A Call to Battle, Drink Local - act Global, and the American Caipiroska drink

I know that we had a post last week covering the 4th of July, but I attended a party at a local bar this weekend that was part birthday party / part deployment party for a young woman going to Afganistan.

When I saw this entry on Wiki for today, I truly felt compelled to write about it.

1776 – George Washington ordered the Declaration of Independence to be read out loud to members of the Continental Army in New York City for the first time.


I have never served. I have never been called upon, at a dark hour, to shoulder my unspoken but expected responsibility as a citizen of this Republic. I have never left my family and friends with short notice, asking only that they pray for my safe return. I have never stood shoulder to shoulder with strangers of different races and ages and sexes, all sharing but one common goal - the defense of our nation. I have never had to clean a weapon on the eve of battle, knowing the fate that could befall me, knowing the damage I would be asked to inflict on a fellow human, wondering "can I do this - can I do all that will be asked of me?". But - were I asked to serve in the defense of this country - I can think of no words better than those to give purpose to my actions and to steady my heart and my hands.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

On this day in 1811, Explorer David Thompson erects a sign at the joining of the Columbia and Snake Rivers in what is now Washington state - claiming the land for the United Kingdom. It would not be until 1846 that the land became part of the United States.

The Historical Inebriant:  American Caipiroska*

http://americanharvestspirit.com/drinks/11

Ingredients:

2 parts American Harvest**
2 lime wedges
1 teaspoon superfine sugar
1 teaspoon raw or turbinado sugar
Crushed ice

In a cocktail glass squeeze the juice of one lime wedge and add the other whole lime wedge, add sugars and muddle. Pour in American Harvest and stir well until sugar is dissolved. Add crushed ice and garnish with a lime wheel.

*a form of Caipirinha prepared with vodka instead of the usual cachaça.

**The American Harvest bottle features the wording "Snake River USA"


For an interesting review of American Harvest:
http://www.drinkspirits.com/vodka/american-harvest-organic-spirit-review/

I have tried the American Harvest and it was a Featured Inebriant on this blog a few weeks ago.
For the price point, I think it's a great value. (In my humble and unpaid opinion. Although
if they want to send me a case, I would not refuse)

...we pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

In 1776, in a letter to his wife, John Adams wrote:

"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."

The event Adams referred to was the passage of the resolution of independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 2, 1776. It was this act that "declared the United Colonies Free and Independent States."

The Continental Congress then voted to create a Committee of Five who would draft a document giving reasons for the Resolution of Independence. The committee was made of: John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Robert Livingston of New York, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia.

It is the result of that committee, the Declaration of Independence - which contains such extraordinary language about freedoms - and the date of its signing, July 4th, that Americans chose to celebrate. However, Adams' words on how to celebrate this holiday of freedom from Britain are as accurate today as when they were written.

The Historical Inebriant: 

Whatever a free man in a free land wants.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

...And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred  Honor.

Fun Facts

The oldest signer was Benjamin Franklin who was 70 at the time. At the signing, Franklin famously said "We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately."

John Hancock was the first and only person to sign the Declaration on July 4, 1776.

Thomas Jefferson who was the author of the Declaration of Independence and member of the "Committee of Five" along with John Adams who was also a committee member both died on July 4th 1826, exactly 50 years to the day the document was adopted and printed.

The original was engrossed on parchment which is an animal skin specially treated with lime and stretched to create a strong, long-lasting writing support. The printed version is on paper and was read aloud from town squares throughout the colonies, so that those who could not read would receive the news about intended separation from England.

The Declaration of Independence was adopted by 12 of 13 colonies (New York not voting) on July 4, 1776, but wasn't actually signed by all the delegates until August 2, 1776.