Cheers!

It’s an early Saturday morning and I’m sitting here wondering what to write for my first article for Republic Black. There are so many things happening in the world today; things that can easily send us into a downward spiral with constant thoughts of depression, racism, the illness that is COVID-19 and God knows what else. I was told to write something that I’m passionate about and one thing that I love doing is making cocktails and serving them to the public. Not only am I a trained writer and journalist, but a bartender for the past 10 years. And one thing that can help people cope with the negativity of the world (when done responsibly) is having a nice cocktail.

Don’t take me for an alcoholic; we all have our vices. And as I stated before, you must do it responsibly. Knowing when to stop, and replenish your body with water is the best thing you can do when you’re having a fun-filled night on the town (remember when we had those?).

Being stuck inside due to COVID-19 is definitely hurting the bar and restaurant industry. But hopefully one day sooner than later, we’ll all be free again to enjoy those fun-filled nights out, partying and drinking with our buddies. But will you know how to do it when the time comes? Not to sound judgmental, but there are many cocktails and concoctions out there to choose from, and our people tend to stick to the usual of our community - rum and coke, Henny straight and Long Island Iced Teas just to name a few. You can take a lesson from this piece and try what I’m sipping on at the moment - a Dark ‘n’ Stormy. During this entire quarantine, I’ve heard several times that this is the perfect time to start a business, a new hobby, spend time with loved ones, etc. How about learning how to make new cocktails that you can introduce to your friends the next time we’re free to head to the bar? Let’s face it; LITs are played out and honestly do not taste that good. Now is the time to experiment with different spirits, liqueurs and flavors. Try a Dark ‘n’ Stormy on for size - throw a few ice cubes in your glass of choice and fill it with ⅔ of ginger beer. Top it with a dark rum (such as Myers’s Rum or Captain Morgan) and a squirt of lime juice (fresh lime or sweetened Rose’s lime juice). You’ll see that the dark rum floats on top of the bubbly ginger goodness. It will get you “nice” and also add some zing to your palette.

So the next time you’re discussing the corona virus or the fact that Breonna Taylor’s killers are still on the loose, sip responsibly to ease the tension. It’s a rough time out here and a fine-crafted cocktail can help keep you calm during this time in our history.

Tiffani Cage

Writer

Bartender

RepBLK