Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Sky-Captain holding the booty! Notice an almost-empty Reposado, a Blanco taking some damage, and a fly-boy with a funny look in his eye. Coincidence? Never!
I’m just a regular Joe. An above average fellow, who happens to live in Mexico, happens to be a raging alcoholic, happens to have the means and ways to not end up under a bridge, and spends too much time at his computer. With a drink in hand. I started writing about drinking some time ago, and here we are today. Recently others have started reading my ramblings, and luckily for me, some of these “others” own Tequila companies, are awesome people, and want to share their great Tequila with others like me. One of these such people is Mario Igartua from Aeroplano Tequila, who sent me a few bottles of his new product. Produced and bottled in Mexico, Aeroplano is a great Tequila to share with friends over a relaxing afternoon . I personally drank most the Reposado above camping in the forest around Mascota here in Mexico with my gang, and it went down easy. Great with rare meat, lots of beer, and way too many scorpions at our feet (and on my son’s Balls!) it was a great shooter, solid sipper, and wonderful for mixing. Aeroplano was enjoyable on all fronts. Not too complex, its simple hints of agave and vanilla worked well with my mind set and my never-subsiding thirst! Thanks Mario for sharing your bottles - A great solid Tequila, Aeroplano rocks.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
SO THIRSTY…
Ok. I went 4 days of true abstinence from Alcohol. Oh sweet Alcohol - just talking about it makes me want a drink! Why stray? It started with a cheat discussed earlier, then friends over the next night which led to some wine, Tequila, good times. Then, a great weekend! Lots of free time with my lovely wife, which demands good wine… I tried to start the week off slower, and slow it went, but it seemed the nights always ended wet. Same with tonight. Now, its just a fight to eat better, and drink minimally for 4 more nights, and then we are off to California. Yeah, like Ill be sober there. Riiiiiight. Can’t wait!
Anyway, slowing down for a few days ain’t bad. It just ain’t no life.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
I cheated.
This morning I had too much free time on my hands, and too much time alone (the wife and boy went to the flea market in a neighboring town). I kept thinking how I hadn’t drank in 3 days, how proud I was, how great I am (I am pretty great…), and that thought process became a thought train, and that train led me down the wrong tracks. At approximately 10:55am I went to the freezer, pulled out my trusty bottle of Gibson’s Gin, and poured a deep glass, which I promptly drank. I think this all came from a place of wondering how a drink would feel after 3 days of not drinking. Mind you, regular people go 3 days without drinking all the time, but you MUST remember, I am not “regular people“. I am special, in many ways, and my drinking is just one way, but the one we are currently discussing. Anyway, this experiment in alcoholism has lots of funny discoveries.
What did it feel like to take this drink? It felt like cheating….and cheating feels GOOD.
There. Got that out of my system. I will work hard to not make this a slippery slope.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
I’m fucking BORED.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
That’s Booze-FAST, not fest. This is not a party, but a fairly fun, and hopefully successful experiment in Alcoholism. Why? Why not! I know I am pretty awesome at drinking, but not-drinking? Not so good. Honestly, I wouldn’t know… the last time I tried to take a break from drinking, it lasted an entire 2.75 days, so it’s been a long time since I took, say, 1 week off…if not two! I am pretty stoked, as any good drinker knows the all-day plan I adhere to can really bloat you out, slow you down, and often take the fun out of that first drink of the day (since it tends to be before you are barely awake!) I like feeling “different” from my drink, so its gonna be fun to feel different because of not-my-drink! Since I made it through morning one without the shakes, shimmies, or any other negative, all is going swimmingly. Probably helped to start the day with a great surf with my pal Nick, kept busy all day, and ate really well thanks to my awesome wife Andrea, who is on board for this experiment in Horror.
All-right, let’s get on with the night. Stay tuned!
“On the Wagon” - well, that sounds good to me!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
I love old things. My entire life, I have been a collector of things now deemed “vintage”. It started with old Comics at a ripe old age of 5, with my dad buying me them at flea markets when we first immigrated to the U.S. - an obsession I carry on to this day. I always loved classic rock, jazz, etc and often have stated that I was “born too late“. As a young adult my obsession with the 60’s and that era’s culture dominated my brain. I love old magazines, as I have always seen them a portal to the past, a glimpse to how another generation lived, loved, and liquored up. I have been collecting old ads in various forms of the years, and have pulled together some pretty awesome stuff. I must credit lots of other collectors who’s websites have inspired my collecting and tickled my imagination. Seeing as how I am on a recent kick of digging up old ads, You will be seeing lots more posted on the site in the months to come. They may not all be booze-related, but they will all be about some obsession from my past, present or future. Enjoy our little liquored up time-travel!
Starting with this little gem…
The TRAV-L-BAR 737! How great to have lived in an era where it was hip to carry around a second suitcase just for drinking! And it seems to me the gals loved it! After doing some research, I found that you can buy a modern version by the same company here. I have something similar to this which I also bought at a flea-market like many of my collectibles and shelf-fillers. Mine is probably 45 years old, and made by Londonaire Portable Pubs and is quite fancy. Bring your booze with ya (just don’t drink and drive kids!!)
cheers!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
To mis-quote Ron Burgundy, “ I love Gin. Ginny, Gin, Gin. Here it goes down, down into my belly…” . I love Gin. I am drinking it as I poorly type these honest words to screen, and it will get me through the night. I totally get why there were Gin Joints back in the 1920’s. On January 16th, 1920 the 18th Amendment was passed, prohibiting alcohol in the United States of America. The Prohibition. No drinking. No FUN. A very dark time for my people. Funny enough, my people still wanted to drink. Locked doors were the welcome signs of popular saloons, taverns and clubs everywhere a drinker went to feed the need. Prez Hoover called prohibition “a great social and economic experiment, noble in motive.” Still, never before in the old U.S. of A. had law been so blatantly violated and birthed so many bad people. Instead of putting an end to the use, sales and production of alcohol, it served as a fire-start, kick-starting need, supply and demand. The common man wanted even more of the “devil’s candy”. The fact that you couldn’t drink it in public became the reason and the birthright of the “Speak-easy” - a hideaway for all drinkers, drunks, and would be general nee’r do wells. A “Gin Joint” was the heroin den of the 20’s. Since it was so secret and easy to walk between buildings in New York city and get a glass of alcohol, often Gin, society became more inundated with alcoholics, and places to hide and drink became more prevalent.
I digress! History, bah! What I was talking about is Gin and a place to drink it. 1 Gin Martini will really get you going, feeling good, and glad about where you stand. 2 Gin Martinis will make your night. 3 Gin Martinis will make your night even better, but may ruin someone else night. To mis-quote the Transplants, “you better hope you miss me if you see me drinking Ginny” . Anyhoo….I love Gin, and what this entire rant is about is Gin…and my place to drink it. My speak-easy. I was thinking lately that there is only one place in my life where I can drink-easy, speak-easy, and not-surprisingly, where everybody knows my name. It’s my awesome home. Where all the other drunks are super awesome and old-timers, the bottles are of my choosing, and life is good. My Speak-easy. Cheers.
I drink Gibson’s (when on a budget), and the bottle looks just like this awesome Gordon’s bottle in this too-cool vintage ad I love, but cost $5 a bottle at Wal-mart Mexico.Whatever gets you through the night I always say… (+ day, morning, breakfast, dinner, etc…) - Speak-easy my drunk friends!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
One of my fave vintage Cuervo ads. Sexy!!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Just when I was looking for something to get me up in the morning.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Humo en los ojos…cuando te fuiste…
Huno en los ojos…cuando volviste…
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Dr Lakra (Jeronimo Lopez Ramirez, born 1972, Mexico) is an artist and tattooist based in Oaxaca Mexico. Apart from tattooing, his art involves embellishing images and other found objects - for instance, dolls, old medical illustrations, and pictures in 1950s Mexican magazines - with macabre or tattoo-style designs. He makes me very happy.
This has nothing to do with drinking, but everthing to do with what you look at when you have been drinking.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Tequila and a beautiful Woman. These are a few of my favorite things…
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
So….the bullet “salt” shaker, huh? I used to have something similar, but it sure as hell wasn’t for salt… Good God, look at that guys face! That’s some damn good salt.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
I love Vodka and Orange Juice as well - always very helpful during the best of times, and the worst of times. Glad you liked it Tim!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Best Tequila model ever! My drinking partner Andrea holding the goods.
As much as I have been known to enjoy flavored spirits, most are hit or miss, often filling the bottle with so many sugary-gooey additions that they end up making it more candy than an elegant drink. I have had some great infused Vodkas that really hit the mark (look for an upcoming review of Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka, my most recent fave flavored Vodka…) - a rose infused Martini at a little hole in the wall in San Francisco called “Olive” will always come up as one of my faves - the rose literally snuck up on you quietly well after you have enjoyed the vodka flavor. Great stuff.
I have enjoyed one flavored Tequila, Hijos de Villa Licor de Tequila, which literally has a live pear growing in it when bottled. Pretty neat idea, and a fairly good tasting Tequila, a mezcal actually. A bit sweet, but overall, a decent sip. What it lacked was the elegance a good flavored spirit should have.
Gran Centenario has addressed all my concerns and wants in a flavored Tequila with their charming “Rosangel” Reposado. This elegant reposado is aged 2 months in Port barrels, and infused with Jamaica flower. Flavored liquors are often left for fruity drinks, while this Tequila is a true sipper, best served cold, straight and enjoyed slowly. The Jamaica shines through while never overpowering the Tequila, Gran Centenario being one of my favorite Reposados. You can always find a bottle on my shelf, and now you can always find a bottle in my freezer of the Rosangel. At a great price of $200 pesos here in Mexico at the local Mega (unlike the $50us price tag), this is a bargain and a treat at any party.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
From the “Death of a Bar” comes the rebirth of the “new Tequila cool”. My soul brother Mark Alberto Holt is on the move, kicking ass and taking names. First on his list is making his new web TV show, The Tequila Traveler. Here is the first episode, introducing you to our wandering Drinker, with a bit of brotherly love by your own friendly neighborhood Tequila Journalist (me!). Directed and Edited by the super awesome Darrin Polischuk , a Sayulita local and super talented artist. He also owns the Mango Tree Project here in Sayulita, a spot for all things happy art and clothing, so check him out. This is the first of many more episodes, look for them online and on the STJ. Next week we are going to shoot a cross-over event, The first ever Tequila Traveler and Sayulita Tequila Journal road-trip, as we hit bars around the Bay of Banderas (where Sayulita resides, and we live) and drinking all their Tequila! Good times, drunkenness and hilarity shall ensue. Tune in. For now, enjoy episode 1 of the Tequila Traveler, shot in and around Sayulita, Guadalajara, and in the Tequila mecca of….Tequila!
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Mark Alberto Holt, at the helm of the now lost at sea S.F.T.
Anyone who follows my demonic-scented alcoholic-fueled ramblings, knows that I have spent some time hanging out at a bar in Sayulita called the S.F.T. Tequila bar, owned, operated and spiritually guided by the one and only Mark Alberto Holt. Not only is Mark a stellar bar man, but he is my friend. Recently, he stopped hanging out behind the bar at the S.F.T. and moved onto to brighter shores. Him moving to the light left his old bar a darker place. I am a big believer that a Bar is more than wood, stools, bottles and glasses - it is purely made up of the souls of those that love and run it. In this case, the soul of the S.F.T. was Mark, and always will be. Anyone who has had the luck of wandering into the S.F.T. on some hot Sayulita night, and had the pleasure of having Mark behind the bar, in front of the bar, anywhere in the restaurant - treating you to his pure and honest soul, you immediately knew you would come back, for that alone. Miguel, the maniac behind the bar will always rock, that is for sure. I just can’t imagine the S.F.T. without it’s Jimador behind the wheel. Some bars just are the Bar owner, plain and simple. They thought it up, it is their dream become reality, and with that energy and love gone, it cannot easily live without them.
R.I.P. S.F.T… Mark, see you at the pool, on the waves, and at the next bar.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
My morning Drinking solution - the “Drained Dry Mary”
Fellow freaks, fiends and ne’er-do-wells! It’s been a while since we last exchanged words on the subject of keeping the soul wet, and the heart happy. Why have I been away so long? Well, as we end a busy high season here in Sayulita, the land of Tequila and Beers, the reality is that seasonal work can just kick your ass. The nice thing about the season is that eventually it will end, summer will come on strong, and the leisure class will rule again! Till then, I present to you my 2010 survival morning medicine, something I have dubbed the “Drained Dry Mary”.
You see, in my charmed life, there is little wrong with drinking from noon on. Quite the opposite, having a beer at noon (or earlier) is quite good form in Sayulita. You drive down the street first thing in the morning and find groups of locals having beers to kick off their day. Add a bit of Clamato, and its a regular breakfast! For me, as the season worked on my skull like being caught inside waves, I upped my drinking schedule as well as the potency of the drinks themselves. As much as I love Tequila, I would say the drink of this last season for me has been Vodka. Ahhhh, sweet sweet Vodka. A brand new lady, smooth, transparent, so tasteful yet without taste. I love her, my invisible lover. Hinting at past habits, a good Vodka shot is like a shot in the arm - hot, warm, and welcoming you in to take another….and another…and another? Good idea? Bad idea? Who fucking cares, work that out later, either in the back of a police car or apologizing to loved ones. It’s just part of the process.
Back to my Drained Dry Mary. No matter what your pride is around your drinking, sometimes when you pull the Vodka bottle out of the freezer before breakfast, you can’t help but look over your shoulder and see if anyone is watching the actions of a hunter up close. Even in a home as safe and understanding as mine (my wife fucking rocks!! Love you baby!), you can’t help but make sure you aren’t mistaken for a lost soul. Drinking a Bloody Mary at 9am is quite accepted all over the world. Even two is a casual and fun morning habit. Taking a couple Vodka shots before your coffee just seems like something a haunted head may do to ward off bad spirits (if not the shakes…). So one day, while laughing with my love, wife and drinking partner Andrea about my morning Vodka shots, I decided to name my drink. Sure, its a Vodka shot (or 2…), but with a fancy name, it’s a drink! Thus the “Drained Dry Mary” was born. Being a love of all things Vampire, I thought the fact that all the red is gone from the drink, made it seem like the blood was drained from the infamous Bloody Mary. There ya go. My “Legal” morning vice. Have one tomorrow morning. I guarantee it will start your day like no other.
Don’t judge me.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Mexico
Another awesome video shot by Grover and Scarlet from Taste Tequila.com, one of the coolest Tequila sites on the interWeb. These great folks are moving to Mexico next month, so naturally I am stoked to have them as neighbors soon, not to mention drinking partners!!
Grover and Scarlet wanted to know what we thought was the best Tequila to impress a Lady with. Y’know - a real sexy lady. Mine was simple, as I knew what had impressed Andrea (my sexy lady) one night at the S.F.T. - Cofrodia Reposado, a great, smooth Tequila, safely on a top shelf in the cage at the bar. This bottle not only looks fucking awesome, with it’s “Pyramid with legs” design, it tastes like all the care and love put into every bottle by this distiller. Luxurious and smooth. She really dug this bottle, and has never forgotten it. Mark thought Suave 35 Reposado had impressed the ladies hanging out at his bar, and he would know, pouring drinks to the drunk-happy of Sayulita every day! With that said, here are Mark Albert from the awesome S.F.T. Tequila Bar and I talking about what the best Tequilas to impress the ladies are.
2 fools walk behind a bar….
From behind the SFT Tequila Bar in Sayulita, Mexico, Mark Alberto Holt and Gabbi Villarrubia tell us their favorite tequilas for the ladies.
Posted by Gabbi "El Pulpo Negro" | Filed under Drinking partners, Mark Alberto Holt, Mexico, My Friends, My life, Sayulita, Tastings, events, tequila, the Sayulita Tequila Journal
Your friendly neighborhood self-destructive author, about to bust open his new bottle of Don Fernando T.K.O. - 40th Birthday, October 09
Don Fernando’s TKO Plata 100 x 100 is a unique tequila, and I don’t just mean that the bottle is a bright red glass boxing glove. Honestly, at first glance, this bottle comes across as a gimick, something to sell Americans, just a joke, really. Then you find out that it’s in the Don Fernando family of Tequila, and that’s no joke - I love the shit they put out. So, when your good buddy, Mark Alberto Holt, of the S.F.T. Tequila bar in Sayulita, gives you a bottle of the stuff for your 40th birthday - well, shit, you drink it with your friends and do some boxing!
All puns intended, this Tequila packs a real punch - Weighing in at 100 proof,and 100% Agave, it stays true to it’s name, and makes it smoother than one would expect - yet strong as a motherfucker till the last round. That birthday night with the gang, and the nights since when I have enjoyed this bottle, all who imbibed talked of enjoying heavy hints of of agave and Cinnamon, with “Red Hots” coming to mind on every sip. Was this just because the bottle was bright red? Quien sabe, but no matter what you tripped on while you drank it, I loved this Tequila…it officially comes with great if not fuzzy memories of an awesome buzz, great tastes, and fun times with my loved ones. Awesome.
