The Whiskey Standard

Posted on April 17, 2010 | By TheEnabler | 1 Comment

In writing and thinking about these blog posts, I ponder what went into making me a liquorlocust, as it were.  There are many things and as time goes by I will try and share some of  my formative years.

One thing that comes to mind is playing in my Grandmother’s house when I was a kid.  There was a spare bedroom in the basement that us kids played in a lot to get out of the adult’s hair.  In the closet, there were always three cases, full, of Old Crow bourbon.  My grandmother was certainly a woman who would enjoy a drink, but she did not drink all that much to my knowledge.  At the time I did not think much of it, the bourbon was just something that was in the closet, just like old, out of date clothes and knick-knacks.

As I got older, though, I kind of wondered about it.  As far as I could tell, it never varied, there were always three cases.  Finally, asking the reason, it was all made clear to me.  My Grandmother, it should be said, lived through the Depression as an adult, raising children. (She also lived through Prohibition as an adult for that matter)  And that, as for most people, was an experience that made a lasting impression on her.

One impression was that you could count on whiskey.  It did not go bad. If you wanted, you could drink it.  But more importantly you could always spend it.  In some ways, it was better than money.  It was inflation proof.  It did not suffer from devaluation or inflation.  There were always people who would trade you for whiskey.  They would fix your car, paint your house, doctors would look at your kids, people would sell you food, all for that wonderful commodity-whiskey.  So, the Old Crow in the basement was just another example of frugality and preparation by a generation who learned that it was important.  Kind of like having money in a coffee can in the pantry, Grandma always had whiskey in the basement to pay for things if that became necessary.  I took this lesson to heart.  My Grandma instilled in me the idea that whiskey is as good as gold – perhaps better if you are thirsty or snakebit.

As to why Old Crow, I never learned.  This was not her bourbon of choice, although she did drink it.  But, for whatever reason, this was the whiskey she used for her emergency savings plan.  Thanks for the lesson, Grandma.

Note: Thinking about this post, I started thinking about the exchange rate. How many bottles of whiskey to fix a car or remove an appendix? Looking at it closely, I realize that there is probably not a fixed rate, but the currency fluctuates. After all, if that Doctor really wants a drink, then the value of the whiskey goes up. If he is some untrustworthy teetotaler, it goes down, although he could still trade it from something else. How many shots of whiskey to the Euro? How much would I give for a whiskey (not as much right now as I would this evening, that is for sure)?

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