photograph by Jennifer Hess
There is something about an old-fashioned
That kindles a cardiac glow;
It is soothing and soft and impassioned
As a lyric by Swinburne or Poe.
There is something about an old-fashioned
When dusk has enveloped the sky,
And it may be the ice,
Or the pineapple slice*,
But I strongly suspect it’s the rye†.
–From “A Drink with Something in It,” by Ogden Nash
*Dear God, no.
†Dear God, yes.
photograph by Jennifer Hess
There is something about a Martini,
A tingle remarkable pleasant;
A yellow*, a mellow Martini;
I wish that I had one at present.
There is something about a Martini,
Ere the dining and dancing begin,
And to tell you the truth,
It is not the vermouth–
I think that perhaps it’s the gin.
–From “A Drink with Something in It,” by Ogden Nash
*Consider this: Take a chilled mixing glass. Add cracked ice, 4-1/2 ounces gin, 1-1/2 ounces dry vermouth, and 2-4 dashes orange bitters. Stir it, and stir it, and stir it. Strain it into two chilled cocktail glasses, and you have martinis for two. You also have, if you squint, a slight yellow tint from the orange bitters.
