Heads, Hearts, and
Whiskey Tales
Sharing stories of good whiskey, good friends, and good memories
December 2021
Pure Politics
Recently, a friend approached me to help him get elected to borough council. It was more about technical politics than philosophical ideology. His name had inadvertently been left off the ballot and now needed to be written in during the actual election. To make matters worse, it needed to be written in on an exact line and in a specific way and … oh yeah …. the election was a week away! Fortunately, it’s a small borough, and several dozen names would be enough to secure the vote. He produced some flyers, refined his message, and asked me to help with a venue. The Farmer’s Market at Dills Tavern has become a place for community congregation on Saturday mornings. Parents shop for their weekly fruits and vegetables, chat with neighbors, or discuss local politics while their children play in a safe location.
I produced a big metal pitcher and sat it next to the fire. This created a crowd, curious about the contents! The sign outside the door said "Hot Toddy, Skin or Sling" but when the visitors arrived there was only one pitcher! Was this just another case of a politician over promising and underdelivering? Maybe it was the too common application of the “ bait and switch” technique where something is promised but another, totally different thing is delivered. Maybe it was just simply another lyin’, cheatin', dishonest scoundrel who would say anything to get elected. Not this time. The sign and the single pitcher were both accurate.
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The day before, I went through the whiskey stock and culled the bottles with only a few splashes remaining. I added these together in the true “spirits” of diversity. There was rye, bourbon, Irish, and Scotch whiskies, but it was mostly rye. To this I added hot water, simple syrup, and lemon: the classic toddy. I explained to visitors that lemon added to whiskey, water, and sugar was called a "skin" by Irish ancestors and that a few scrapes of nutmeg makes it a "sling" according to David Wonderich in his book Imbibe. As I concluded my explanation of the steaming beverages, my friend segued into “so, do you live in the borough?”.
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Serving alcohol at an election rally has a precedent. George Washington, as a young lieutenant, took a leave of absence to run for House of Burgesses. He did not provide liquor for constituents to consider his qualifications during the campaign. . He lost the race. During the next attempt at office, the future president provided barrels of rum, hard cider, and whiskey and secured the election. The rest is … as they say… history!
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I’m sure there are many reasons why this approach can’t be scaled to the state and national level. There are agendas, political correctness, blind loyalty to party, and machine politics that prevent polite political discourse from happening. But here, at a small historical site, on a cold and rainy morning, by a warming fire with a hot adult beverage, is the art of pure politics; making friends and influencing people was on display. The toddy was the trick. My friend got 85 of 132 write--in votes.
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We don’t know yet if my friend is the next George Washington. But it seems that a hot toddy, skin or sling on a raw, cold day allowed discussion to develop, specific and technical information to be shared with potential voters who warmed by the fire as they warmed to the story. It was so effective that even a fellow serving council member from “the other side of the aisle” stopped in to support and endorse the candidate while sipping a toddy.
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