The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
for American readers, which includes the following definition:

"Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
appear more watered down than it is"

Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
cheapskates hosting a party):

or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"

but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
UK). Has anyone come across it elsewhere? Did Amis make it up?


--
Usenet is a cesspool, a dung heap. [Patrick A. Townson]

On Sep 8, 5:16*pm, Janet Baraclough >
wrote:
> The message >
> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>
> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
> > * "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
> > * appear more watered down than it is"
> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
> > cheapskates hosting a party):
> > * or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
> > * blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
> > UK). *Has anyone come across it elsewhere? *Did Amis make it up?
>
> * I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>
> * * *Janet
>
> * *Janet (Scotland)

Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
than Scotch.

John Kane Kingston ON Canada

John Kane wrote:

> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
> than Scotch.


That's because most of us don't know how to drink whiskey. Most people
mix it with ginger ale or cola, which is probably a good idea when
drinking rye whiskey because it is not very good. Scotch and Irish
whiskeys are good enough to drink straight, maybe with a cube or two or
a splash of water. That being said, I confess to drinking more rye than
any other whiskey because I mix it with sweet vermouth.

Dave Smith wrote:
> John Kane wrote:
>
>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>> than Scotch.
>
>
> That's because most of us don't know how to drink whiskey. Most people
> mix it with ginger ale or cola, which is probably a good idea when
> drinking rye whiskey because it is not very good. Scotch and Irish
> whiskeys are good enough to drink straight, maybe with a cube or two or
> a splash of water. That being said, I confess to drinking more rye than
> any other whiskey because I mix it with sweet vermouth.


I actually like to sip rye whiskey neat. I don't much care for Scotch.
There's no accounting for taste, I guess.

Bob

On 2008-09-08, John Kane wrote:

> On Sep 8, 5:16Â*pm, Janet Baraclough >
> wrote:
>> The message >
>> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>>
>> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
>> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
>> > Â* "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
>> > Â* appear more watered down than it is"
>> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
>> > cheapskates hosting a party):
>> > Â* or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
>> > Â* blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
>> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
>> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
>> > UK). Â*Has anyone come across it elsewhere? Â*Did Amis make it up?
>>
>> Â* I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
>> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>>
>> Â* Â* Â*Janet
>>
>> Â* Â*Janet (Scotland)
>
> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
> than Scotch.

Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.


--
Classical Greek lent itself to the promulgation of a rich culture,
indeed, to Western civilization. Computer languages bring us
doorbells that chime with thirty-two tunes, alt.sex.bestiality, and
Tetris clones. (Stoll 1995)

On 2008-09-09, zxcvbob wrote:

> Dave Smith wrote:
>> John Kane wrote:
>>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>>> than Scotch.
>>
>> That's because most of us don't know how to drink whiskey. Most people
>> mix it with ginger ale or cola, which is probably a good idea when
>> drinking rye whiskey because it is not very good. Scotch and Irish
>> whiskeys are good enough to drink straight, maybe with a cube or two or
>> a splash of water. That being said, I confess to drinking more rye than
>> any other whiskey because I mix it with sweet vermouth.
>
> I actually like to sip rye whiskey neat. I don't much care for Scotch.
> There's no accounting for taste, I guess.

Last time I brought up the subject of Canadian whiskey (in connection
with Robertson Davies) I was told (1) that it's generally called "rye"
there even though it's usually only partly rye-based and (2) that it's
generally lousy.


--
In the 1970s, people began receiving utility bills for
-£999,999,996.32 and it became harder to sustain the
myth of the infallible electronic brain. (Stob 2001)

Adam Funk wrote:
> On 2008-09-09, zxcvbob wrote:
>
>> Dave Smith wrote:
>>> John Kane wrote:
>>>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>>>> than Scotch.
>>> That's because most of us don't know how to drink whiskey. Most people
>>> mix it with ginger ale or cola, which is probably a good idea when
>>> drinking rye whiskey because it is not very good. Scotch and Irish
>>> whiskeys are good enough to drink straight, maybe with a cube or two or
>>> a splash of water. That being said, I confess to drinking more rye than
>>> any other whiskey because I mix it with sweet vermouth.
>> I actually like to sip rye whiskey neat. I don't much care for Scotch.
>> There's no accounting for taste, I guess.
>
> Last time I brought up the subject of Canadian whiskey (in connection
> with Robertson Davies) I was told (1) that it's generally called "rye"
> there even though it's usually only partly rye-based and (2) that it's
> generally lousy.
>
>


I buy Jim Beam rye whiskey, in the bright yellow label. I wish it came
in 1.75L bottles.

There's a very good whiskey called Elijah Craig that I found out has a
good bit of rye in it. That's why I tried the JB rye.

Bob

zxcvbob wrote:

>> That's because most of us don't know how to drink whiskey. Most
>> people mix it with ginger ale or cola, which is probably a good idea
>> when drinking rye whiskey because it is not very good. Scotch and
>> Irish whiskeys are good enough to drink straight, maybe with a cube or
>> two or a splash of water. That being said, I confess to drinking more
>> rye than any other whiskey because I mix it with sweet vermouth.
>
>
> I actually like to sip rye whiskey neat. I don't much care for Scotch.
> There's no accounting for taste, I guess.

You're right. It may be a matter of taste. I honestly don't know anyone
who sips Rye. I know a few who mix it with water. Most people make it
palatable with ginger ale or coke. There are a few premium Ryes on the
market, but IMO even cheap Scotch or Irish is better than premium Rye.


However, it is excellent in a Manhattan. Two parts Rye, one part sweet
vermouth, a cherry, small twist of lemon and a dash of Agnastura
bitters.... neat or on the rocks.

On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:05:53 +0100, Adam Funk wrote:

> On 2008-09-08, John Kane wrote:
>
>> On Sep 8, 5:16*pm, Janet Baraclough >
>> wrote:
>>> The message >
>>> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>>>
>>> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
>>> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
>>> > * "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
>>> > * appear more watered down than it is"
>>> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
>>> > cheapskates hosting a party):
>>> > * or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
>>> > * blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
>>> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
>>> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
>>> > UK). *Has anyone come across it elsewhere? *Did Amis make it up?
>>>
>>> * I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
>>> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>>>
>>> * * *Janet
>>>
>>> * *Janet (Scotland)
>>
>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>> than Scotch.
>
> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.

amis is a rather waggish fellow.

your pal,
blake

"blake murphy" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:05:53 +0100, Adam Funk wrote:
>
>> On 2008-09-08, John Kane wrote:
>>
>>> On Sep 8, 5:16 pm, Janet Baraclough >
>>> wrote:
>>>> The message >
>>>> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>>>>
>>>> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
>>>> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
>>>> > "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
>>>> > appear more watered down than it is"
>>>> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
>>>> > cheapskates hosting a party):
>>>> > or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
>>>> > blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
>>>> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
>>>> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
>>>> > UK). Has anyone come across it elsewhere? Did Amis make it up?
>>>>
>>>> I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
>>>> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>>>>
>>>> Janet
>>>>
>>>> Janet (Scotland)
>>>
>>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>>> than Scotch.
>>
>> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.
>
> amis is a rather waggish fellow.
>
Was!

Graham

On 2008-09-09, blake murphy wrote:

>> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.
>
> amis is a rather waggish fellow.

Was, but yes. And the new compilation (_Everday Drinking_) was worth
getting, even though I already had a secondhand copy of _On Drink_,
which I think had been out of print.

--
| _
| ( ) ASCII Ribbon Campaign
| X Against HTML email & news
| / \ www.asciiribbon.org

On 2008-09-09, zxcvbob wrote:

> I buy Jim Beam rye whiskey, in the bright yellow label. I wish it came
> in 1.75L bottles.

The only American predominantly rye whiskey I've tried was Old
Overholt. I liked it but no-one else did .

> There's a very good whiskey called Elijah Craig that I found out has a
> good bit of rye in it. That's why I tried the JB rye.

Elijah Craig is delicious. I'll keep an eye out for the JB rye.

--
The wonderful thing about standards is that there are so
many of them to choose from. [Grace Murray Hopper]

On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 12:41:57 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
(in article > ):


> However, it is excellent in a Manhattan. Two parts Rye, one part sweet
> vermouth, a cherry, small twist of lemon and a dash of Agnastura
> bitters.... neat or on the rocks.


My drink of choice!

J.

Janis wrote:
> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 12:41:57 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
> (in article > ):
>
>
>> However, it is excellent in a Manhattan. Two parts Rye, one part sweet
>> vermouth, a cherry, small twist of lemon and a dash of Agnastura
>> bitters.... neat or on the rocks.
>
>
> My drink of choice!

And it is an excellent choice. I love them and in the cool months I
have (at least) one every night. It is weird. Rye is my least favourite
whiskey but I go through more rye than any other liquor.

On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 18:41:09 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
(in article > ):

> Janis wrote:
>> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 12:41:57 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
>> (in article > ):
>>
>>
>>> However, it is excellent in a Manhattan. Two parts Rye, one part sweet
>>> vermouth, a cherry, small twist of lemon and a dash of Agnastura
>>> bitters.... neat or on the rocks.
>>
>>
>> My drink of choice!
>
> And it is an excellent choice. I love them and in the cool months I
> have (at least) one every night. It is weird. Rye is my least favourite
> whiskey but I go through more rye than any other liquor.
>

I was up in Vermont last weekend and had a Manhattan (well it can't really be
a Manhattan) that was made with maple liquor. It was really tasty.

J.

On Wed 10 Sep 2008 05:32:20a, Janis told us...

> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 18:41:09 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
> (in article > ):
>
>> Janis wrote:
>>> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 12:41:57 -0400, Dave Smith wrote
>>> (in article > ):
>>>
>>>
>>>> However, it is excellent in a Manhattan. Two parts Rye, one part
>>>> sweet vermouth, a cherry, small twist of lemon and a dash of
>>>> Agnastura bitters.... neat or on the rocks.
>>>
>>>
>>> My drink of choice!
>>
>> And it is an excellent choice. I love them and in the cool months I
>> have (at least) one every night. It is weird. Rye is my least
>> favourite whiskey but I go through more rye than any other liquor.
>>
>
> I was up in Vermont last weekend and had a Manhattan (well it can't
> really be a Manhattan) that was made with maple liquor. It was really
> tasty.
>
> J.

Now *that* sounds just a little weird. :-)



--
Wayne Boatwright

*******************************************
Date: Wednesday, 09(IX)/10(X)/08(MMVIII)
*******************************************
Countdown till Veteran's Day
8wks 5dys 18hrs 10mins
*******************************************
The worst whistlers whistle the most.
*******************************************

Janis wrote:
>
>>> My drink of choice!
>> And it is an excellent choice. I love them and in the cool months I
>> have (at least) one every night. It is weird. Rye is my least favourite
>> whiskey but I go through more rye than any other liquor.
>>
>
> I was up in Vermont last weekend and had a Manhattan (well it can't really be
> a Manhattan) that was made with maple liquor. It was really tasty.

You're right. It can't really be a Manhattan, just like a drink with
chocolate and no gin can't be a martini. But come to think of it, I had
a similar drink years ago with rye and maple liqueur and it was tasty. A
local distillery used to make a nice maple liqueur but they are no
longer in business.

On Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:05:24 GMT, Graham wrote:

> "blake murphy" > wrote in message
> ...
>> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:05:53 +0100, Adam Funk wrote:
>>
>>> On 2008-09-08, John Kane wrote:
>>>
>>>> On Sep 8, 5:16 pm, Janet Baraclough >
>>>> wrote:
>>>>> The message >
>>>>> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>>>>>
>>>>> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a glossary
>>>>> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
>>>>> > "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes it
>>>>> > appear more watered down than it is"
>>>>> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
>>>>> > cheapskates hosting a party):
>>>>> > or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
>>>>> > blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
>>>>> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
>>>>> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
>>>>> > UK). Has anyone come across it elsewhere? Did Amis make it up?
>>>>>
>>>>> I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
>>>>> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>>>>>
>>>>> Janet
>>>>>
>>>>> Janet (Scotland)
>>>>
>>>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>>>> than Scotch.
>>>
>>> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.
>>
>> amis is a rather waggish fellow.
>>
> Was!
>
> Graham

oopsie! no scotch of any kind for him, then.

your pal,
blake

"blake murphy" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:05:24 GMT, Graham wrote:
>
>> "blake murphy" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:05:53 +0100, Adam Funk wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 2008-09-08, John Kane wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> On Sep 8, 5:16 pm, Janet Baraclough >
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>> The message >
>>>>>> from Adam Funk > contains these words:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> > The new Kingsley Amis compilation _Everyday Drinking_ has a
>>>>>> > glossary
>>>>>> > for American readers, which includes the following definition:
>>>>>> > "Husband's Scotch: a whiskey (like J & B) whose light color makes
>>>>>> > it
>>>>>> > appear more watered down than it is"
>>>>>> > Amis uses the term in item 8 of the "Mean Sod's Guide" (for
>>>>>> > cheapskates hosting a party):
>>>>>> > or boldly use a plain glass containing one of those light-coloured
>>>>>> > blends known, at any rate in the U.S.A., as a "husband's Scotch"
>>>>>> > but AFAICT it does not appear anywhere else in the compilation, and
>>>>>> > I've never heard or seen this term anywhere else (in the USA or the
>>>>>> > UK). Has anyone come across it elsewhere? Did Amis make it up?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I've never heard the term husband's Scotch. Impossible to imagine
>>>>>> Scots husbands even thinking such a concealment necessary.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Janet
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Janet (Scotland)
>>>>>
>>>>> Never heard of it in Canada. Mind you a lot of people drink rye rather
>>>>> than Scotch.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.
>>>
>>> amis is a rather waggish fellow.
>>>
>> Was!
>>
>> Graham
>
> oopsie! no scotch of any kind for him, then.
>
With his drinking history, I'm sure any crematorium would have had to have
taken out extra insurance!
Graham

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:07:53 -0600, Graham wrote:

> "blake murphy" > wrote in message
> ...
>> On Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:05:24 GMT, Graham wrote:
>>
>>> "blake murphy" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>> On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:05:53 +0100, Adam Funk wrote:
>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks for the responses. I suspect that Amis made it up.
>>>>
>>>> amis is a rather waggish fellow.
>>>>
>>> Was!
>>>
>>> Graham
>>
>> oopsie! no scotch of any kind for him, then.
>>
> With his drinking history, I'm sure any crematorium would have had to have
> taken out extra insurance!
> Graham

on the other hand, maybe they could have skipped the embalming step.

your pal,
blake

On 2008-09-10, Dave Smith wrote:

>> I was up in Vermont last weekend and had a Manhattan (well it can't really be
>> a Manhattan) that was made with maple liquor. It was really tasty.
>
> You're right. It can't really be a Manhattan, just like a drink with
> chocolate and no gin can't be a martini. But come to think of it, I had
> a similar drink years ago with rye and maple liqueur and it was tasty. A
> local distillery used to make a nice maple liqueur but they are no
> longer in business.

I'd never heard of maple liqueur until now (although I had heard of
homemade maple sap wine), but it certainly sounds nice.

(I've experimented with maple syrup in cocktails --- I like it, but
I'm sure it's not to everyone's taste.)


--
History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of
urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.
(Thurgood Marshall)

Adam Funk wrote:

>
> I'd never heard of maple liqueur until now (although I had heard of
> homemade maple sap wine), but it certainly sounds nice.
>
> (I've experimented with maple syrup in cocktails --- I like it, but
> I'm sure it's not to everyone's taste.)


The one that we used to get was from Reider's Distillery, and they used
to make a number of really good liqueurs. Their cherry brandy was
excellent, while most others taste like cough syrup. Unfortunately,
Reiders is no longer around.