Weekly Sip: Bartender & A Beer Cocktail
Introducing Tommy, your new favorite drink slinger.
Welcome to The Oasis, a collection of poetry tied to a dubious little dive bar in the midwest. Enjoy song recommendations, drink recipes, and poems - all pairing together less like a fine wine with Brie and more like a cheap shot of bourbon with stale peanuts. Cheers!
*The Oasis will be closed next weekend, keep an eye out for the newest sip on Friday, March 30*
Song recommendation: “Burden in My Hand” - Soundgarden
Keeping glasses full at The Oasis since the beginning, Tommy has been silently slinging drinks and breaking hearts in the background of nearly all the poems. I couldn’t think of a more perfect voice to cry out from the juke box than Chris Cornell’s to celebrate his official entrance.
Drink pairing: Ruby Hearts Beer Cocktail
In this week’s sip I’m raising a glass to free verse poetry, long country highways, and bartenders who are equal parts swagger and soul. Here’s to Tommy’s “Drive to the Dive” (and a bonus poem) that pairs perfectly with this tasty beer cocktail. Ruby Hearts:
1.5 oz. mezcal
1/2 oz. Campari
1/2 oz. cinnamon liqueur
1/2 oz. fresh lime juice
4 oz. Bell’s Two Hearted IPA
Pour over ice, stir, garnish with cinnamon stick and enjoy
Tommy’s Drive to the Dive
Out the house, the screen door
smacks. Into the Nova he rises in bursts,
skin scalded on black vinyl.
Backing down the drive,
gravel pops, crunches. Onto 66,
steam rises from the two lane highway.
Churches; picket fences
Churches; picket fences
Hay bales curl tight
upon waves of grain. Windmills
turn proud against a blue sky.
A combine works, sour
notes carry on the breeze.
He reaches, turns up Patsy Cline.
Cornstalks; trenches
Cornstalks; trenches
66 breaks, scenery blends
from country to town. He slows
on Main, parks in the alley.
Tying a bandanna over black ringlets,
he steps in the back door, walks behind the bar,
ready to assist in the escape from
Cornstalks; trenches
Churches; picket fences
Who’s Next?
Girls clamor, aching for a look
from a small town legend,
known for leaving ladies shook
His lack of a lady, deemed malicious;
dimples and swagger
beyond delicious
Desires high, hands on hips
Pushing up mama’s gold,
they lick their lips
The only way to truly capture the bartender’s love?
Raise your hand and shake a twenty high above.
What a way you have with words!