mixed drinks

I've read before that every man should have a favorite alcoholic drink that he can rattle off quickly when the need arises--whiskey on the rocks, vodka martini (shaken, not stirred, of course), whatever. Drinks like pina coladas and strawberry daquiris are not a part of this. Apparently there's something quite sissy about fruity drinks. Anyway, I was sitting next to a colleague of mine at a business dinner the other night, and when asked what he wanted to drink, he quickly rattled off "Grey Goose...something...something...dirty...with...something." I know what Grey Goose is, but I had no idea what the rest of it meant. I was pretty impressed nonetheless. He made his request with authority. I could tell that whatever this drink was, he owned it.

Now, having been raised in a home and a culture where there was no alcohol, and having never had alcohol myself, this idea is a bit foreign to me. That said, I do have a drink that I can call my own. And when I order it, I own it. Here it is:



It's a Shirley Temple with extra grenadine.

If you're thinking that this isn't the manliest of drinks, you're right. It's not. In fact, typically when I hear someone ordering Shirley Temples, they usually end up at the kiddies table next to the adults table. I've had many waiters and a couple of bartenders give me funny looks and/or snicker at me. But you know what? I don't care.

I don't remember when I first had one, but the cruise we went on last year was where I took ownership of the Shirley Temple as my official drink. On a whim, I ordered one and was surprised at how good it tasted. The mix of soda, maraschino cherries and grenadine juice was incredible. So, I decided to order another, but this time, with more grenadine. This drink was even better than the first. Each gulp of ruby red sweetness was like liquid crack in my throat, and I was hooked. Despite the hefty price tag, more would come. Vacations seem to be the ideal time to have Shirley Temples, so I had several when we went to Mexico earlier this spring, and several more when we were on our cruise in July. More weird looks, more snickers. Big deal.

As is the case every year, I asked the little lady to get me nothing for my recently passed birthday. However, she never heeds this request, and I woke up to a large present on my birthday. This gift turned out to be two bottles of Sprite and two bottles of grenadine--excellent. I've been able to enjoy several rounds of my favorite mixed drink over the past couple of weeks, and I'm thinking that grenadine might become a permanent fixture in our home.

You know what? Forget about what I said earlier. The Shirley Temple is a manly drink.