Smoke 'em if you got 'em
Let’s start this off with some good news: I’ve been working on a new book with my friend and fellow Multnomah Whiskey Library alum Brett Adams, and today we announced that it’s been picked up by Chronicle. This year hasn’t gone as planned for either of us, with our ordinary work getting blown up by coronavirus and the shutdown of the hospitality industry, so we’re grateful that this opportunity has come together. The working title is The Modern Home Bar, though that will likely change. It’s all about making drinks at home and stocking your home bar with maximum versatility in mind. It’s still quite a way off from publication, but if you like making cocktails, I think you’re going to enjoy it. (And if you have favorite cocktails that you think we should include, please send them my way!)
Nicotine and COVID-19
My latest piece for Slate takes a look at some surprising data regarding smoking and COVID-19. Most people reasonably expected smokers to fare worse with the disease, and indeed many news outlets reported as fact that smokers and vapers are at higher risk. Yet smokers are turning out to be underrepresented among cases to an extent that researchers are taking seriously the idea that nicotine may play some protective role. It could do this by interacting with the ACE-2 receptor to reduce rates of infection, or perhaps by modulating the extreme immune responses that occur in many of the worst cases. In addition to my article, check out this new research paper exploring the latter hypothesis, as well as this Atlantic article explaining the immunological aspects of the disease. And lastly, Helen Redmond accurately diagnoses the zealotry of the contemporary anti-smoking movement as it takes advantage of the pandemic to pursue its political aims.
Other COVID links
Could existing vaccines for other diseases provide at least partial protection for COVID? It’s an intriguing and controversial idea, but would be good news if true.
Profile of John Ioannidis, virus skeptic. (Not an endorsement of his views, but worth reading.)
Nathanael Johnson explains why the virus may lead to shortages in the supply chain for meat, though likely not to shortages of food in general.
Timothy Lee explains why the virus is good for the delivery robot business and chases down a robot carrying his hamburger.
What will this feel like when it’s over? Slate collects stories from people who lived through previous epidemics.
Other recommended reading
Liliana Segura writes an obituary for Jerry Givens, former state executioner turned death penalty abolitionist.
Bryan Caplan calls bullshit on state capacity.
Matt Welch interviews Justin Amash, now Libertarian candidate for president and the first Libertarian in Congress. Consider me skeptical that the presidential run is a wise decision.
The Villager and the F-18. Wildly speculative and fun to read, though I suspect the truth is more mundane.
Social distancing
To listen: Lucinda Williams’ new album Good Souls Better Angels is out this week, and on early listening I think it’s one of her best in years. She talks to the Guardian about what inspired it. Williams is known for finding beauty in the most flawed and fucked up of characters, so you know whoever inspired “Man Without a Soul” must be a complete lowlife; the targeting isn’t subtle, but it is satisfying.
To wear: I’ve been getting by with makeshift masks, but since we’re likely stuck with them for a while, I’ve been looking for some I wouldn’t mind putting on more regularly. Grayers has come out with some made from their shirt fabrics that look like they’re worth considering. Kiriko in Portland is also making masks in Japanese prints, though they sell out quickly.
To drink: The legendary Pegu Club in New York announced that they’re closing permanently this week. Robert Simonson fondly remembers its place in contemporary cocktail history here. As a sign of how much things have changed in the cocktail renaissance, I remember visiting the Pegu Club back around 2007 and being amazed that they had orange bitters, then a near obtainable cocktail ingredient. Even better, the bartender sold me a bottle, which I eagerly took home to DC. Now you can get them at any Whole Foods. In honor of the Pegu Club, you should of course drinks its namesake cocktail, which aptly calls for orange bitters. I like mine a little tart and bracing, with these specs:
1 3/4 oz gin
3/4 oz orange liqueur
1/2 oz lime juice
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 dash orange bitters
Shake and serve up in a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lime peel if you feel like it.