“A book is the only place in which you can examine a fragile thought without breaking it, or to explore an explosive idea without fear it will go off in your face. It is one of the few havens remaining where a mans mind can get both provocation and privacy”.
And it is the only hobby where you can consumer alcohol and it still makes, if not more sense!
Last Wednesday was the launch of the new Public House literary based cocktail menu. The menu consisted of experimental and kooky concoctions, which wouldn’t look out of place in Frankenstein’s laboratory, which is rather fitting seeing as each cocktail was based upon various literary books and characters.
With various spirits and flavours on the menu including gin, rum and absinthe, each cocktail offered a unique blend of indulgence, temptation and linguistics, which was emphasised within the written descriptions, which like many classic and untimely books, lead the drinker on a journey where the destination was most certainly their own interpretation of Wonderland.
As a writer with an immense appreciation for the written word and alcohol, the two together could not have been more appealing (until I heard about the Liquid Book Club, which is an entirely different story) and I was not disappointed. As I walked into the candle lit, gothic themed venue of Public House I couldn’t think of a more appropriately themed setting for Charles Dickens as well as other novels that came to mind. The first sight that I was greeted with was an ironic image. A woman hidden away in the corner by the window lost in a book – and I quietly imagined the immortal silhouettes of Lewis Carroll or Oscar Wilde skulking in a similar corner as they write their next masterpiece unaware of the influence that they will still carry in the 21st century.
“A violet in the meadow grew, that no one saw, that no one knew.”
Public House was bustling around seven, when the free drinks began to flow. At our table, The Violet, an absinthe-based cocktail was the chosen poison. With the drinks free and the conversation flowing, the event was certainly proving a successful one.
This is the part of the story when the adversary appears and chaos reigns. In Public House, the said adversary took the form of more alcohol. But as this was the entire point of the launch – people had come for the free drinks and stayed for the cocktails – we stared our enemy in the eye and succumbed.
But alas, a happy ending was still to be had, the launch was a huge success with enjoyment enjoyed by all and with press coverage, local businesses and residents all entangled in a strange case of Jekyll and Hyde (Hyde being the crazed and hyperactive drunk of the family), Through the Door Promotions and Public House have proven that we know how Islington like their cocktails – free and full of alcohol!
