'The World Needs Music' for VIE September 2021

“Our souls need music. Musicians need to perform. Bingo! We need each other. After the enactment of Covid restrictions in March 2020, I started a weekly cocktail class to satisfy both needs. What cemented connections and transformed the experience was music, which is perhaps the most transcendent art form of all.

Sip with Suzanne began as a weekly half-hour cocktail class experiment — low risk and low investment. Sixty drinks later, what’s come out of it? A community of new friends who feel connected to others even though they are scattered around the world. It’s something for those isolated at home to look forward to. But most importantly, Sip gave us weeks and weeks of live music. World-class musician Wycliffe Gordon brought his curated performances to the party, sparking immediate joy and leaving ripples of good vibes for days to come.”

Read more about keeping the blues at bay with a weekly cocktail and live musical performance HERE in VIE Magazine!

'Summer Sparklers' for J. McLaughlin

Credit: Niki Nero Photography

“The most interesting cocktails for summer, whether you have a pool or not, have some effervescence which relates to the sparkling water filling the pool or the ocean, near or far. Champagne, or any sparkling wine, adds pure magic to a cocktail. You might call it bubbles, I might say dryness. But the wisest of us all know Champagne sprinkles a fairy dust of magic.

“There are a few things to think about when choosing a house cocktail. We do not want a ‘normal’ drink available anywhere and everywhere. Instead try something people might not have tried. Leave complicated cocktails to mixologists. Your home is not a bar. You must be able to make repeat versions; meaning a first drink, possibly a second, and if the occasion arises for a third, you will be able to walk up a flight of stairs and mix another….”

 Read more & find 3 recipes for easy, breezy Poolside Cocktails, all with Champagne (or Prosecco if you’d prefer), via J. McLaughlin’s newsletter/blog HERE!

'Half a Dozen Summer Party Tips' for J. McLaughlin

“The #1 tip concerns conversations because we haven’t been face to face in so long! Just thinking about it sparks excitement, which gets energy flowing and makes party planning extra pleasurable. 

Suzanne and a guest converse at the debut of our collaboration with J. McLaughlin…

[Credit: Niki Nero Photography]

Let’s Talk
Consider possible party talk even before your event. Conversation starters can range from fun and frivolous (like showing off your matching napkins and dress) to deep dives straight for the heart of the matter. Think about each guest and what might be going on in their life so that you can ask pertinent questions, showing that they have been on your mind and that you care for them. Conversations which easily shift from light to meaningful are unforgettable. Simply skimming the surface leaves an empty feeling later. To more easily dive deep, start shallow as a means of getting there. Pointing out your matchy matchy napkins and dress will ignite laughter and spark interesting talk.…”

Read the rest of Suzanne’s party tips and find our recipe for a perfect French 75 via J. McLaughlin’s blog HERE!

The White Russian Revisited

Credit: Niki Nero Photography

Just because I am wearing a chinchilla-collared bathrobe, don’t let your mind wander to Russian princes, czars or Doctor Zhivago. No! It’s The Big Lebowski we must turn our minds to now, wherein the bathrobe-wearing Dude pours himself nine White Russians as naturally as I pour eight glasses of water. As the Dude put it so eloquently, “New sh*t has come to light.”

The Dude is the guy who resurrected the cocktail from sixty years in the dustbin. The White Russian saw a massive revival in 1998 thanks to the Coen brothers’ classic The Big Lebowski. Because of that movie, it’s kind of fun and silly, delightful and decadent to wear a bathrobe while sipping this drink.

I sometimes think the White Russian is a secret shame drink. Ordering one could age you forty years just by association. They might be perfect for alcoholics because they are easy on the stomach and then there’s the bathrobe thing. (Any alcohol drunk while wearing a bathrobe falls into the category of secret shame, don’t you think?) It’s an ironic, sad sort of drink — a little bit of a Best Enjoyed Alone cocktail. It’s hard to take the White Russian seriously. It’s not a drink you would normally order out, perhaps a little embarrassing but something you might actually enjoy, if only with your closest friends. 

But I like it. I am not ashamed to admit that last night I happily ate thick salty slices of rare rib eye and drank a White Russian to go with it. Someone has to do the cocktail research! My body craved fat and what better to satisfies that than ribeyes and cream? What would the mother in me, the fifteen- or twenty-years-ago me have said about her future behavior? Nothing good, that’s for sure. I must be letting myself go to seed. Au contraire! I can assure old judge-y me that I am having the greatest time of my life now, eating fatty steak and drinking a (shameful) drink.  It’s not an every night occurrence, more like once a year. Combining vodka, Kahlúa, cream, and serving it on the rocks creates a delicious alternative to adult milkshakes. What’s wrong with that?

The White Russian is due for a status upgrade, less shameful, less secret, less lonely.  It’s a drink that has the heft to stand in for dessert, a liquid in lieu of cake or pie. Less caffeine than a piece of chocolate cake, less caloric than a slice of pie...it’s got that perfect after-dinner decadence feeling.

Time for geography. There is a little town in Colorado called Oak Creek whose Mayor, Cargo Rodman, drank White Russians like the Dude, as in all day long. In that town the White Russian was renamed Mayor’s Milk.

And now history! A version of the drink appeared in the 1930 edition of The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock under the name the Russian, made with vodka, gin and crème de cacao. The Russian Bear was made with vodka, crème de cacao and cream. Crème de cacao is a sweet vanilla-flavored liqueur. The Black Russian is vodka and coffee liqueur, two parts vodka to one part coffee liqueur. The White Russian came about in the ’60s when someone somewhere added a bit of cream to the Black Russian. (Who added cream to a Black Russian to make it white? No one knows!) None of these drinks are Russian in origin. It’s the vodka part that ties them to Russia.

Original recipe was equal parts vodka, Kahlúa, and cream. The Dude made his with two parts vodka, one part Kahlúa, and one part cream. Not as good as the original, I can assure you. I tested both last night. However both are rich, velvety, and go down smooth. I do want to point out that one is enough. 

Cream… When making a White Russian choose heavy cream. Half-and-half can work but why bother? This is not a drink for anyone faint of heart, health conscious, avoiding fat in the diet. And know that milk produces a thin drink. Have a seltzer instead! You’re aiming for decadence. The difference between heavy cream and whipping cream is this: heavy cream has 36 percent fat, whipping cream 30 percent; half-and-half, equal parts milk and cream, has 10 to 18 percent fat. Not enough heft for this drink. 

Kahlúa is a coffee liqueur made in Mexico since 1936, with rum, sugar, and coffee. A bottle takes up to seven years to produce, due to growing and harvesting coffee beans. In the ‘60s, Kahlúa was led by an an all women team. Quite unusual back in the day. Another fun fact? February 27 is National Kahlúa Day. Now you’ll know what to do with that bottle languishing in the back of your bar this Saturday night! It’s just waiting to be opened and appreciated… 

Remember you can use Kahlúa to make more than a White Russian. Try adding a shot to brownies, drizzle on ice cream sundaes, give chocolate cake batter a kick in the pants, whip into your cheesecake. This stuff is asking for more of your time and attention!

CHOICE ONE - 1+1+1 = perfect. 1 PART KAHLÚA, 1 PART ABSOLUT VODKA, 1 PART HEAVY CREAM.  

CHOICE TWO - The way it’s made in the movie. 2 ounces vodka, 1 ounce Kahlúa, 3 teaspoons each of cream and milk.

EITHER CHOICE - Fill a rocks glass with ice cubes. Add Kahlúa and vodka, then pour in the cream layer. 

OR for a milk shake-y feeling, shake with ice and strain over more ice.

Cheers!

"A Cozy Cocktail with Presidential Panache" for Garden & Gun

Credit: Niki Nero Photography

“In a nod to those who helped shape America—especially George Washington—Pollak created the Founding Father, a wintertime riff on a classic Remember the Maine cocktail, which typically includes some combination of rye whiskey, vermouth, absinthe, and cherry liqueur. After Washington’s second term in office, he built a distillery at Mount Vernon, setting up the whole supply chain on the grounds: His enslaved laborers grew and harvested the grains, ground the flour in the on-site grist mill, and converted the grains to whiskey, Pollak explains, resulting in about 10,000 gallons a year.”

Read the rest and find Suzanne’s perfect President’s Day cocktail recipe online via Garden & Gun!

Milk Punch

For your tiny holiday party, we suggest starting with a classic Milk Punch!

Credit: Niki Nero Photography

Milk Punch was first recorded William Sacheverell’s 1688 travelogue from the Scottish isle of Iona. The earliest written recipe for it appeared in a 1711 cookbook; then there was Benjamin Franklin in 1763 making his clarified milk punch with brandy and lemon added to hot milk. (Clarified milk punch is a glass of translucent and elegant liquid, fantastic indeed but time consuming to make. For now, we bring you the easier milky version.)

Milk punch reached the height of popularity in the middle of the 18th century. Queen Victoria issued a royal warrant in 1838 to Nathaniel Whisson as "purveyors of milk punch to Her Majesty”. A different sort of Queen, in a different era, the 20th C. Queen Mother used to tell her butlers, “You old Queens, get this old Queen a drink!” Yet another Queen by the name of Cleopatra supposedly bathed in the white stuff. Did she do that right before Marc Anthony ravaged her? Was milk bath the magic that drew Caesar into her web?

In today’s world, milk punch has made a comeback. This year in particular is perfect for milk punch, one reason being it isn’t really meant for a punch bowl. A bowl is just too much milk punch, unless you are bathing the baby. You cannot, must not, drink this stuff all night long. Milk punch is for making one or two at a time, shaking each batch to get that foamy froth. They are not alcoholic lattes but could be mistaken for one! 

Another reason milk punch is the right beverage for this year: comfort and familiarity. All of us started life with our mother’s milk, or from a bottle. Milk may bring a feeling of safety and security. Yet milk punch is different enough to be fascinating and these juxtaposing characteristics set the stage for guests to feel safe and open up. There is something about milk punch helping to get us there, being our first beverage and all that.  

Milk punch gives a sheen to a holiday party, however small that party might be. I entertained a tiny group on Saturday night. We started out with milk punch cocktails, then we switched to our regular drinks, and the secrets started to spill. Wouldn’t you like to know what was revealed? Sorry, I am a vault. But I can share that milk punch set the stage.  

As cocktails have grown more fabulist, hyper intellectual, or just plain weird over the last 15 years, bartenders worth their muster feel they must create, like a professor trying to achieve tenure, so they mix new drinks with crazy ingredients and silly names. Sometimes we long for plain and normal, a classic that has stood the test of time, vestige of good old days, maybe even the days of 1688 or 1711. Since our old world is utterly changed, a new one struggling to be born, milk punch fits the times. 

The other stuff that turns milk into punch: Cognac or bourbon. Simple syrup. Nutmeg. 

COGNAC

Victor Hugo called cognac the “liquor of the gods”. Cognac is a symbol of French luxury, distilled twice, between October 1 and March 31. Cognac is brandy but not all brandy is cognac. Got that?

BOURBON

We Southerners know all about bourbon, especially in Charleston, and just ‘cause you may be from Kentucky doesn’t make you a world expert on the big brown liquor. Bourbon is made from at least 51% corn, but rye and barley make it more beautiful. 

SYRUP 

In order to incorporate sugar into a drink, it needs to be dissolved first or you’ll end up with a sandy mess (an effect only desired in mint juleps — come back this spring to learn more!).

Simple syrup is simply made by pouring equal parts water and sugar into a saucepan. 1 : 1. The following numbers are easy too, our favorite kind of math at the Academy. Cook over medium heat for 3 minutes until sugar dissolves. Store for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer. Please don’t let us hear about any of you buying a bottle of simple syrup you didn’t make yourself. You might end up sitting with the dunce hat in our corner.

NUTMEG 

Why does McCormick pack 12 spheres of nutmeg in a bottle where one nutmeg by itself lasts several years? Dear Mr. McCormick: Not one of us needs jars of spice this size for anything at home. Spices lose their essence before we use a quarter of the bottle. 

Nutmeg grows on 40' trees in Indonesia, French Guiana and India. The fruit looks like an apricot. The pit inside is nutmeg. For those who want more trivia…the red lace covering the pit is mace. Only one pound of mace can be removed from a hundred pounds of nutmeg. So, there you have it! A useless tip to toss around. 

One more useful factoid to note: nutmeg’s aroma disappears quickly so you must ground it fresh on top of the milk punch. For that you will need a microplane. 

ABOUT PROPORTIONS… 

You do not always have to stick to proportions on recipes, though the Academy preaches you should. When a classic is right, do not mess with it! Find something else to mess with.

However, I messed with many milk punches on Saturday doing my due diligence for this blog. I do not like sweet drinks, but many recipes call for too much, at least for my taste. That’s why I was messing around. And then there were more weighty decisions, such as, bourbon or cognac? How unsweet can a punch be? How much milk does a milk punch need? At least I had my little posse of dinner guests to help me with the big decisions. Milk punch is a lovely appetizer drink. It does a beautiful job of saying: Welcome to my party, and to the holiday season. Let our night begin. 

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 oz simple syrup

• 1.5 milk

• 2 ounce booze 

• nutmeg 

Put in a shaker with ice. Shake, shake, shake until frothy about 20 seconds. Strain in a glass. Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg. Enjoy!

Sip with Suzanne

Social distancing is no excuse for cutting class or ignoring your liquor cabinets!

Join Dean Pollak every Wednesday at 5:30PM EST via Zoom for a classic cocktail demonstration.

Each week, the Dean covers the history of the classic cocktail, its preparation, ideal snack pairings and an etiquette segment on ‘How Not to Get Sh*t-Faced’. Tomorrow’s drink is the French 75. Learn some WWI and contemporary French war history while making the cocktail…

Sip with Suzanne is free to join. Simply download Zoom and click here.

Cheers to Moms

Hemingway in Cuba…

Do not mistake the daiquiri for a girly drink. The daiquiri was created by manly men. Supposedly an American mining engineer near the coastal town of Daiquiri in Cuba made the first one. Then the popularity spread man to man — from miners to Admirals to the Army Navy Club in DC. The great hunter who turned out to be a fine author but not such a nice guy, Ernest Hemingway himself, made the daiquiri his own. 

But the girls do like the drink and here’s where mothers come in…it’s delightful!

I loved the girly version when my children were small. The daiquiri desire started because the sips loosened my uptight self. With four toddlers underfoot, I am not ashamed to say liquor played a tiny part in getting me through the week. The context is important. I had baby twins and an 18-month-old, and the times were a-changin’ but they hadn’t changed yet! My pediatrician prescribed two beers per night so I could nurse my twins. Once a week I had lunch with my closest friend, where we consumed many courses and glasses of wine, and that was fine and normal for anyone to do then. There were no ‘girls nights out’ in those days! 

Car seats were not mandatory till your child was a tween either. I drove a green Jaguar, the inside of which looked like a men’s club, to swim meets all over the South, with three kids in the car and one beer for me. Who would even do that today? Who would want to? Daiquiris came into my picture because of swimming. After laps in the pool, another friend & I ordered banana daiquiris. How lame is that? Everything we did in the pool was undone by the drink! Luckily I didn’t drink too much because I don’t have that gene. Not too much, not too little, just pure pleasure for 20 minutes. That’s what moms everywhere want, a 20-minute R&R. 

Those were my coping strategies for being a mom then. I didn’t know about meditation, yoga, smoothies. But now…WOW! Moms are the heroes the wide world over. Moms are everything and do everything as our world has become our home. (Dad’s are great too, but we don’t have to worry about that on Mother’s Day.) Moms do their jobs, teach, cook, clean, nurture, even bribe household members to get through cooped up survival.

Daiquiris are the perfect Mother's Day drink. They bring a bearable lightness of being in this almost unbearable time. They are a tropical trio of rum, lime juice and sugar, plus ice, combined in a shaker, usually served up but you can drink on the rocks. I do. The ice melts slowly, giving a little less punch and allows a 20 minute brain buzz instead of a headache in the morning. Think about it. Do the math. 2 ounces hard stuff +1 ounce sugar = on the way to sh*t faced. The sugar combined with the alcohol packs a double whammy.

This is math at the Academy. We are not awarding degrees in trigonometry, we are working towards a degree based on a meaningful life in a functioning home. Distilling all that higher thinking down to the narrowest point possible gets us to one question: why drink a daiquiri? For a delicious 20 minute break injecting a tiny bit of flirt, frisk and fun for mom on Mother’s Day. 

Let’s make our drink.

Squeeze a lime, or maybe two, to get 1 ounce juice. Pour in a cocktail shaker. Add sugar syrup, ¾ to 1 ounce (made with a sugar to boiled water ratio of 1:1), depending on how sweet you want to go. Pour in 2 ounces white rum. Add ice cubes to fill the shaker three quarters full. Shake shake shake your cocktail shaker. Strain in a pre-chilled glass. Add a lime slice.

Cheers to Moms everywhere!

The Academy’s job is to help make your home life as meaningful as possible. Part of a meaningful life is taking a step back, accessing any situation, giving ourselves some breathing room — and that’s where the Wednesday sip comes in. We all need a break and we need community!

You are invited to join us (via Zoom) on Wednesdays at 5:30 - 6:00 for Sip with Suzanne. Next week’s topic: The Marvelous Martini…

Can the Grid be Fun?

“Zoom Cocktails” needs a rename because what makes a cocktail party a cocktail party doesn’t happen on the grid. For these we don’t dress, put on special shoes, walk into someone's house, smell the food, hug the host, meet people, even someone who might change our life. The surprises and rituals are gone: hang in the doorway (have you ever noticed how everyone does this?), help make a drink, take a look around, figure out who to talk to. At cocktails parties, we choose to stand or sit, observe or connect, and catch the vibe of the party. No longer. 

Now we don’t move, mingle or mix. We can't have surface conversations until we find who we want to go deep with. Small talk is a fun and flirty cocktail sport; looking into eyes — for a second — and winking, or touching someone’s sleeve to make a point. How do we translate this into our new world? We do not. 

Using our senses is out. Active listening with body language is out. Now we look into people's eyes for more than thirty minutes, and cannot get away. It’s exhausting. The world is fundamentally changed, our culture permanently shifted. Things that were important are no longer. Is it possible to have fun at a cocktail party online? The jury is out…but maybe that’s the point: staying connected as we venture into the new world together.

A few Zoom Cocktail tips:

• Mix your drink and have a snack ready before signing in. Why? Because ritual is important. Rituals signal to the brain it’s time to transition from work to relaxing. 

• Play music in your space, keeping yourself on mute except when you have something to say. 

• Think of a topic worth discussing and steer the conversation, instead of listening to stuff you would walk away from at a cocktail party. 

• Do not walk around with your laptop or continually adjust the laptop on your lap. The movement is disorienting and dizzying for the viewers. 

• Know where your computer camera is and make sure it is in front of you. If your computer is off to the side, even an inch or two, you look like you are not paying attention.

• Smile a LOT!

Social interaction is about connecting with one another; making people feel heard, appreciated, and loved. We do that in so many ways in person. Now it’s time to learn best practices on screen. And be grateful to Zoom for the free forty minutes!

Sip with Suzanne! Wednesday’s at 5:30 EST 4/8/20 Topic: How to Make an Old Fashioned

Cocktail Parties in Isolation

Never underestimate what you can accomplish from the comfort of your own bed! E.g. Matisse…

To stay mentally healthy, we must connect. One of the most delightful ways used to be inviting people into our homes and giving them not only food and drink but also our undivided attention. Now that the world has changed and many of us are having, or will have, health emergencies, we still need to connect but we also need behave in a different way. Instead of cocktail or dinner parties (the thought of hosting them borders on bad taste!) we will learn to gather in new ways. How else will you contribute to friends’ and neighbors’ emotional health? 

How often do we get a chance to reboot the cocktail party? A powerful and inexpensive way to host is with this simple plan. Invite someone spontaneously — because when you need a companion, we guarantee one of your friends does too. Text a time, topic and menu so a little happy vibe comes through. While you pour yourself a cocktail, a glass of wine or soda water, warm some olives to nibble and find a quiet place to sit; your friend will do the same and then Zoom, Facetime, Skype, or just call. The virtual cocktail doesn’t have to go long but it will do you both some good.

Let’s all stay connected, stay sane, stay well, stay healthy at home!

P.S. Another Perfect Party

It may seem impossible, but I went to yet another marvelous dinner party this Summer…

Actually, this particularly perfect dinner party was at my very own house! The special part was the group of guests — seven — three who knew each other, the other three newly arrived in Charleston. We asked each person to pick someone there they knew and tell about that person, instead of people introducing themselves. This is fun, innovative, saves everyone from bragging about themselves; plus it’s fascinating to hear what friends highlight about each other.

This only works with a small group, however. The cocktail hour was eye opening, enlightening, and by dinner everyone was acting like old friends. That’s what it’s all about: knitting together a new community right in your own house. Happy to report all six are fast friends.

Wine + Food Q&A : Counter Cheese Caves

What are your best tips for arranging a cheese plate, in terms of beauty, taste, and color? What the most important aspects in your opinion? [Use a] variety of textures and milk types. Otherwise bright colors are vital: citrus, radishes (watermelon radishes are great), tomatoes, etc. The other essential aspect is pattern/symmetry. Using inspiration from nature, art, or some of your favorite aesthetically pleasing [objects] always helps!

 Do you have a particular balance you prefer regarding hard cheese and soft? I always like to include [one or two] soft cheeses and vary the texture from there. From semi-soft cheeses like washed rinds (i.e. Meadow Creek Dairy Grayson) that are "soft" but will hold their shape, to super hard cheeses like gouda (i.e. Forx Farm 12 Month Gouda) that you can leave whole or portion into bite-sized pieces for easy snacking.

 What extras do you like to include on the cheese boards? We try to stay as seasonal as possible but will also skirt the line a bit for beauty's sake, using hydroponic tomatoes for color. Olives, various nuts, dried cherries and citrus are other favorites. When I am making a cheese board at home, it is often as simple as three different cheeses, sliced baguette and olives. Bright, full, patterned boards look great, but simplicity on a beautiful board can look just as good.

 What are your rules/ideas about cutting vegetables like radishes and cucumbers in slices or wedges? Do you cut for looks or taste? You have to cut for both. No matter how good something looks, if it's difficult to eat, you've lost the plot.  Again, symmetry is key so you want all of the pieces to have an identical shape and be placed in a symmetrical manner. With radishes, cucumbers, citrus, etc., we will often slice quite thin for layering. Mandolins can be very handy.

 What are your favorite crackers or breads on a cheese board? Roots & Branches Sesame Crackers (from Asheville) and Tiller Baking Co. baguette or sesamo loaf!

 What are your favorite olives and meats on a cheese board? Castelvetrano olives and liverwurst or pate.

 Do you have particular go-to boards or trays (wood, porcelain, metal, certain makes)? We use high-quality but still disposable (or reusable) square wooden boards for our business, but I like any heavy cutting board. We have one we got as a wedding gift that is a super heavy handmade butcher block with a psychedelic wood pattern across it. Marble slabs also look great!

 When do most of your customers use cheese boards -- an appetizer before a dinner party, on a buffet for a cocktail party, for a picnic? I would say most of them are for cocktail parties where the appetizers are the main event, but many use them for an easy way to greet guests or begin a dinner party. We've also made several for wedding-related snacking, whether at [a] bachelorette party or to have out while the reception dance party rages on.

 When a cheese board starts getting picked over, do you as a host rearrange the cheeses on the board? Add more? Bring out another board? I tend to put out everything I intend to offer on the board at once, so once it's done, it's done...but there are no rules! This is part and parcel with always making sure you have more than you think you need. There's a cheese-hound at every party. I like to have it ready ahead of time which is handy for being able to socialize, but also for allowing the cheeses get up to room temperature.

 What is the proper way for a guest to cut into a wedge of cheese? If everyone knew about rind to paste distribution, the world would be a better place; but an overbearing host is no fun. Most rinds are edible and delicious (besides those that are waxed or clothbound), so the idea is to get rind and paste in each "slice.”  I'll typically portion a bit of the chunk while leaving the rest whole to provide guidance to the uneducated.

 How do you get a non-foodie to taste an unusual or stinky cheese? Truthfully, I prefer not to force anyone to try something if they are simply not a cheese lover. Some folks just don't like trying new things, and that is okay.

 What was your most unusual request? Cheese without salt! Salt is an essential ingredient to cheese making. No salt = no taste.

 What is the best way to store cheeses? If the cheese was wrapped in paper when you bought it, you can rewrap it in that same paper and secure it with a piece of scotch tape. Store in the drawer or devoted bin in your fridge. Otherwise, wrap the cheese in parchment paper and then in saran wrap. This will keep the cheese from drying out but not let it take on the "plastic-y" gross flavor that can happen if the plastic is directly touching the cheese.

 How did you become interested in cheese? Just out of sheer love for it! A fortuitous internship at Vermont Creamery got me into the cheese world and I never looked back!

Where did you get your exceptional visual sense from? I would say both Eric and I have an artistic background but his visual sense mainly guides us. Luckily, our aesthetics coincide nicely.

 Was yours and Eric's wedding cake a cheese tower? Yes! We drove up to New York from Charleston for our wedding with a trunk full of cheese. We had a bunch of cheesemonger friends in attendance, so immediately after the ceremony we called all of them up to portion the cake so that everyone could snack on it throughout the rest of the party. It was one of our favorite aspects of the day.

 Could we do an all cheese dinner party together? I have ideas… Certainly! With such a range of textures, flavors and colors, we feel like there is no reason cheese can't be part of every dish on the table!

Do you eat cheese every day? I certainly do eat cheese every day. I have found that the more I work with something the more I crave it. At the end of the day, whether coming home late from FIG or finishing our deliveries, I set some cheese out, let it come to temp, and open a beer or pour a glass of wine. It's a nice unwinding ritual.

Thanks Counter Cheese Caves!

XO, the Dean

Pat Conroy & Cocktail Parties for VIE Magazine

Caroline Pollak, Pat Conroy, and Suzanne Pollak.

If you missed Suzanne Pollak's piece upon the passing of legendary Pat Conroy -- a touching recount of her time spent cooking and co-authoring his cookbook -- you will find it recently published in VIE Magazine, followed by the official Academy Guide to Cocktail Party Attire.

Read the full articles HERE & HERE (respectively) via VIE! This month, look for Suzanne's notes on hosting, whether a society ball or an intimate dinner for a few friends. Coming Soon...

'TIS the Season for a Cocktail

Who wouldn't love to be at this cocktail party?

Too many parties are unremarkable, and not for lack of work on the host's part. Some just don't stick in your memory, or leave you feeling thrilled you attended. Maybe they didn’t cast that luminous glow on life, even if for a few moments. If you've ever wondered how to give a cocktail party that makes each guest leave happy, satisfied, and thankful for you, the Dean has a couple secrets up her sleeve.

Growing up in Africa, I went to remarkable parties every week, even every night. There were cocktail parties in Mogadishu, Somalia, where we lived in a pink house on a hill over looking the city and the Indian Ocean.  All kinds of people attended: ambassadors, hunters, Arabs, Italians. One time American Olympian Jesse Owens came over, the era’s Usain Bolt. Especially overseas, in third world countries, parties build a community for a few hours, lasting til dawn. Those parties ended when the sun rose. I was on my way to bed when most guests arrived, and just waking up when they left.

The length and mix of parties cannot be duplicated but the lessons to learn are to set the stage and invite interesting people, beloved old and exotic new...

Setting the Stage:

So much concerted effort when it comes to hosting a party  -- stress over what to wear, what to serve and drink, how to decorate the house, the gimmicks, the glasses, on and on. The strange miracle that seems to elude us as we busy ourselves with party details is that all these elements don’t add up to a hill of beans. The most important point is to make guests relaxed the moment they walk in the door, able to step outside themselves for the duration. To experience that seizure of happiness, a floating feeling that lasts for days, is the ultimate goal. It all comes down to real meaning versus gimmicks. Gimmicks are fine, fun, even fabulous if they set the stage. Your job is to create magical moments. This takes deep thinking and off-the-cuff intuition.

Set the stage that works for your taste, energy, house and budget. It’s not difficult because this is about your personality.  Not about money, not about working yourself into a frazzle, not about doing things other people do. It’s about your personality asserting itself in the details. Taste is subjective! If you like plastic and silver together, great. The best houses are personal, not interior design-driven. If you only have time for picking up cocktail snacks at Trader Joe’s and Costco, that's fine too. Tip: buy truffle potato chips and fill with tuna tartare or pickled shrimp.

Whom to invite:

Everyone and anyone, not just the usual suspects. Invite at least a few new faces. Guests fall into two camps: comfortable if they already know everyone else, or ready to make new connections. But everyone everywhere loves to talk with an interesting person, known or not. Small talk gets stale in moments. Don’t let your party become a distant memory because small talk drowned the energy. 

Cocktail parties, and in fact the most fun parties, are all about the C’s. Be comfortable, which makes others comfortable. Connect guests. Start conversations, using your contacts and your charisma. Serve canapés and Champagne (e.g. Henri's Reserve) perhaps even in punch! For an in-person tutorial on how to host an unforgettable cocktail party, contact the Concierge at the Restoration Hotel to book a private class with the Dean.

Cheers!

Après Eclipse

No need to call off the party after viewing the Total Solar Eclipse this afternoon. Make your friends a drink!

Q: What’s better than hosting eleven for dinner? A: Making cocktails for just a few!

This August, invite guests over for a Late Summer Old Fashioned. Serve with a platter of coppa, speck & pâté (we rely on Goat Cow Sheep) along with silver bowls full of almonds and heirloom cherry tomatoes. Easy Peasy!

Here's to make our signature cocktail, plus a tip on how to refresh your drink without overdoing it.

Late Summer Old Fashioned

• 1 1/2 ounce (Blanton’s is the Dean’s current favorite but can be hard to find...)
• Mountain Valley soda 
• Generous drops of Peach Bitters (no need to be stingy!)
• Drops of Angostura Bitters
• Fresh slice of peach and a cherry (fresh or Luxardo Maraschinos)

1. Fill cocktail glass with large cubes of ice. Pour in bourbon.*
2. Sprinkle quite a few drops of peach bitters on top (five to ten according to your love of peaches) plus three or four drops Angostura bitters. 
3. Top with soda, and garnish with a slice of peach and a cherry. 
4. To slow down after one or too many drinks, without throwing in the towel, make this cocktail sans bourbon. In your same glass, refresh the ice, pour a speciality soda (Fever Tree or Mountain Valley), then top with a generous splattering of bitters. This concoction is as delicious as a real cocktail and will make you feel better in the morning.

*To use an old bartender's trick -- three to five second pours equal an ounce or two in the glass.

Cheers, and Happy Eclipse-ing, from the Academy's Summer School!

SUMMER PARTY PLAYLIST

Alain Delon, Brigitte Bardot, & Eddie Barclay beat the heat with style in St. Tropez. Where else?

Once you know what to wear to a mid- (OK maybe late) Summer eve cocktail party, you may as well just get gussied up and host one of your own. But you are going to need a signature cocktail -- perhaps a Paloma? -- and some choice tunes to make it all sing!

So we turned to our dear friend, Alex Admiral Collier, composer and music manager at Eastward Music for a summer playlist to help entertain guests and distract from the blistering heat. This playlist includes new and old songs alike, to usher in wistful memories of cooler, simpler times. Enjoy while imbibing with friends for a heightened sense of nostalgia while subconsciously creating new memories. CHEERS!

A Few Indispensable Tips on Cocktail Party Attire

It’s chic to wear a fantastic ‘something’ over and over to make it your signature. Just as smart hosts cook their favorite recipe again and again, no matter who comes to dinner, because they know their guests look forward to their culinary specialty; the chicest women throughout history know the style repetition secret. 

Even a simple ensemble can become your signature with the right attitude and accessories...

That 'thing’ can be an accessory, a dress, a shoe. The Dean learned from native and expatriate ladies swanning into her parents 1960's cocktail parties all over Africa. Women wore cigarette pants for casual affairs and jewel-toned satin mini cocktail dresses at fancier parties. Along with real hair dos (coifs, up-dos), eye liner flaring out just like Cleopatra, brilliant lips inhaling pearl or golden cigarette holders, perhaps even a huge cocktail ring or elaborate earrings...none of these beauties boasted a colossal wardrobe with unlimited choices but they had a cocktail uniform that took them anywhere. Once vital decisions are decided, brains are free to tackle life’s thornier problems: whom to invite to the party, which stranger to talk to first at someone else’s, how to grab attention, connect, ignite a fire, or tactfully end a conversation that's headed nowhere.

One Taffin ring...

and another.

The teenage Dean appropriated the tip immediately and forever. Deciding and simplifying what to wear wherever is cheaper and quicker once you you know what suits you. Dressing becomes a snap, so be loyal and stick with your style. Adding that something extra, or taking it off, makes the outfit appropriate for the particular party and place. 

Because, of course, it makes a difference where the cocktail party is: Hollywood, California, Hollywood SC, Beirut, Tripoli or Paris; the Ambassador’s residence or your neighbor’s garden? "When in Rome," so the saying goes. You don’t want to be dramatically different than everyone else unless you can handle it. For example, a man does not wear a motorcycle jacket when he attends a soirée at Charleston’s  Yacht Club. Men there wear the proper uniform of khaki pants and a blue blazer. The Dean once knew two young American beauties visiting the south of France who were assured that everyone, absolutely everyone, went topless to parties at a certain place. Perhaps a little naïve, they showed up appropriately undressed to a party filled with elegant older couture-covered guests. Still embarrassed decades later! 

Dressing comes down to the first impression. What can a first impression tell us about someone whom we only met for a moment at a party? Of course we all know human beings are complex and contradictory, but you don’t have to live with someone to sense immediately if you want more of them or less. The package of you starts with eye contact, the smile and what is draping your body. Identify what you want out of the engagement. Something, or nothing? There to sip one bourbon, or to possibly meet your next business associate or romantic partner? You don’t want your clothes to get in the way. A woman does not want to be so flashy others are distracted from substance, but neither does she want to seem too dowdy. 

Figure out your primary assets -- cleavage, neck, arms, hair -- and choose cocktail attire accordingly. For your own engagement, you will need to move, sit and stand. As a guest you can swan around or sprawl on a sofa as you wish.

For reference, here is the Dean's summer cocktail uniform: Hart tassels, J. McLaughlin white blouse and cigarette pants, with extra pointy shoes to make legs look longer. This pair of Balenciaga mules harkens back to the time of Robin Hood! Because they are extravagant, they will be worn with jeans all fall and winter, for hosting ladies luncheons and gumbo dinner parties, with a Halloween costume, for a Thanksgiving feast and Christmas dinner, even just for hanging out at home.

On Serving Nuts

One tip the Dean picked up this Summer in France and adopted at home in Charleston is an elegant way to serve nuts during cocktail hour. Fill one bowl with nuts and another with little spoons -- for instance, those sterling demitasse spoons your grandmother left you that lay hidden and unused in their felt rolls. Show your guests how to take a spoon, fill with nuts, then place nuts in their hands and snack away. The French approach accomplishes two results: individual portion control and avoiding fingertips in the food. YUCK!

New Year's Eve, Academy Style

“This is the way the world [/year] ends
Not with a bang but a whimper [almost].”

— T.S. Eliot [and the Dean]

After all the sparkly Christmas parties, crushing crowds, decorated windows, doors and trees, not to mention major cooking…New Year’s Eve could be a time for going off radar. A big New Year’s bash is unabashedly out to blow all your circuits -- isn't that the whole point? Make no mistake, this night's party takes sustained effort both to organize and enjoy (as any New Year's host will attest.) This year the Academy takes our cue from our favorite poet, T.S. Eliot, and decided to end our year with a whimper. 

How do you orchestrate a whimper that is also unforgettable? An evening worth staying up for, and going out to? Start by inviting several couples for a champagne cocktail before they go off to blow out all their circuits, but invite one or two of those couples to stay longer for dinner. New Year's Eve isn't without a little over the top, but keep it classy & do it with your menu. Key words: Simple and Extravagant.

MENU

• Champagne Cocktails - here are ten different ways to make one.
• Caviar - Ossetra is fine with the Deans but don't overlook delicious domestic varieties i.e. ...) Try an assortment for that really over-the-top feel.
• ...with Blinis and Creme Fraiche - easier to make (Martha's way) than you think.
• A plate of charcuterie -- the best you can find. (In Charleston the best is Bob Cook's at Artisan Meat Share on Spring Street.)
• Oyster Stew
• Cognac Chocolate Mousse in Champagne Cups - from the Handbook.
• More Champagne.

We also like to to have plenty of seltzer on hand, because bubbles, as well as the words to Auld Lang Syne so that everyone can join in a round of song to usher in the New Year.

Here's to you, your parties, and 2016!

Simple Syrup

Time for Math class at the Academy,  Put away your calculators -- this one is easy.  What do you get when you add one part water with one part sugar over heat?  The answer...delicious drinks!

The secret to so many great cocktails is Simple Syrup. No need to buy this in a bottle.  All you have to do is count to two: equal parts sugar and water, boiled for a minute, and then stored in your refrigerator for up to a month.  What could possibly be easier?