Will-Weber - Drinking with the Democrats: the Party Animals History of Liberal Libations

C HEERS! You hold in your hands the best way to celebrate the history of our great nation, with rich stories of White House drinking and a bevy of cocktail recipes to boot! So get out your cocktail shaker, stock up on your best mixers, and prepare to bend an elbow in honor of your favorite Democrats and their drinks.

Author Mark Will-Weber has plumbed the archives for the best stories about presidential drinking. He has unearthed hundreds of anecdotes, fun facts, and legends covering more than two and a quarter centuries.

I hope you enjoy perusing this book to learn about the original party animals. Inside, youll discover Andrew Jacksons hillbilly supporters trashing the Executive Mansion, youll read about which Democrats used the sauce to buy votes, and youll be shocked to find out how LBJ recklessly drinking and driving around his sprawling Texas ranch.

And for each president, a cocktail recipe is provided so you can play along at home. Some of the recipes are that presidents actual favorite cocktail, and others are contrivances based on that presidents life or background. Sure, some could be called a bit of a stretch, but theyre all legitimate cocktails that you might like to give a shake.

We tried to keep it fun, so go ahead and read about the tippling POTUSes, and mix up a cocktail or two to shake things up. And while Democrats may only show moderation during the general election campaign, we recommend that you always drink in moderation.

Alex Novak

Publisher

Regnery History

T HIS BOOK is called Drinking with the Democrats. But not all of the presidents covered herein were actually Democrats. We didnt want to leave out some of the greatest and best-known early presidents; so, after careful thought, so we took liberties and drafted some of those early presidents into the Democratic ranks. Included as Democrats for the purposes of this book are Thomas Jefferson, who was a Democratic-Republican, as were James Madison, James Monroe, and John Quincy Adams. While it could be argued that Adams could easily be grouped with his father in the Republican camp, we decided to keep all the Democratic-Republicans together. Sometimes party lines are thicker than blood. The companion to this edition is called Drinking with the Republicans. In that book, we included the independent George Washington, along with Federalist John Adams, and Whigs Harrison, Tyler, Taylor, and Fillmore all with the Republicans.

1801 1809

I AM NOW IN THE LAND OF CORN, WINE, OIL AND SUNSHINE. WHAT MORE CAN A MAN ASK OF HEAVEN?

Thomas Jefferson

FOUNDING FATHER OF WINE

H E DRAFTED THE Declaration of Independence, oversaw the Louisiana Purchasewhich more than doubled the size of the countryand unleashed the fury of the U.S. Navy against the Barbary Coast pirates. But for connoisseurs of fine vintages, Thomas Jefferson will always be regarded as the First Father of Wine in the United States.

That is not to suggest that there wasnt wine present in America long before Jefferson; wine arrived virtually with the first Europeans. Jefferson, however, knew that truly wonderful winelike art, literature, or architecturecould be something splendid and exhilarating. The Sage of Monticello had not used his time in France (17841788) solely in diplomatic toil. Always keen to pursue both his intellectual and sensual interests, Jefferson went to walk about for several weeks in southern France and the Italian Piedmont in 1787. He learned firsthand about European wine culturefrom vine to wine cellar. By the time he returned to the States, Jeffersons wine expertise was quite likely second to none among his countrymen.

Jeffersons love of the best wines and his urge to share his bottles with his friends and guests greatly contributed to his precarious financial situation. Some years he spent thousands of dollars on wine alone. By the time of his death on July 4, 1826 (just hours before his former foe John Adams died in Massachusetts), the third president of the United States was on the brink of bankruptcy.