drinking and other drugs: tasting notes

a guest essay by Eliza Dumais + a summer kick off party

As I was starting to concept the second print volume of Love & Other Rugs, I asked journalist Eliza Dumais (also, my editor and best friend) to write an essay about falling in love in New York.

We both happen to have an affinity for making out with boys under the dim light of a local wine bar. Her the wine writer, me the wine drinker, have also found ourselves with standing appointments, glass of something sparkling in hand, to recount said rendezvous. And thus, Drinking and other Drugs was born, dedicated to indulgence, hedonism, and being at least 1 sheet (if not 2 or 3) to the wind. She’s one of my favorite writers so please enjoy her essay below.

AND if this little treat wasn’t enough, we’ll be toasting summer and selling merch next weekend with SuperVinoBros at Rude Mouth. RSVP here.

xLily & Eliza

drinking and other drugs

If falling in love had a taste, it would be mineral; rusted. Something metallic — shrill, even. It would have sharp edges and high acid. The kind of astringence meant to blow off once a bottle has opened up a bit.

The poetics of drinking are hard to miss — a glass of wine to “take the edge off,” sand you down, polish you, as if by water. Three sheets to certain winds, a custom lubricant for the stubborn joints of social interaction. And I’ll admit: I justify quite a number of things on the basis of poetry.

Photography by Meghan McNeer. Location: Frog Wine Bar.

For me, however, drinking is not merely literary — it’s my New York (for better or for worse). In the practical sense, it’s a career in wine, countless journalistic plot points, a partner who cooks for a living (not boyfriend, never boyfriend, typing the word makes me feel endlessly juvenile). More importantly, though, it’s my geography: A sensory schema around which I plot my city.

I’ll explain: When I first kissed the man I’ll move in with next month, we drank Riesling from Alsace. We were in Fort Greene outside of a dive bar called Alibi — and, now, that stretch of sidewalk will always taste like Riesling and Listerine to me.

Before we dated — which is to say, before he existed in my New York — I was seeing a man with a mustache and a media career. We’d been sleeping together for weeks, and I often forgot about him entirely when I left his room until his name reappeared on my phone screen. The last time I visited his Bed Stuy apartment, I gave him a blow job and we drank the beach-read-equivalent of Austrian natural wine. The bottle had a screw cap — and now, Halsey tastes like cum and Meinklang.

In the latter part of the pandemic — when restrictions were near-diluted and social interaction was permissible with a caveat, I met up with an ex in Prospect Park. We’d dated for four years, which is to say several centuries, before ending things in the midst of the aforementioned global crisis. It was the first time we’d seen each other since the last time we’d seen each other, and we drank chilled gamay from Beaujolais out of paper coffee cups. I told him I probably still loved him but who could really say, before throwing up in a public trash can. For a while, that’s what I Love You tasted like.

Several months ago, when I finally said it again, meant it again, it was in a restaurant in SoHo. We had mouths full of Jura chardonnay and he’d said it first — though, only because he happened to get there faster. Afterwards, we got matching tattoos at the only walk-in shop Google Maps said stayed open until midnight: Two fish skeletons I’d sketched on the restaurant menu while we waited for the check. Now, Mott street tastes like I love you, and I love you tastes like chardonnay.

Illustration by Hemza Hasyousif

1. Grüner Veltliner by Meinklang: I maintain: The beach read of natural wines. A budget friendly Austrian bottle with a screw-top. It’s good to be un-precious, sometimes.

2. Schlossberg Riesling by Christian Binner: A zero/zero aromatic-as-hell wine from Alsace with a punchy acid backbone. Tastes LOUD, if you will.

3. Cuvée du Chaos by Yann Bertrand: I recently declared that chilled reds were over and I’m sorry (The Internet prefers when you speak in absolutes). This one’s a light, silky red (that can be served at any temperature you see fit). A good option for the I-don’t-like-red people.

4. Les Gaudrettes by Tony Bornard: On occasion, drinking The Jura feels a bit like being consensually punched in the throat. In a nice way. This one’s mineral-rich and citrus-y.

best in glass

If you are looking for a wine glass..

1. Zalto Denkart Universal Glass: Ahhhh the Zalto: the most prized and breakable of Austrian glassware. Perfect, fleeting, unforgettable.

2. Anthropologie Morgan Wine Glasses: Versatile! Colorful! Sturdy! Easy to replace!

3. Gohar World Patrician Wine Glass: Shaped like overturned bells, these Laila Gohar glasses are just the right amount of too big, and they scream WE HAVE COMPANY.

4. Sophie Lou Jacobsen Tulip Wine Glasses: In other Georgia O’Keeffe-inspired glassware, these are, well, tulip-like…though not in an obnoxious, overly effeminate (yonic) way.

5. La Double J Murano Flutes: The thing about Champagne is that none of us can afford it anymore what with the tariffs and all. But if we could, we’d be drinking it out of these perfect little statement flutes.

6. Big Night Martini Glasses: Sometimes, you’ve tasted so much wine, it all becomes meaningless (life, liberty, viticulture, etc). That’s when you pivot to martinis.

bottle service

Accessories for drinking…

1. Coming Soon Placeholder Coasters: Because there’s nothing more practical than a coaster as delicate and precious as your glassware, itself.

2. Gohar World Lace & Pearl Coast Set: More impractical, yet! But we’re here aspirationally, ok? Name one girl who DOESN’T want an $150 doily.

3. Katie Kime Lucite Ice Bucket: You may say “Eliza, what on earth do I need an ice bucket for?” But hear me out: Come park picnic season, you’ll understand. Even bad wine can be good wine if it’s cold enough!

4. Rocco Smart Beverage Fridge: I’ll admit: I, personally, do not own a wine fridge. I am a freelance writer and thus, financially relegated to regular, included-with-the-apartment-fridge territory. That said, when I win the lottery, I will purchase this beverage fridge instantly.

5. Ralph Lauren Duke Bar Cart: Speaking of things I can’t afford: Here’s an extremely chic $18,000 bar cart that I would not pay $18,000 for even if I had the money.

6. To Fall in Love, Drink This by Alice Feiring: Alice Feiring was writing about natural wine since long before you’d ever heard the term “skin contact.” Whether or not you’re new to the stuff, this book is your bible.

7. Sarah Espeute Embroidered Tablecloth: Tell me this isn’t the greatest tablecloth you’ve ever seen. One can simply never eat or drink upon it!

8. Leon & Sons Wine Key: Leon & Sons is the best wine shop in New York, full-stop: Best selection, best staff, best wine keys, no notes.

Season 3 of L&OR coming soon.