Damn right your dad drank it

There is something to be said for drinking straight alcohol. Not mixed, not diluted, just poured in a glass –maybe over ice– and drank the way God intended. STRAIGHT UP. Your father never drank anything called an “appletini”, and he damn sure didn’t raise you that way. Did you know that 40-50 years ago, 80% of all alcohol sales were whiskey? ALL sales of alcohol, kicking vodka and rum and beer straight in the plums (By the way, I wish I remembered the source I have on that, but…surprise surprise, I was soused and can’t find the link. Most likely The Modern Drunkard, but I can’t be sure). Either way, you can be damn sure that your Grandfather wasn’t sipping on a Purple Hooter when he met your Grandmother, and your father didn’t sneak sips of Razzmatazz Berrysplash out of his father’s stash before refilling the bottles with water. Chances are, your Grandfather doesn’t even know what a blueberry is, and your pops still has a hard time trusting them in anything other than pancakes. They still make him feel a little….well, funny.

I say all that to say this: I appreciate Canadian Club’s current marketing campaign, known generally as “Damn Right Your Dad Drank It”. They’re selling whiskey the right way, by showing you that it was not just a drink, but the drink of the time. It was what your Dad drank when he was your age, unmuddled by all the garbage mixes and additives we have today. That man who created you didn’t play around, he drank, and he drank the pure, the straight up, the stuff. And guess what? He had quite a bit of fun and lived his life to the fullest because of it.

So in this holiday season, after all the presents have been opened and the turkey has been devoured and the womenfolk have gone to bed, pour a glass for you and your old man. Doesn’t matter what it is, but take that time to share a quality drink with the (theoretically) quality man who put you on this earth. You don’t have to talk, don’t have to have the best relationship…but you should take the time to sit and share a drink with the man who put you where you are today. Get to know him. At least spend the time drinking one drink with the man, if only to understand the world he grew up in, and the time he’s spent on this earth. If nothing else, he probably knows how to drink better than you do, and it’s worth it to learn a thing or two about this life.