Red, White and Booze

No matter your partisan leanings, the 2012 election cycle—nasty, costly and seemingly interminable—probably makes you want to just give up and have a drink. Fortunately, you can. The state law banning drinking on Election Day has been defunct for more than a decade, and at least one local bar is taking advantage of that: the Inn of the Anasazi, which will offer politically themed drinks on Election Day—Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Here at SFR, we're sticklers for a good seasonal drink, and political hunting season is no different. We're not saying get sloshed before going out to vote (though it might give Roseanne a better chance), but if you're looking to unwind post-voting, the folks at the Anasazi have you covered.

After some "happy accidents and a lot of mistakes," Anasazi mixologist James Reis came up with two signature drinks sure to put the inaugural in your ball: the Blue Oahu, in honor of President Obama's birthplace; and the ruby-red Michigan Cherry—a nod to Romneyland's state fruit.

"It was fun coming up with them," Reis says, explaining that he aimed to make both drinks colorful and delicious "instead of having an agenda."

Sales and Marketing Director Beth Allen says the hotel will screen live election coverage in its library and, based on sales that night, she'll be conducting "a straw poll on who's ordering what."

So how do they stack up? SFR's resident lushes face off in our first-ever libation nation debate.

Blue Oahu
Ask Reis what it's composed of and he'll sharply answer: "rum, some more rum…and then there's rum." The fizzy Blue Oahu (or Indigo Indonesian, for you birthers out there) is a delightfully refreshing vacation in your mouth and the closest you can get to chugging one of those fancy gel candles they sell at Walgreens. The linger of sweet coconut rum hits your taste buds like a bayonet, while the punch of Blue Curaçao hypnotizes you and whispers,  "Cirrhosis? That's covered by Obamacare," lovingly in your ear. The bottom line: While my opponent will try to convince you otherwise with her scare tactics of the [unfounded] risks of pooping blue, nothing says Election Day triumph like waking up the next day in a haze thinking you either ate or were raped by a Smurf. Try legally redefining that. (EL)

Michigan Cherry
Look, you and I both know there's no need to go jumping on every bandwagon that happens to drive by (or over) the unwitting 47 percent of Americans who are suckers. There's a reason they call them classics, and the Michigan Cherry—"a riff on a Manhattan," Reis says—is as classically American as apple pie and Reaganomics. Sure, Reis has added a few twists to keep us interested—apple brandy, Cherry Heering and the deliciously almondy Crème de Noyaux—but why overhaul health care when you could just get rid of all those freeloading immigrants? The bottom line: If the nation ain't broke (which, ahem, it is), don't bankrupt it by raising taxes and imposing job-killing regulations. Stick with the basics—booze, cherries and capitalism. And no, I can't offer any more specifics. (AS)

Santa Fe Reporter