Do You Drink Like An Old Man?

Do you drink like an old man? Well? Do you, punk? I guess it depends on the old man in question. For Robert Schnakenberg, who wrote Old Man Drinks: Recipes, Advice, and Barstool Wisdom, drinking like an old man means favoring classic cocktails – imagine Don Draper from Mad Men forty years older, aging poorly, hanging out at the smokey corner bar down the street, still drinking the same old Manhattans and Old-Fashioneds. It seems like there are several thousand cocktail books out there these days, but this one clearly has a unique point of view – that of the grumpy old man. Mixed in with the 70 or so cocktail recipes are photos of and quotes from the type of salty old guys who populate those smokey corner bars, complaining about the vodka and red bull and appletinis all around them. Dry Mahoney, Grumpy Old Man, Rusty Nail, Harvey Wallbanger, Salty Dog – the names could describe the cocktails or the old men themselves equally well.

A good friend of mine has tackled the book with gusto in recent weeks, well on his way to “Old Man-hood,” and has been taking photos of his cocktail exploits and sharing them on Twitter (a not so “old man” thing to do, admittedly). I can’t help but head over to my home bar each time I see one of these photos, so spellbinding in their directness and ability to capture the essence of drinking like an old man. I have to admit, I’m pretty darn close to drinking like an old man myself. Enjoy…

Photos courtesy of Rowdyfood. Full flickr photo set here. Thanks to Robert Schnakenberg for the inspiration!