Why Cocktails and Cigars

Cocktails and cigars are something from the past, something that one must take time to enjoy, they cannot be rushed. They draw you in, they seduce you. At first you go to specialty shops, to cocktail bars or friends' houses and allow someone else to choose which ones you enjoy. You buy one at a time, you enjoy them immediately and then they are gone.

This lasts for a short while and then you start to want to know more. You want to know their origins, their heritage.  Then you start collecting them yourself and with both this takes commitment and time.

With cigars you want to know where they come from, what factory they were made in,  what leaves were used in their construction, how long they have been aged and what is their flavour profile.

Cigars must be cared for. Having your own humidor is like having a fish tank, it must be attended to. You must check the temperature and  humidity daily and once a month you must rotate your stock.

Space is limited in my humidor, so I am particular about what cigars take up space within it. It can't be just any old cigar, it has to be researched and appreciated before it is added.

With cocktails it is much the same, they just taste better when you know their history, who invented them, when and where they were invented and what the inspiration was behind them.

The ingredients for cocktails are not easy to acquire here in BC and they are not cheap. You can only buy a few at a time, but which ones to get? At first the bottles take only a small space in a corner of a cupboard, your collection grows and grows and before long you have to dedicate an entire cupboard and then you start looking for a special piece of furniture for your collection.  It isn't all that long before you have over a hundred bottles, before you have ten different bourbons because each of them works better for different cocktails, for your different moods.  Here's my current collection... Hmmm... maybe it is time to upgrade the cabinet again.

Cocktails, to make properly, take time. The process cannot be rushed, the instructions cannot be ignored. You can't take the easy way out and use things like bottled citrus juices, you must take the time to squeeze your own. Cocktails do not require an extensive set of equipment but there are a few must haves and a good lemon squeezer is at the top of the list.

My intent with this blog is to share my passion for these two things, I am not an expert with either, but I do enjoy them and learning more about each of them is a good past time.  I will try to add reviews of the cocktails and cigars that I enjoy.

Hopefully you find it interesting.

Cheers

Mister Smith