Flavour Revolution – Strawberry

Decreased Desires

Nothing beats a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries to celebrate a romantic occasion. There’s also a tradition in France of giving strawberries and cream to newly married couples, as an aphrodisiac. Normally, in this case, we’d take a look at aphrodisiacs out there, but I’ve already written an article on that subject. Therefore, we’re going to flip the script and look at the aphrodisiac’s lesser known (and lesser liked) sibling, the anaphrodisiac… translation: things that will kill your mojo!

Graham Crackers – I’ve mentioned in a previous article how Graham crackers were invented by Sylvester Graham, a Presbyterian minister, who believed that the crackers would suppress sexual urges. Then, some genius got the great idea to throw marshmallows and chocolate on top, funkifying them into smores and the rest of campfire loving is history!

Teddy Grahams

Hops – Bad news for IPA beer fans… although I have my doubts about this one, as I know a lot of beer drinkers that don’t really lose their sexual charge after drinking all night. That said, all alcohol can decrease one’s desires, just based on the drug being a depressant. Why hops, in particular, gets such a bad rap is beyond me.

Corn Flakes – If I was to choose a cereal to get down with, it would probably be something along the lines of Cookie Crisp or Count Chocula. Corn Flakes were invented by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg to suppress libido. The good doctor believed that flavourful food led to flamed loins and so he created an incredibly boring product. They should try using this in their advertising material today. That would work real well.

Soy – Used by monks to suppress their naughty feelings – probably a good thing, given their surrounded by only other monks – soy, in large quantities, is said to kill one’s sex drive. I do like using soy in cooking stirfrys and as a sauce for various dishes, but I may have to be cautious with it now. I mean, who wants a sushi outing to not eventually lead to carnal pleasures!

soy-milk

Mint – What’s funny here, is that mints are meant to lead to sexual attraction (or so the ads tell us), as fresh breath is the starting point to any close encounter. Menthol, however, has actually been proven to lower testosterone. Bad breath, it is!

Cilantro – I’ve never been a huge fan of cilantro – if it’s in a dish, fine, but I’m not going to necessarily search it out – and apparently that’s a good thing. It’s ironic that cilantro is used in many exotic dishes and those are the ones the likes of Dr. Kellogg and Minister Graham believed led to unsavoury desires.

Black Licorice – I don’t want to sound like a candy racist, but why do all the worst candies come in the colour black? I’m talking jujubes, jelly beans, licorice, etc. I’ve never been a fan of black licorice, but do like the red variety. I’m just going to pretend that red licorice is a completely separate strain of the plant and is therefore not exempt from the Sip Advisor’s snack drawer.

blacklicorice

Granola – Today’s modern day granola bars, with their phallic shape (don’t forget the optional chocolate covering!), should be changing the way we view granola, but their original intention was much like Corn Flakes and Graham Crackers, meant to keep thoughts pure and wholesome. Then they started adding all the different flavours to the bars and even the cereal and all hell broke loose!

Cheese – I include this one only as a way to shame Mrs. Sip and all her cheese-loving friends. Yes, the Sip Advisor has begun to dabble in some cheese arts, but nowhere near to the degree as my peers. And that’s why the Sip Advisor is the world’s greatest lover… voted this for many consecutive years in popular surveys. It’s all because of the anti-cheese movement, my little sippers.

Flavour Revolution: Thigh High

Thigh High Martini

There’s even a program out there, looking to help folks reduce their sex drive. These monsters believe that they will help users have deeper relationships and a clearer mind. Where’s the joy in all of that!?

Sip Advisor Bar Notes (4.5 Sips out of 5):
There are Strawberry Liqueur recipes called Chocolate-Covered Strawberry and Aphrodisiac, but those seemed too easy to use in this post. Therefore, I chose a drink that gets the Sip Advisor’s mojo rising! This martini was a little sweeter than either Mrs. Sip or me would prefer, but it was very tasty and would be perfect as a dessert cocktail and for those in your life that enjoy the sweeter things in life!

October 18 – Spider’s Bite

TV Haunts

Most TV shows will take advantage of the Halloween season and put out an episode involving a party or trick or treating and while many of them are good, great even, some series really know how to salute the event. Here are the shows that took the Halloween formula and turned it up a notch, leaving their own mark on the holiday:

The Simpsons

You really can’t go wrong with The Simpsons ‘Treehouse of Horror’ Halloween specials. It’s hard for me to pick a favourite segment, but I’d probably settle on “The Shinning” lampoon of “The Shining”. I also love the story of Homer selling his soul for a donut and Ned Flanders being the devil. Mrs. Sip and I went back last year to watch every single episode, but only managed to get through 15 of the 23 shows (now 24)… on the plus side, that leaves us with nine airings to go through this year, leading up to the 31st!

Treehouse of Horror

Roseanne

Roseanne featured a Halloween episode every year from 1989 to 1995. The Connors were a wild bunch that loved Halloween perhaps more than any other time of the year. The whole family got into the spirit, with decorations around the house and wildly imaginative costumes. The best episode may be 1989’s “BOO”, which featured the family hosting a haunted house in their home and Dan and Roseanne taking turns trying to scare the crap out of one another.

Community

Every season of Community’s existence has featured a Halloween-themed episode and hopefully that continues in season five. The show has celebrated Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), examined what would happen if a zombie apocalypse took over the school, tried to figure out which member of the study group is a potential homicidal maniac, and ventured through a seemingly haunted house to rescue their friend. What could be next for the gang?

Community- Season 4

Home Improvement

With all of Tim ‘The Tool Man’ Taylor’s hapless home renovations and gadgets, you knew each time Halloween rolled around that there would be mayhem and macabre in the household. Tim is also big into Halloween pranks, something that his family has also gotten into the spirit of as they try to get back at their father/husband. Watch a few of these and you’ll be interspersing your laughing with the odd grunt or two!

The Office

The Office was always good for viewing because it gave you touches of what you experience in your own daily working life. That includes the yearly ramp up to Halloween at, well, the office. The costumes worn by the characters have been full of gags, like Michael’s two-headed monster, all the women dressed as cats, and Jim’s lack of enthusiasm for choosing a getup, his outfits including three black dots (Three-Hole Punch Jim), wearing a “Dave” nametag, and writing “BOOK” on his face (Bookface).

Drink #291: Spider’s Bite

Spider's Bite Drink Recipe

  • 1 oz PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur
  • 0.5 oz Cranberry Liqueur
  • 0.5 oz Vodka
  • 0.5 oz Triple Sec
  • Splash of Lemon Juice
  • Garnish with Black Licorice

Have I missed your favourite show? Give me hell and let me know what to watch this or next Halloween season!

Sip Advisor Bar Notes (4 Sips out of 5):
This cocktail was pretty tasty. The only downside was having so much Black Licorice leftover, but I was able to pawn them off on Pa Sip. All the ingredients combined to make a sour, flavourful martini… a much better experience than getting bit by a spider!