If – which heaven forbid – there were to be only one (alcoholic) drink available to you for the rest of your life, which would you choose? Which would be the one that would get you through, even in the absence of all alternative bevvies? For myself, it would have to be Scotch whisky. Not only is it a drink that exists in a wide range of incarnations, of various ages, characteristics and qualities, it is also, I find, the most reliable pick-me-up or calm-me-down, or whatever is required to reconcile a person to existence (as Housman put it, 'Malt does more than Milton can To justify God's ways to man'). To put it simply, as I often do as I raise a glass to my lips, I just love whisky (and, happily, it gives every appearance of loving me).
Recently I was pleased to discover that Igor Stravinsky, no less, felt just the same about whisky. 'My God,' he once declared, 'so much I like to drink Scotch that sometimes I think my name is Igor Stra-whisky.' And he had medical backing for his predilection: a doctor in Los Angeles once advised him, 'Drink plenty Scotch, it's the best thing. ' (Those were the days, when doctors took a sane and relaxed line on such matters.) Stravinsky's favoured tipple was Ballantine's 30-year-old, a blend that would now set you back around £300 a bottle. He was seldom without a flask of the stuff, and it surely fed his creative flame, as well as his general health and well-being (he lived to 88). Here's to you, Stra-whisky!
Monday, 21 April 2025
'Malt does more...'
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Whiskey and spirits are fine stuff of course but for the true blue dyed in the wool alkies, it has to be beer. Drinking anything else constantly, morning noon and night will kill you pretty quick, even if you’re Lemmy. I think Andre the Giant might have survived another decade even if he hasn’t quit drinking it. Cheers
ReplyDeleteOh, and I forgot to mention my favorite Larkin valediction, from one of his letters: “Good luck, keep drinking.”
ReplyDeleteI'm not an all-day drinker, mercifully, but whisky can be drunk all day if heavily diluted with soda. This, the Chota Peg, was the drink that fuelled the British Raj, and Churchill was a steady imbiber. Thanks, Anon – and good luck, keep drinking.
ReplyDeleteActivist-academics push to Make America Teetotal Again. “New temperance movement wants alcohol to be treated like tobacco.”
ReplyDeleteOh dear, oh dear – let's hope they never get their way. Thanks, Dave.
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