Drinks in the Library

Did you read the Anne of Green Gables series as a young girl and then walk through the woods pretending to be Anne and Diana? Yes? So did I and so did my friend Deanna! Talking with Deanna about this book was so much fun, celebrating Anne and the cultural impact this story has had. A famous Anne quote is: “I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers”. Well, I’m so glad I live in a world where there is an Anne of Green Gables.Spoiler alert (Not really this is an iconic scene at this point): In the first book Anne accidentally gets her bestie Diana drunk on current wine, which she believes is raspberry cordial. Current wine apparently takes months, so we decided to make Raspberry Cordial Mules, which can be enjoyed with or without alcohol by making it with zero-proof vodka. I got the recipe from this lovely website and made the cordial myself in less than an hour!Raspberry Cordial Mule12 oz. Frozen Raspberries3 cups Water¾ cup Sugar2 tsp. Lime Juice plus more for cocktailsVodkaGinger BeerFresh Raspberries (for garnish)In this episode:Deanna’s InstagramAnne of Green Gables 2 part special (Megan Fellows version is cannon)LM Montgomery

Hello Libration Nation!This week I talk with realtor and small business owner Allison Schwalm about the book Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara. This book is about all things hospitality and customer service and Allison expands on how it inspires her own business practices. It’s a great book for anyone who is aiming to grow their business, or is interested in showing caring and respect through service. Also, this is the book Richie is reading during season one of The Bear! I have never felt cooler.For our drink Allison chose a Paloma, which is a favorite of both of ours and I think feels very “restauranty” and fancy. We recorded while Allison was doing dry January, so we made it non-alcoholic by using Ritual Tequila which I bought at Ceremony, an adorable and very hip shop in the Fan RVA, check it out!You can find Allison on Instagram: Allison Schwalm and Allison Schwalm Summit PropertiesPaloma Recipe (Non-Alcoholic)3 ounces Ritual tequila (2 oz if using alcoholic tequila)2 ounces fresh grapefruit juice, plus wedges for garnish2 ounces club soda½ ounce lime juice¼ ounce simple syrupLastly a shameless plug for you to vote for Drinks in the Library as the Best Podcast for Richmond Magazine’s Best & Worst list. I also endorse Allison Schwalm as Best Entrepreneur for this list, please include us in your voting activities!Here is a list of things discussed in this podcast:Unreasonable Hospitality by Will GuidaraSummit Properties Allison’s Realty CompanyInto Thin Air by Jon KrakauerCeremony Dry Bottle ShopRitual Tequila (Non- alcoholic) Young Mother in Richmond11 Madison Park NYCThe Big Brunch Cooking ShowThe Bear TV ShowBrené Brown Books

Hello Libration Nation! This week I’m joined by Haley Houghton, an educator and book enthusiast. The book we discuss is “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus. For our drink we chose coffee (this was recorded in the morning and as busy moms we weren’t quite ready to get at it), and Haley added a little chemistry twist by making it in an Aeropress. In this episode we discuss turning 40, our two person only book-club, and the general bad-assery of Bonnie Garmus in writing the strong, quirky, brilliant female character Elizabeth Zott.Haley mentions this story is a tragicomedy, which is right on and there are some great read-alike out there if you want more like this book:Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria SempleEleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail HoneymanThe Elegance of the Hedgehog* by Muriel Barbery*We did refer to this as The Elegance of the Porcupine which I think is a very cute and relatable mistake

Hello Libration Nation! This week’s episode features librarian Beka Castagna as we discuss her latest fantasy obsession, the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson. Beka walks me through the premise of the book, its characters, and the series role as one of the biggest-name fantasy series on the market. We also discuss this Wired article, which was my entree into the insanely complicated world of who Brandon Sanderson is and what it’s like to be a Brandon Sanderson fan (did you know he lives in an underground castle?!) Also, I repeatedly call the subtitle of the book “The Final Kingdom” when it is in fact “The Final Empire” -my apologies - please don’t come at me!For our drink we chose “The Survivor”, a moniker of one of the story’s main characters. Pineapple and chocolate is a somewhat bizarre choice for a drink, but we’ll let you decide what you think, cheers!1.5 oz. White rum0.25 oz. Crème de cacao (dark)1 oz. Pineapple juice0.25 oz. Lime juice

Hello Libration Nation! This week horror film enthusiast Matthew Knotts is here to talk about one of his favorite books and films “The Exorcist” by William Peter Blatty. The episode touches equally with the film side of the story as well as the book and was delightful and hilarious to record. For our drink we went with the Exorcist Cocktail from this website. The ingredients are:3/4 oz of Lime Juice 1 1/2 oz of Tequila 3/4 oz of blue curacao liqueurFor ours we added a little grapefruit juice just to add a little flavor.There is also a surprise drink twist about halfway through, you will have to listen to find out! Cheers!_____I do want to mention that we discuss JK Rowling towards the end of the conversation and we did not bring up any of her troubling beliefs and actions against the Transgender community. This was not intentional and was an oversight as we focused on her writing, however just a reminder this IS the 3rd episode a podcast I’ve ever produced, so I’m learning and will try to do better next time.

I could not pick a better first guest than my life-partner, Bill! We discuss one of his favorite books Hyperion, land some pretty decent jokes, and consider the potential that we get cancelled on this very first podcast episode. Kidding (I hope!)The book is Hyperion by Dan Simmons, and Bill choose to pair our household beverage, a Gin & Fresca, or as we call them “A Girlfriend” (GF, get it?!)Girlfriends:2 oz Gin 6 oz That’s it! Stir over ice and let your tastebuds explode! Follow us on Instagram @Drinksinthelibrarywww.drinksinthelibrary.com

Drinks in the Library is thinly library where drinks aren’t just allowed, they are required! Each episode librarian Gigi Howard interviews a guest about a much loved book and we pair it with a drink!Instagram: @DrinksintheLibrarywww.drinksinthelibrary.com