz that comes from enjoying these drinks is a matter rarely broached in polite company.
This reticence to freely discuss this aspect of their enjoyment is understandable. While it’s one thing to profess an inordinate fondness for chocolate or bacon among a group of foodies, and to enthuse about how frequently or abundantly this appetite is indulged, it’s quite another thing to say, “I really like liquor, and I like to drink it every day.” One is often perceived as a relatively innocent hedonistic pleasure; the other, a sign of risky or even dangerous behavior.
What do you think? Is this disparity fair, or does it come with the territory when talking about something as powerful as alcohol? Let's hear it.
About the author: Paul Clarke blogs about cocktails at The Cocktail Chronicles and writes regularly on spirits and cocktails for Imbibe magazine. He lives in Seattle, where he works as a writer and magazine editor.
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4 Comments:
I think it comes with the territory. like lauren clark said, it just isn't discussed in polite company.
however, being someone who has struggled with daily consumption of alcohol, I always cringe a little when I read alcohol-related posts here on serious eats, or on slashfood or accidental hedonist or a number of other places. I can appreciate the talking points, particularly flavor and craftsmanship. I am one to quickly point out to others the major differences between brands of vodka, tequila and whiskey. but it has certainly crossed my mind when I read the articles and reviews that no one mentions that it will get you damn drunk. *shrug* just the nature of the beast I suppose.
Alosha's Kitchen
alosha7777 at 6:53PM on 03/05/08
I get vehement hate mail on my blog pretty regularly, where some random troll accuses me of being a raging alcoholic. I'm not entirely sure how a casual reader can infer that one drink a week makes a drinking problem, but I guess I do take it personally.
In fact, the worst spate of this I ever experienced was on a post about why champagne-based drinks make good choices for cocktail parties, as they're relatively lower in alcohol and much less likely to sneak up on guests who aren't used to the harder stuff. OMG, what a ration of Schlitz I got over that one!
But really, I guess, the main reason why I don't talk about the intoxicating aspects of cocktails is that at this point in my life, it's the last reason why I drink. I like the taste of a well-balanced drink, I enjoy the alchemy and the tinkering of mixology, and I find a lot of pleasure in the company of like-minded cocktailians. The fact that alcohol takes the edge off after a long day is just a pleasant side benefit. There are plenty of times I've found myself wishing that I could have another drink, just to explore a menu in more depth, but not wanting to go overboard.
anitaepler at 1:24AM on 03/06/08
Face it, it's all about the buzz, period, end of story.
We can say it tastes good etc but there is more to it.
Drinking ETOH is ingrained and glorified in our society. People boast about thier indulgence and wax wistfully about it ad nauseum, in some self agrandizingly defining manner to prove to everyone *They CAN handle it!*
You're damn right I loved it (ETOH), much too much so.
Stiv61 at 6:09AM on 03/06/08
Interesting article. I wonder if we can hate on the booze-writers specifically when, in some ways, there is a distinct trend towards excess within the wider "foodie" community as a whole.
Especially, it doesn't seem fair to censure something like a food blog or a magazine. Thier job is to publish the interesting stuff... I think it would be foolish to think that most f-loggers eat only what they post (except for the daily-diary type blogs) and I feel certain that a diet taken only from the pages of Saveur would quickly become rather uncomfortable.
So we should, at the very least, apply the same standards to writing about alcohol. I'm aware it's classed an addictive substance, but I think that for most folks, other enabling factors are required for dependency.
In the mean time, I think we should also examie whether one should be proud about eating a pound of deep-fried bacon. It's like those girls in the lunch room who are like "I love cupcakes, guys! I think I'll have two (I'm not anorexic dammit)!"
Speaking of elephants...
shelledone at 9:57AM on 03/06/08