Wag's Last Round of 2023
When we’re out together dancing, forehead to forehead. Ginger and Fred, among other smarties at Wag Central, wish you a Happy New Year.
Dear Wags,
We think you deserve a little appreciation. It’s not easy, wading through this irritating world, pasting on a beatific smile when you don’t feel like it, enduring supplicants tugging at that elegant hem. Has anybody told you that you make living, which is awfully hard, look easy? Has anybody lately praised your radiance and grace? Let us lead a chorus: Congratulations on navigating 2023 like the yacht Christina O. You rode out each swell in style.
We are thankful for your support, which has helped this little newsletter reach the heights of Ararat. When we launched this operation, we had humble goals. We felt the culture had become too toxic and tribal, and hoped to put a few points on the board for underrated, essential joy. We believed that diversions — high, medium, and deliciously low —are for everybody. When it came to ideas, we wanted a big tent, not another claustrophobic silo. You made it all happen.
The list of stories we didn’t publish this year is long. Among other bits and bobs, we spared you another opus on Taylor Swift, more invective about the Ivy League, an added serving of House speaker meltdown, a Bibi Netanyahu chin-tug, and hand-wringing about the future of NATO. It’s not that we didn’t have takes. It’s that we’ll never pummel you with them. Here’s to a New Year with less agita and kvetch. Dare to hope for a season of smiles.
You’ve earned a drink. The Cocktail Team recommends these libations to lift your spirits. If you abstain, raise a glass of the fizziest ginger ale. For a hummingbird-flutter, put aside what bedevils you. Open yourself up to the reality that life improves just as often as it hits bumps. You are the glorious living proof.
Here's looking at you, Cordon Rouge.
The Old Standby
Champagne tends to bring on our headache. Still, the New Year’s Eve tipple is customary, if a little ho-hum. So, we’re always looking into ways to liven it up. The French 75 is having a renaissance, and there are countless other combos to try. For our francs, it’s hard to beat the august Champagne Cocktail, which dates back to the 19th century. It’s a straightforward, festive drink. You can whip one together with a teaspoon of sugar or sub in simple syrup, but a sugar cube will delight your guests. —Brian Flanagan
Ingredients
1 sugar cube (if you don’t own a stable, you may use a teaspoon of granulated or Demerara sugar. Or, try simple syrup)
4 to 6 dashes Angostura bitters
Chilled Champagne (or other sparkling wine)
Lemon twist for garnish
Steps
Douse your sugar cube with bitters.
Drop that sucker into a chilled Champagne flute.
Pour in the Champagne (or other sparkling wine) and watch it fizz.
Garnish with a lemon twist and sing As Time Goes By.
Some like it mulled.
The Last Seasonal Spruce-Up
The Manhattan is a wonderful cocktail anytime of year. Giving it a seasonal spin is a risk, but Wag Supremo Christopher Tunnah managed it when designing the cocktail menu for the Bedford Post Inn (a renovated hotel restaurant will open in 2024). The recipe wiggled into the New York Times years ago, and from there found wide circulation. Here it is, with our tweaks. We like that it gets that wintry mulled flavor without the making the fatal mistake of trying to heat wine up. —Clarence Odbody
