And here's a letter Robert Bork wrote to the Wall Street Journal in 2005:
Eric Felten’s essay on the dry martini is itself near-perfect (“Don’t Forget the Vermouth,” Leisure & Arts, Pursuits, Dec. 10). His allusion to constitutional jurisprudence is faulty, however, since neither in law nor martinis can we know the subjective “original intent” of the Founding Fathers. As to martinis, the intent may have been to ease man’s passage through this vale of tears or, less admirably, to employ the tactic of “candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker.”
What counts in mixology is the “original understanding” of the martini’s essence by those who first consumed it. The essence remains unaltered but allows proportions to evolve as circumstances change. Mr. Felten’s “near-perfect martini” is the same in principle as the “original-understanding martini” and therefore its legitimate descendant. Such latter-day travesties as the chocolate martini and the raspberry martini, on the other hand, are the work of activist bartenders.
Mr. Felten lapses into heresy only once. He prefers the olive to the lemon peel because the former is a “snack.” Dropping a snack into a classic drink is like garnishing filet mignon with ketchup. The correct response when offered an olive is, “When I want a salad, I’ll ask for it.”
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11 comments:
"The correct response when offered an olive is, 'When I want a salad, I’ll ask for it.'"
This teetotaler finds that quote hilarious.
I always like a story w/ a twist ending.
Well written, except he should have used "slathering" instead of "garnishing."
Smokes and martinis. He was born in the right era.
Think what Bork gems we would have had he been confirmed rather than Borked.
Bork was a guardian type INFJ who would defend anyone else, but he would not defend himself.
Liberals causing us to lose good men like Bork is immoral.Not that there is anything wrong with that.
Years ago on CSPAN, Bork was talking about how he was frequently mistaken for Reagan's bearded Surgeon General, C Everett Koop. A woman came up to him in line at the airport and said earnestly, "We're heeding your warnings!"
"I was smoking a cigarette at the time."
I read some book Bork wrote, and it is interesting his take on the second amendment, that gun ownership is predicated (A well regulated . . .), and therefore isn't an absolute "right."
I have a hard time reconciling Bork's view on the 2nd amendment with his view the constitution should be interpreted through "original intent.
Dante, for what its worth, he at least relied upon what was written rather than an emanation from a penumbra.
Actually, the correct response when ordering a martini is my father's - no olive extra gin.
Nobody did spiteful better than Teddy Kennedy.
Vermouth is the French pronunciation for the German wermut or in English, wormwood.
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