Fauxjen Cocktail

When the Carnival staple, Ojen, disappeared, the revelers of the Crescent City first panicked. When the panic had subsided, we gathered our collective composure and found a replacement, Luxardo Sambuca. Shortly thereafter a better alternative was found, and the city quickly accepted another Spanish Anise Liqueur: Vincente Bosch's Anise Del Mono.

Anise Del Mono, the Anisette of the Monkey, was a gift to New Orleanians. It was as close to Ojen as one could reasonably hope, and it was even a tab bit cheaper than Ojen was in its last days. The one caveat was that there was only a single perveyor: Elio's Wine Warehouse.

Alas, when I was visiting elio's today, they regretfully informed me that they were no longer able to acquire Anise Del Mono. It seems that the monkey was no longer pdealing his sweet anisette here in the Crescent City.

The employees at Elios recommended another Liqueur from Espana, Chinchon, but regretfully, I must admit that I found it a bit too sour to make for a good Fauxjen Cocktail. I suppose we'll have to go back to the Luxardo Sambuca until someone either finds a better replacement or gets the monkey back here... Or if Martin Wine Cellar can get someone to produce the original Ojenrecipe. Fingers Crossed.

Products of the South: Carolina Cotton Bow Ties

A bow tie is a coded signal. It lets other men that wear bow ties (eve though they might not be wearing one at that moment) that you are in the know. He'll know that y'all are both members of the same unspoken club, that the two of you have more in common than most, even if everything else is seemingly different.

This club has a southern inner circle; there is an even more exclusive group of cotton bow tie wearers. Though I owned a cotton bow tie or two, I realized what it meant when I was recently contacted by Ethan at Carolina Cotton Bow Ties. After a bit of chatting, he let me know about their new fall line, which I suggest you check out ASAP. A bit more about the company is best said in Ethan's word's:

At Carolina Cotton Bow Ties we put a new twist on an old southern staple. We offer classic bow ties but have some edgier patterns too.  We personally select our patterns and purchase most material locally. It all started with my grandmother who has and still does make bow ties for my father and I. We have carried the love and craftsman ship that she put into her bow ties into ours.

What sets us apart from all of the other bow tie makers is just our good old fashion customer service. We love talking to people and helping them find the perfect bow tie. Let’s face it a bow tie is an extension of your personality and we don’t want you to settle. If we don’t have what you are looking for, we will do our best to find it.

Now that you've read about the company, and checked out the fall line, I bet you're ready to buy a tie or seven. If that's the case, then I have just the thing for you, a coupon code. Uses the code "SNS12" and you'll get 10% off. So, uhh, yeahh, go get one!

Put Your Feet Where They Belong (inside of shoes)

Men,

If you own any flip-flops (or if you prefer, thong sandals), THROW THEM AWAY IMMEDIATELY. There is one single acceptable purpose for a man to wear such footwear – communal showers. They do absolutely nothing to improve you manliness, and generally they give the impression that either you do not care how you look, or that you want to wear a style of shoe that has a distinctly feminine form to it. Furthermore, men have ugly feet. This is not an opinion, it is a fact. As a man, I can’t see any reason to look at another man’s feet short of inspecting his pussing blister to ensure his ability to continue on a forced march; I also suspect women don’t particularly want to see them either. So, please, keep them in your shoes. Also, I don’t want to hear the pitiful excuse that you have no other shoe options with shorts. This is a cop-out; go buy boatshoes or loafers.

Very Respectfully,

Seersucker and Sazeracs

Products Of The South: State Traditions

There I found myself on the State Traditions website staring at the Baton Rouge Gameday Hat; I was torn by a very embittered internal struggle - trying to decide whether I wanted Purple hat with a Gold Louisiana or Gold with the state in Purple. It was then that I realized that this outfit would be a perfect fit the "Products of the South" series. Why are they so perfect? Well, no matter which state in Dixie you wish to honor, they have a product for you, and quite likely in colors that you find to go together really well (even if outsiders would disagree). Here's how the folks at State Traditions describe themselves:

We created State Traditions in the summer of 2007 in order to offer state-inspired apparel and accessories that reflect individual tastes and lifestyles. We began by designing polos for a handful of states, and in the past five years, have expanded to include items such as t-shirts, hats, visors, ties, and more, for every state in America.

What makes State Traditions unique is that we focus on something people already have a connection with: their home state. Our products conjure up favorite memories of times spent there -- backyard barbecues in Georgia, afternoons on the lake in Michigan, twilight nights in Tennessee, fly fishing in Colorado ,or Saturday football games in Louisiana. After all, the places we come from and the things we love to remember make us who we are. What's your tradition? Proudly wear it.

Sharing the awesomeness that is State Traditions with y'all did distract me though; I never decided which hat to get. So, which do y'all think I should get, Purple on Gold or Gold on Purple?

Great Lakes Prep

Here in the South, we are very proud of region. But just cause one isn't from the South doesn't mean that he can't be proud of the land from which he hails. Nick is one of these people that is proud of his place of origin (which is not Southern). He publishes a webpage called Great Lakes Prep, and Its a great read wherever one is from. He describes as:

Great Lakes Prep is a lifestyle blog dedicated to the preppy aesthetic.  From its base in the Great Lakes, it explores brands, both young and old, crafting preppy wares and provides a Midwestern perspective, a voice not often heard in the prep realm.  It's an exploration into life in the Midwest, both in general and from a prep perspective, and a primer for anyone curious about visiting the area.  It's a movement to show the rest of the country we're just as proud of where we come from as they are and to show that the Midwest isn't just some vast expanse in the middle of the country to fly over.  Whether you live in the Midwest, have lived here or are just curious to gain perspective on how we do prep in the Midwest, I hope you'll enjoy what you read.

I make sure not to miss a single post of his, and you shouldn't miss any either.

White On White

Good IdeaNo, that title is not referencing the surprising new violent crime trend among upper management in Fortune 500 companies; it is referencing a new breed of seersucker I've seen popping up on suits recently. As any seersucker fabric, this is composed of alternating strips of straight and ruffled fabric, but unlike the traditional color scheme where the straigh stripes are blue and the ruffled stripes are white (or a more fun fabric which may use green or prink in lieu of blue)  both straig and ruffled strips are white.

This makes for a suit that looks more formal that a blue and white seersucker suit, almost infringing on the territory of the white linen suit. This suit should provide a nice middle ground between the two though; it has the look of whit elinen but the comfort of seersucker. One might ponder, is linen not itself supposed to be a material that will provide comfort in the summer heat? Yes, linen should breathe and keep one's sweating to a minimum, but once one does sweat a good bit, many find that it becomes heavy and looses its breathability. Seersucker doesn't seem to suffer fromt he same ailment. This alone seems reason enough to check out this sharp looking material for your next suit.

Would I replace my white linen suit with a White on White Seersucker Suit? No, I still don't think it is appropriate for after the sun has set, but it does convey a certain refinement seersucker has, until now, sometimes seemed to be lacking.