The Brandon Effect MEME's - We Get Wasted

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

How to Drink All Night and Stay (Halfway) Sober

A raucous barhop is good for the soul. But how does a man survive a night of cocktail 

swilling without compromising his dignity or feeling completely craptastic the next day? A team of GQ boozehounds hit the streets of New York—and eight bars in ten hours—to learn the right way to go on a bender

Read More http://www.gq.com/how-to/eat-and-drink/200904/drink-all-night#ixzz1VJQPZaFw

6 P.M.

The team assembles at the bar at ALLEN & DELANCEY, a plush, dark, and at this hour completely empty restaurant on the Lower East Side. Meehan scans the menu and orders light: a FRENCH 75 (gin, champagne, lemon juice, sugar), an APEROL SPRITZ (Aperol, an Italian aperitif; prosecco; soda), and an ABSINTHE DRIP (absinthe, sugar, water).

RULE #1

Start Out Light

In the beginning, you're not going to have a full stomach. Meehan prescribes a drink that contains bittersweet herbal wines or spirit-based aperitifs—bitters like Campari and Cynar: "They're appetite-whetters, and the low proof ensures you don't fall off your stool after your first drinks."

6:20 P.M.

Sarah sips her French 75. Sachs drains the absinthe drip as quickly as one would a glass of orange juice and boldly, perhaps stupidly, follows it with a NEGRONI (gin, Campari, sweet vermouth).

7:24 P.M.

Oysters are ordered and slurped, but Meehan suspects that won't be enough sustenance for the long night ahead. "Do you still have those bacon-flavored dinner rolls?" he asks the bartender. "We need a bunch of those and some butter."

RULE #2

Eat Snacks, Not Dinner

There are brilliant mixologists who totally disagree with me on this," Meehan says, "but I don't recommend trying to pair cocktails with dinner. On a night out drinking, food is merely the fuel."

8:39 P.M.

At the bar at FREEMANS, a boisterous nearby restaurant decorated with taxidermy and hipsters, Sachs orders the appley NEW YORK TRADING COMPANY cocktail and the artichoke dip. Sarah veers off-path with a glass of ROSÉ. Meehan requests an artisanal French beer and is served a PORKSLAP PALE ALE instead. Sometimes it's best just to play the card you're dealt, he advises.

9:05 P.M.

After a quick taxi ride west, the group shuffles down a flight of stairs to B FLAT, a Japanese cocktail bar in Tribeca, where the drinks are sweet and the stereo plays jazz. "We've laid down a base at the other places," Meehan says. "Now we're stepping up to the masters." The meticulous Japanese bartenders deliver two variations on the FRENCH 75, one with bourbon, another with Cognac; a JACK ROSE; a MINT JULEP; and a standard OLD-FASHIONED. The delayed Dr. Michael finally joins the group and catches up by ordering a SAZERAC.

RULE #3

Think of It as a Menu

Plan a night of drinking like a dinner menu. The logic is white to red with wine, light to dark with beer, white spirits before brown, dry to sweet, low alcohol to high. But logic, says Meehan, can get in the way of fun, so don't overthink it.

9:43 P.M.

"The state of the nation is strong," Meehan declares. "We've made the shift to brown spirits seamlessly, I think. Let's Breathalyze!" (Note: New York, like all other states, considers a person legally intoxicated if his blood-alcohol level is .08 percent or higher.) Meehan blows a .05 ("I had some '91 Lagavulin with lunch"). Sarah clocks in at .06; Sachs and the doctor are at a modest .04.

10 P.M.

Standing outside B Flat on Church Street in Tribeca, Dr. Michael administers the evening's first Romberg test (like the one drunk drivers take roadside). Sarah stands with her eyes closed, arms stretched in front of her, palms up. "A positive Romberg is when they fall over to one side," the doctor says. Sarah's arms flail a bit, but she remains upright. Pass.

RULE #4

Always Be Hydrating

"Having a glass of water per cocktail all night long is instrumental in staying sober." Meehan adds: "It's also a reminder that you've finished a drink, which helps you keep track of how many you've had."

10:20 P.M.

We make our way up the narrow staircase of PEGU CLUB, a revered retro cocktail bar in SoHo. Chief barman Kenta Goto serves up a modified MANHATTAN, a lighter version made with Grand Marnier that will allow the group to keep its pace.

11:17 P.M.

Outside Pegu, Meehan takes the Romberg. Dr. Michael: "That's pretty good. That's a negative Romberg!" Sachs passes, too; Dr. Feelgood heads home to his nine-months-pregnant wife.

11:22 P.M.

In a taxi on the way to LITTLE BRANCH, a speakeasy-style bar in the West Village, Meehan makes a good point: "After five hours and twenty-two minutes of steady drinking, I'm sensing an alarming level of sobriety. At Little Branch, we'll order a RED HOOK [Punt e Mes, maraschino, rye], a GREENPOINT [rye, yellow Chartreuse, sweet vermouth, Angostura and orange bitters], and a GOLD RUSH (bourbon, lemon juice, honey)."

11:42 P.M.

Sarah: "It's like we're on a triple blind date, but I feel more comfortable with strangers after a lot of cocktails than I would otherwise." Meehan: "Please note that at eleven forty-two we were just called 'strangers.'"

RULE #5

Stay Socially Engaged

"If you're just sitting there drinking, you'll get drunk and peak too early," Meehan says. "Talking to a bartender helps. Tell him what you've had, what you like, and leave your next drink up to him."

11:59 P.M.

The drinks are great, but the mellowness of Little Branch is causing the collective energy to flag. "We need a reviving beer!" Meehan commands. The group heads across the street to DADDY-O, a street-level non-speakeasy, where bad Black Crowes is blaring. After a round of PINTS and some shots of MEZCAL, all are reenergized.

RULE #6

Take a Beer Break

Sometimes you need a break from the formalities of cocktail bars. A run to a bar like Daddy-O is the perfect solution. Our options were simplified. And beer is good. Beer is refreshing."

12:33 A.M.

Sarah: "I want a hot dog!" The group takes a taxi across town to Meehan's home base, PDT.

12:50 A.M.

To enter PDT, you pick up the receiver in a telephone booth just outside the bar and speak to the host on the other side of a door leading from a brightly lit hot-dog joint to a dark cocktail lounge. Here the group is given what might be called the FULL MEEHAN: many rounds of excellent cocktails plus Tater Tots plus several hot dogs.

1:18 A.M.

Sarah points at the bottle on the table: "Is that the worm?" Meehan: "No, that's the chicken breast. That's the fucking cash-me-out right there." A bottle of DEL MAGUEY PECHUGA, which is indeed distilled with a chicken breast, is passed around.

2:10 A.M.

Sachs blows a .09.

2:27 A.M.

Sachs to Sarah: "What have you learned?" Sarah: "Eat a lot. Without food I'd be dead."

3:01 A.M.

The group stumbles into PUCK FAIR. Meehan orders a GUINNESS, and Sachs asks him, "What have you learned?" Meehan answers, "I learned I can drink all night." To which Sachs replies, "Without joking, I think we could go for another ten hours."

RULE #7

Order Defensively

"If I'm on the fifth cocktail, I've lost the will to be logical," Meehan says. "This is the time to go boilermaker: a beer and a whiskey. It's actually a great move. When you've got two drinks in front of you, no one can buy you a third."

3:10 A.M.

Sarah surrenders and departs. Sachs and Meehan get another Guinness.

4 A.M.

Hailing a cab home, Meehan sums it up for Sachs: "I want you to write that this can be done. This isn't some Navy Seal mission where you usually die. This can be done."

THE BAR CRAWLER'S DON'TS

1. Don't Make a Martini Your First—or Second—Order

If you're embarking on what you know is going to be a long night, don't start with an all-spirits cocktail. "A martini can knock you on your ass," Meehan says, "especially on an empty stomach." If you want to begin with a classic drink, you're better off with a top-shelf gin-and-tonic.

2. Skip "Pick-Me-Ups" Like Coffee and Energy Drinks

"When you combine caffeine and alcohol on a long night of drinking, the effects of the alcohol are masked and you tend to drink more than you should," Meehan says. "Your company should be your stimulant. If you're that drunk and/or tired, it's time to go home."

3. Duck When the Round of Shots Comes Around

"I don't do shots unless I absolutely have to," Meehan says. To deflect the night-ender (and morning-ruiner), he advises ordering the above-mentioned boilermaker. "You can usually get away with turning down a shot because you've got a bowl of booze in front of you."

Read More http://www.gq.com/how-to/eat-and-drink/200904/drink-all-night#ixzz1VJMVC0ii

!!!    DOWNLOAD HERE    !!!

Ice Cold: Beer vs. People

Firstly...

Czech people drink more beer per capita than anybody else in the world.

The beer in this country is cheap, delicious, freezing cold, clean, low in alcohol, and extremely commonplace. If one pub kicks you out for throwing glasses at the elderly, you can find another one within a 10-meter radius, silently and shamefully waiting to pump you full of alcohol and outrageous ideas. There is a joke in this country: "So this pub near Anděl ran out of beer…" People are already laughing at it, like we told them that George W. Bush was running for Prime Minister of the Czech Republic next term. Pubs don't run out of beer in this country. The ensuing riots would destroy the entire government, infrastructure, and all future pork 'n' potato delicacies. 



The beer is so widespread, like a never-ending fountain of lore in some fantastic 200-year-old novel; it would be foolish to embark upon any nighttime excursion soberly, away from its thick, smoky cradle of sinful goodness. Deciding what is the best beer is frequently a matter of debate, and experts who might know what they're talking about discuss it at length. 



When I lived in Tucson, Arizona, I drank what most would call an appropriate amount of beer for a 24-year-old. I didn't drink it daily, and I rarely had it in my refrigerator. Since arriving in Prague nearly six months ago, however, my beer intake has tripled at least. I drink beer daily in this city - it is somewhat hard not to. I don't get drunk when I drink it (some of the time), and I don't drink it to get drunk (most of the time). I treat it as a cultural caveat, like the sumo-wrestling diaper (50 CZK to whoever knows the name of this thing) that I wear when I go to Japan. 



I'll be the first crazy jerk to admit that the entire concept of beer is normally better rather than worse. Beer begins to psychologically represent good vibes and fun. And we all know fun rocks. Except for wine, which has been known to turn me into a Class 3 tornado, and liquor, which I began to associate with pain some time ago, I cannot think of any beverage to match the esteemed character of beer. In the States, people guzzle soda like it's becoming extinct, to their detriment: they are fat little piggies because of it. Beer, while similar in caloric content, has no refined sugar, which is the true culprit in the case of Fatty McFatfat, Jr.


Below is a hackneyed outline of the "benefits" of beer. 




1. -The Buzz
, The great thing about brain cells is that they grow back…Right? Hmm. Well, the last time I checked, being a little bit buzzed with a group of good friends and someone who is new and cute shows up and you spend most of the night looking deeply into their eyes from across the table, turning what was once only the faintest glimmer in part of the night sky that you never looked at before into an inferno of inhuman temperatures is still pretty darn cool in my book. Ahh, the buzz. Optical reciprocity.
2. -The Social Elevator
, Go on up - just like you do when you leave the metro. Our psychic walls are flattened after drinking beer, making interaction easier, but certainly less graceful. Alcohol is nicknamed "liquid courage" for a reason. Normally this references the lame and frequently tactless act of "going to go talk to that girl but maybe I should become a slathering idiot only seconds before I do it" type of expedition. Our inhibitions become hibitions, or something. Also, small dogs in pubs are friendlier. They understand. 


3. -Damn, I did that?
 Beer is the oldest natural method of accountability/responsibility removal. Before that, it was getting killed by a mammoth. I guess you don't have to do any chores after that… When we drink beer, all reason and logic decides to drink along with us. It is liberating, as long as you have friends that are good enough to pull your drunk behind out of trouble's lunchbox in time. No use showing up to work minus two teeth and with a forehead tattoo that says "Beeyatch." 



4. Beer Goggles:
   

Here's A Good Couple o Videos Regarding The Concept Of Beer Goggles.


--

Unfortunately, beer basically works against us most of the time. Men develop a belly whose roundness is rivaled only by a pregnant woman's, huge and rotund, like the peach from my favorite Roald Dahl book. It can cause car accidents, damage our liver, reduce intelligence and motivation, and create the well-known phenomenon of "beer goggles", in which the wearer is almost sure to make a startlingly poor decision regarding the evening's partner. 


But, I still drink it - a lot. I drink it Monday afternoons at lunch, Thursday evenings (I've begun to refer to Thursday as "Friday #2") and during Sunday brunch. I have been known to stop drinking beer at two in the morning on Sunday morning and start again at noon the same day. I drink it all except for Zlatopramen, which I find to be way too skunky and sweet like a… wait, no, I drink that one too. 



The reason that I'm writing about this now is that I've recognized a lot of people in my generation as "heavy drinkers".
I could conceivably go out and drink every night, for weeks, without arousing suspicion in this country. Seemingly, my peers and my generation are no longer able to have a good time without some sort of drug. Alcohol, nicotine, some new desperate crude called Pervitin (meth), caffeine, marijuana, spray-paint, gasoline, rotten broccoli, and Nyquil: When did it happen that we had to have some substance in order to have meaningful social interactions? Before, it was Pepsi and candy and our imaginations and dentist visits. When did it change?



You Must Ask Yourself...
Is this a problem in the first place?
I mean, it's just beer. It does not affect my work negatively, or my interpersonal relationships with people (probably since they are also drinking something). Actually, I hope it positively influences my writing, as I am drinking a beer at this very moment.

** Solution? Plan a special night out where no substances are involved. No alcohol, opiates, or caffeine. Juice or herbal tea only. You can at least feel good about trying it once. Then back to the pub for more abuse and vomit.



As my parents and grandparents shudder at reading this, making silent notes to strike me from their will, I sit in a crusty dungeon in Prague, sipping ice-cold Gambrinus 10 and worrying. I worry that all my friends would be less cool without the social drinking to connect us. I worry that I am missing a huge part of consciousness and mental well being by drinking. I’m worrying so much, I think I need another beer. 




* In the fight against people, let it be said that beer has the distinct advantage of greater portability and agreeable temperature. 



** This article was written with the intention of analyzing the qualities of beer in an objective fashion, but failed miserably in doing so because of the beer involved in the creation, execution, emailing, and typing of said article

Thanks for reading, now go out and find a pint of Pilsner Urquell, Gambrinus, or Budvar,
....BUT....
DON'T DRINK ALONE !!