We were all taught from school that poets and writers bring us “reasonable, kind, eternal”. However, all of them were first of all people and nothing human was alien to them. And many of them loved alcohol.
What is even Yesenin worth with his revelry throughout Moscow … I thought, do they drink because they are famous or in order to become them? What if they didn’t drink alcohol at all? Edgar Allan Poe saw his sinister crow in a drunken delirium, or did he try to hide from him at the bottom of a glass?
cocktail lovers
Scott Fitzgerald was born in 1896. In 1920, he became famous for his work This Side of Paradise.
As soon as he became famous, he had money and, intoxicated with success, he began to attend many parties, where his constant companion was a whiskey and soda cocktail. For this, 40 ml of whiskey, absolutely any, but Fitzgerald preferred expensive, mixed with soda and plenty of ice.
John Steinbeck was born in 1902 and lived for 66 years, most of which he drank alcohol.
The only time he visited Russia, then still the Soviet Union, he was distinguished by the fact that he was found among Russian alcoholics in the gateway without documents and means of subsistence.
However, in decent establishments, I preferred the RoseJack cocktail (Rose Jack). This cocktail is prepared not on the basis of the famous JackDaniels whiskey (Jack Daniels), but on the basis of Calvados mixed with lemon juice and a drop of grenadine syrup or Campari liqueur (Campari).
Edgar Allan Poe, born in 1809, truly bears the title of the most lost alcoholic of all time among writers, because from his youth he drank everything that had at least some strength. He was a frequent visitor to psychiatric hospitals, where he was treated for addiction and delirium tremens. Lived only 40 years.
Egg Nog was considered a favorite cocktail, which can be attributed more to warming New Year’s cocktails than to alcoholic beverages.
Its recipe is very simple:
- 150 ml low-fat cream;
- 150 ml of rum;
- 1 egg;
- a pinch of cinnamon;
- 20 gram of sugar;
- vanilla pod.
All ingredients, except vanilla, should be mixed in a blender until smooth, garnish with whipped cream, put a vanilla pod next to it.
Ernest Hemingway, born in 1899, is said to be a rum drinker. It was because of him that the Mojito cocktail was invented. Only in the case of Hemingway, it looked like this: 150 ml of light rum was mixed with ice, a little lime juice, mint was added, and that’s it.
There was no talk of any soda. The cocktail turned out to be very strong and Ernest drank it a lot, claiming that this is how he can quench his thirst in the heat.
Vodka and its admirers
An alcoholic drink with a 40 degree strength, which ruined many thin writers’ souls.
Sergei Yesenin, in his own words, was one of those who preferred vodka over food. She let his talent unfold. If he did not like to drink and various places of entertainment, then his wonderful works would not be in Russian literature.
However, it is believed that one of the causes of his death was vodka. And how much more could the poet have written…
Sergei Dovlatov, born in 1941, also could not imagine life without this drink. In his writings, those who drank alcohol were exceptionally polite and beautiful people, and those who were against vodka were described as evil and low personalities.
In adulthood, Dovlatov was able to cope with his addiction and lived to be 49 years old.
Noble calvados
This drink with notes of taste of apples and oak barrels was preferred by many writers.
For example, Erich Maria Remarque, born in 1898 and lived for 72 years, preferred to drink Calvados and considered it to be something like a medicine, which, in his opinion, gave a sedative and sometimes analgesic effect.
He literally bowed before this drink, describing it in almost every work, but in adulthood he was remorseful and he regretted that he had spent so much time of his life in a binge.
Jack London died at the age of 40, committing suicide because he was trying to cope with all the fame that fell on him by the age of 37. He preferred noble drinks, for example, Calvados, but in large quantities.
He could not drown out his feelings and desires to be an ordinary person with alcohol.
Beer lovers
In fact, the famous writer Charles Bukowski drank almost all alcoholic drinks that had at least some strength, but washed them down exclusively with beer. In general, he drank beer instead of water and preferred light varieties. He died of leukemia in 1994. He was 74 years old.
The great creator of horror films and thrillers Stephen King was not averse to coming to work with a pack of beer in an embrace to create a “working atmosphere”. Maybe this is the secret of his talented compositions – to be in constant light alcohol intoxication, I don’t know. But he can be called a great writer of our time, whose work has not changed after he stopped drinking.
Excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to your health. Take care of yourself!
Thus, I realized that although alcohol gave someone inspiration, strength or the ability to forget, it still led to bad consequences for those who abused it. Therefore, rather, writers drank from the fact that they were famous. What do you think?