Since yesterday was the 21st birthday of Turner Classic Movies (a previous stop of mine), I figured a little alcoholic tribute was in order considering TCM is now the legal age to imbibe.

Here, then, are a few potent potables and their movie pairings/appearances to broaden your palette & your film intelligence.

Cocktails:
French 75 – Casablanca – (More info on the French 75 & Casablanca) – a truly classic film and a powerful champagne cocktail with a great backstory.

Manhattan – Some Like It Hot – What’s not to love about men in drag drinking a concoction out of a hot water bottle?

Old Fashioned – It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World – The only Old Fashioned more dangerous than Don Draper’s is one made by the pilot of a plane while he should be flying!

Whiskey Sour – The Seven Year Itch – Another Marilyn Monroe mention.

Dry Martini – The Thin Man series – If these films or this classic cocktail don’t make you thirsty, you’re doing it wrong.

Here’s Nick & Norah Charles (William Powell & Myrna Loy) enjoying some Martinis, to give you a “taste”

A Shot & a beer:
Narragansett (You may still be able to find the throwback cans in New England) – Jaws – You may need a bigger glass.

Nicholson’s Whiskey – The Shining – Bourbon vs. Tennessee Whiskey

Honorable Mentions:
White Russian – The Big Lebowski – A caucasian with a lot of ins, lot of outs, lot of what-have-you’s

Vodka Martini OR the Vesper – Any James Bond film, though you’ll only find the Vesper in Casino Royale (and not the 1967 version, the 2006 version). – Shaken, not stirred.

Here’s the wacky Herb Alpert-licious trailer for the 1967 Casino Royale which is “classic” in it’s own way.

I’m not suggesting you do a marathon of watching these films OR drinking these drinks (the latter might be especially dangerous), but if you’re inclined towards a tipple and good movies, you could do a lot worse than sampling something from either column if you haven’t already.

Cheers!